Fungus on Tomatoe plants

rwodka21 · May 10, 2008

My father's crop of tomatoes has been plagued with what he thinks as early blight for the past 2 years. I was wondering if someone could shed some more light on the subject to what he can do to stop this from happening. Is their pesticides that can be bought at local stores that he could use. He really enjoys planting a garden each year but seems to lose a majority of his plants to this. Thank you for the suggestions ahead of time

grungy · May 10, 2008

Has he try mulching as soon as he plants, to prevent splash up?
Cheers,
Val / grungy

feldon30 · May 10, 2008

Are the plants dying in just a few days in a stinking mess? If so, that's late blight and a major problem.

If they are slowly declining as the leaves yellow and develop brownish rings, then that could be early blight. Pictures would help. And looking at just one or two pictures online may not provide a definitive answer.

There are few tomato varieties that are resistant or even tolerant to early blight, so preventative maintenance is the key.

2-3 inches of straw or other mulch will prevent soil splashback since the diseases are already present in the soil and splash up onto the leaves.

Also, making sure to water just the base of the plants and the soil, rather than the entire plants. Soaker hoses are recommended to put the water in the ground rather than on the plants. And making sure to water in the morning so that the plants "go to bed" dry. And not handling the plants while they are wet.

If this is not enough, then spraying with a fungal preventative like Daconil (chlorothalonil) which is sold as Ortho Garden Disease Control (29.6%) which is further diluted to 1 tablespoon per gallon of water and sprayed onto the plants once per week from the day of planting until well into harvest. (Fruit can be eaten the same day if washed).

robin303 · May 11, 2008

What gets me I had two plants totally keel over and die next to healthy ones in the last two days. Then again it only got to 98 deg. Red Cherry and Tip Top.

rwodka21 · May 12, 2008

It usually starts at the beginning when the plants start to mature. Feldon you just made my day because I get to make fun of my Dad because he was doing what you are explaining not to. Thank you to everyone for the help I will return after he plants this year and see if everything helped out.

Thank you again

May 10, 2008	#1
rwodka21 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2008 Location: new york Posts: 2	Fungus on Tomatoe plants My father's crop of tomatoes has been plagued with what he thinks as early blight for the past 2 years. I was wondering if someone could shed some more light on the subject to what he can do to stop this from happening. Is their pesticides that can be bought at local stores that he could use. He really enjoys planting a garden each year but seems to lose a majority of his plants to this. Thank you for the suggestions ahead of time

May 10, 2008	#3
feldon30 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2006 Location: Rock Hill, SC Posts: 5,346	Are the plants dying in just a few days in a stinking mess? If so, that's late blight and a major problem. If they are slowly declining as the leaves yellow and develop brownish rings, then that could be early blight. Pictures would help. And looking at just one or two pictures online may not provide a definitive answer. There are few tomato varieties that are resistant or even tolerant to early blight, so preventative maintenance is the key. 2-3 inches of straw or other mulch will prevent soil splashback since the diseases are already present in the soil and splash up onto the leaves. Also, making sure to water just the base of the plants and the soil, rather than the entire plants. Soaker hoses are recommended to put the water in the ground rather than on the plants. And making sure to water in the morning so that the plants "go to bed" dry. And not handling the plants while they are wet. If this is not enough, then spraying with a fungal preventative like Daconil (chlorothalonil) which is sold as Ortho Garden Disease Control (29.6%) which is further diluted to 1 tablespoon per gallon of water and sprayed onto the plants once per week from the day of planting until well into harvest. (Fruit can be eaten the same day if washed). __________________ [SIZE="3"]I've relaunched my gardening website -- [B]TheUnconventionalTomato.com[/B][/SIZE] * [I][SIZE="1"]*I'm not allowed to post weblinks so you'll have to copy-paste it manually.[/SIZE][/I]

May 10, 2008	#2
grungy Tomatovillian™ Honoree Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Wynndel, BC, CANADA Posts: 78	Has he try mulching as soon as he plants, to prevent splash up? Cheers, Val / grungy

May 11, 2008	#4
robin303 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Austin, TX Zone 8b Posts: 531	What gets me I had two plants totally keel over and die next to healthy ones in the last two days. Then again it only got to 98 deg. Red Cherry and Tip Top.

May 12, 2008	#5
rwodka21 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2008 Location: new york Posts: 2	It usually starts at the beginning when the plants start to mature. Feldon you just made my day because I get to make fun of my Dad because he was doing what you are explaining not to. Thank you to everyone for the help I will return after he plants this year and see if everything helped out. Thank you again