I hate 2 4 d

[augiedog55]

Its a sad day today. I put my tomatoes in on May 3 rd and they were growing great. I grow them in smart pots in a growing meduim of 60% prom mix bx and 40% black cow organic manure. I got back about ten days ago and noticed a few plants looked funny but most looked good. As time went on I kept watching them and I finally figured out what was wrong. It loooks like someone south of me has been spraying chemicals.(either a neighbor or the golf course about a mile away.)
They are 2 ft tall and healthy looking other than that. They don't look like they are dieing they are just a bit twisted at the top and the leaves look like holly leaves for the lack of a better term.Somw hwere blooming and might be puttting on fruit while others loook like they want to flower but the flowers loook tiny and not right.
Here is my question.If they were slightly afffected will they grow out of this if I use something like texas tomato food to encourage growth and flowering or will they just stunt out and do nothing? I've read alot today and some of the research said they might make it if I water and feed them alot.I'm hoping so. What do you experts thinks?
PS I'm doing an experiment today. I put two bean seeds in each pot to see if they will geminate or if they do if the leaves will be affected. If It is the Black Kow had chemicals in it.I'm doing this to see what the souse is. THIS SUCKS

[Redbaron]

Originally Posted by augiedog55

THIS SUCKS

Agree 100%. It's bad enough to fight through all the industry's propaganda campaign stating how "safe" their chemicals are. But when you do your best to make sure you avoid them, and they pollute and contaminate you anyway ...it really makes you mad.

[RebelRidin]

I might try this....

Top water drenching plants and soil past the point of run through. Let drain well and then feed with liquid N source, again until running through.

I did his last year after 2,4D fumes/spray drift got to my plants I had hardening off. They recovered (new growth returned to normal and they grew upwards again) and produced OK.

[KarenO]

agree, plus give the plants themselves a good wash too with clean water
good luck
K

[gssgarden]

What evidence is there that a neighbor has sprayed? Dead weeds?

[drew51]

I have used 2,4 D around my place and none of my plants ever had problems. Paranoia runs deep around here!

[RebelRidin]

Originally Posted by drew51

I have used 2,4 D around my place and none of my plants ever had problems. Paranoia runs deep around here!

You have been fortunate in your experience. My neighbor to the southwest regularly preps his no-till bean fields adjacent to my place with herbicides and of course uses glyphosate on them through the season. Overspray and drift regularly cause some damage to our asparagus and strawberry beds. It is just part of the risk of living next to a farm. Of course, when some damage turns into dead plants because his nephew is an inexperienced teenager who doesn't know when it is too windy to spray next to the neighbor.... Well it does get frustrating.

[beeman]

Originally Posted by RebelRidin

Overspray and drift regularly cause some damage to our asparagus and strawberry beds. It is just part of the risk of living next to a farm. Of course, when some damage turns into dead plants because his nephew is an inexperienced teenager who doesn't know when it is too windy to spray next to the neighbor.... Well it does get frustrating.

Then you should gather your evidence, carefully, then jump all over them. The laws on spraying and the damaged caused are very plain.
If the damage still occurs then sue the pants off them. This sort of attitude from sprayers it the predominate reason we are have bee losses, and if it doesn't stop we're going to be in serious trouble, food wise.

[amideutch]

I would definitely pay a visit to the golf course and ask the grounds keeper if he uses 2 4 d. If yes I would explain to him how far that stuff can drift on windy days and what it does to other peoples crops, gardens and the bee population.

Ami

[AKmark]

I would suggest taking a plant to get an accurate diagnosis, since you think drifting chemicals may be the culprit that has stressed your plants.
Do you always use so much cow manure, and was it green? I sell a couple thousand plants a year, and can say this, "more plants are killed from love than neglect."

[augiedog55]

Thank you all for your advice. I throughly did a drinch on my pots and feed them with what i had. it was urban foods all purpose vegetable fertilizer. i'm getting some texas tomato food liquid tomarrow to get them going. i hope it works.i'd hate to lose my 13 plants i;'ve raised from seeds like this.
Akmark. The manure is sold as organic manure made by Black Kow.So its not green

[RebelRidin]

Originally Posted by beeman

Then you should gather your evidence, carefully, then jump all over them. The laws on spraying and the damaged caused are very plain.
If the damage still occurs then sue the pants off them. This sort of attitude from sprayers it the predominate reason we are have bee losses, and if it doesn't stop we're going to be in serious trouble, food wise.

No way would I resort to litigation unless I believed their was malicious intent or careless disregard, which I don't. I believe my neighbor is a person of good character and truly tries his best. On those occasions when we have had more than just some minor burns on a few plants I let him know and he showed genuine concern. My neighbors fields are directly upwind from my place and we live in the mid-Atlantic coastal zone. There is almost always an appreciable breeze. It's not the easiest thing to deal with.

[gssgarden]

Agreed Drew! lol

How do you know it was 24d?

[augiedog55]

Just a guess. It looked like all the weed killer damage I've ever seen. My brother and another guy I know had the same thing but it was residual effects from 10 yrs of lawn service on the lawns and planting tomatoes in that ground

[Redbaron]

Originally Posted by RebelRidin

No way would I resort to litigation unless I believed their was malicious intent or careless disregard, which I don't. I believe my neighbor is a person of good character and truly tries his best. On those occasions when we have had more than just some minor burns on a few plants I let him know and he showed genuine concern. My neighbors fields are directly upwind from my place and we live in the mid-Atlantic coastal zone. There is almost always an appreciable breeze. It's not the easiest thing to deal with.

I agree 100% If it was me, I would show him this from the USDA NRCS
Under Cover Farmers - Feature Length

Significant reductions of all chemical usage, both fertilizers and pesticides, yet bigger yields and more profits. You'd be doing both him and yourself a favor.

Technically it is possible to eliminate herbicides altogether this way. But if you try and switch to that all at once, probably have a good chance of failure. But reductions as much as 75% are routine and consistently possible as long as you gradually work it in. It might be a way to turn a negative into a positive. Certainly far better that sueing your neighbor. And who knows? If he tries it and starts experimenting a bit, in a few years he might be one of the forward thinking types to try and find out if he can work it without any chemical sprays at all.