16,949 Garden Web Discussions | Growing Tomatoes

Hi, I asked this question, about suckers, and overwhelming response is DO NOT CUT ANY SUCKERS!!! This is like having a sailboat, and throwing away the sails, and then wondering why you are going nowhere -
this is the link to why not to prune suckers:
http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/tomato/msg0609471311477.html?14
have a nice day - oh, and i think they are toast, plant are definitely ruined.

Here is a link that might be useful: read about how to grow tomatoes.

"they are toast, plant are definitely ruined."

Absolutely disagree. As has been stated, lots of people trim the lowest leaves/branches of their tomatoes to help with airflow and soil being splashed on the leaves during watering. Assuming the kids didn't strip the plants bare and the top is still growing well, I think you'll be fine. You might get some reduced production, but that is a far cry from completely ruining the plants.

What varieties of tomatoes are they, and where are you located? More information can help fine tune your answers. :)

Kathy

This is from the About.com: Home Cooking page on Tomato Storage and Selection Information:

"Refrigeration is the enemy of the tomato as it nullifies flavor and turns the flesh mealy. The culprit is a compound called Z-3 hexenel, which accounts for the tomato's scent and taste. The development process which turns tomato's linolenic acid to the Z-3 that makes our mouth and nose sing is hindered by cold. If you must refrigerate a tomato, take it out about an hour before using it to let it return to room temperature to revive any lurking Z-3."

I hope that helps.

Betsy

Here is a link that might be useful: 5 Common Mistakes that Ruin Your Fresh Tomatoes, and How to Avoid Them

Betsy,I am so happy you posted that link. If you ask 100 people on the street why super market tomatoes are tastless 90 will say "because the are produced in hothouses." The information also tells use why saving seed from a beautiul store bought tomatoe is a bad idea.
And for those who have always known the 5 tips,it's comforting to see from the pictures that home grown tomatoes arn't supposed to have unblemished skin. Kinda like a lady with perfect skin ,soft hands and long manicured nails. You know she doesn't wash dishes nor garden so that's 2 strikes starting off.

Does seem like weather, possible drainage & transplant issues, combined. The bad part is the plants are now prone to infections. I'd snip, or partially snip any branches hanging too close to the ground, those often get infected first.

Hard to tell from the pics, but yes, you should probably swap out any plants that look heavily affected. You may also want to begin treatment sprays, a few popular ones that work well are serenade, copper, sulphur, daconil (google search). You can alternate between two different sprays, just spread it out over a week or two, or right after rainstorms.

This post was edited by sjetski on Sat, Jun 8, 13 at 9:25

When I pulled them out I did spray them with Fungonil.I mulched with newspaper and grass over top so that there would be less soil splashing onto the leaves. Sprayed again today.

I don't know whether to take off the diseased looking leaves as that is only what some of them have. So I figure some leaves is better than none. I will have to wait on my container tomatoes to get suckers before I can replace them so I will have to wait either way.

This post was edited by Reach_For_The_Sun on Sat, Jun 8, 13 at 21:45

Ha...I knew there had to be something I was missing! I'll check out our sprayer and kick myself for not figuring that out sooner. I was crouched down this morning trying to spray up and thinking there had to be a better way!

Thank you, thank you, thank you. I'm learning something new!

Normally, you should have put some coarse gravel at the bottom of the barrel and have drilled 3 or more about inch size holes ,just above the bottom. Smaller holes at the bottom(especially without gravel) might get clogged. I have seen it to happen with a 10gal plastic

@ seysonn,

Please go to this link
Article that explains perched water tables or this one Container Drainage, or this one Myth busted: Don't put gravel in pot . Time and time again, studies have shown that it is actually detrimental to put gravel in the bottom of ANY container for growing plants. Doing so reduces the available room for roots by raising the perched water table.

Betsy

Here is a link that might be useful: Another article on gravel in pots

This post was edited by bets on Sat, Jun 8, 13 at 10:51

If they are sickly because of rookie mistakes, it makes sense to root cuttings as long as you don't repeat the same mistakes. If the plants are diseased, I'd pass on rooting cuttings.

Many people take cuttings or clippings of tomatoes and root them. I think one of the most common methods is to root them in water. Personally I don't like that method very well, though I have used it. One reason I don't care for it is that the roots that are developed in water are different than the ones that plants grow in soil. That means that once you have water roots, you then have to plant the cutting into a soilless growing medium, and it has to go through a process of growing roots that are adapted to its natural environment. Tomatoes donâÂÂt normally grow in water. It isn't their natural habitat.

So what I do, is take a smallish container, such as a 2x2" or 3x3" pot and fill it with soilless growing medium, poke a hole big enough for the tomato stem and put it in it, then firm the medium around the stem and water very well. (To the point of saturation.) Then I put the tomato in an area with bright but not direct light. For me that is usually under my fluorescents that I use for seed starting. I start with cuttings that have at least 3-5 leaves on them and about 3-4â of stem below the leaves. (I have used smaller than that successfully, but it takes longer to get a good sized plant for transplanting.) Keep the medium pretty wet, I have even had the rooting container sitting in about a quarter to half inch of water and just let it stay in there but donâÂÂt add anymore water. The first day or two the plant will droop a lot and look like it is gonna die, but then it will perk up. When it perks up, that means it has started making roots and you can stop keeping the potting mix so wet and follow a normal watering regimen. Give it a few more days to a week longer and once it is well established, you can harden it off for planting outdoors.

You can use bigger cuttings, but you'd need a bigger pot and they may not recover quite as quickly. People do it all the time when they have a branch break off a plant in the garden and they just shove the broken branch into the soil and as long as it is moist enough and the branch is somewhat shaded, it will usually grow.

By the way, taking cuttings works best with indeterminate tomatoes like your three.

Betsy

This post was edited by bets on Sat, Jun 8, 13 at 13:27

Betsy and Dave ...thanks again so much.

I'm pretty sure they are not sick with fungus or bacteria ...based upon the research I did. I suspect it may either be from overwatering or lack of nutrients. I am pretty sure the mix in my first container where they were overcrowded was holding too much water and not providing enough aeration. I am trying self-watering setups and I think too much moisture coupled with lack of nutrients because the plants hadn't accessed the fertilizer in the strip at the top of the container yet was my problem. I moved them each to their own container, but now I think even though I amended my mixture, it still may be too wet (just based on how the plants look and what I've been reading). I am hoping for some warm, sunny weather (we've had rain for the past two days) to see if the soil will dry out some and they can recover. I don't see any pests or damage that I think points to anything bacterial or fungal ...but I am a novice and am just going off of what I've been reading.

Anyway, I think I will try to take some cuttings and see if I can propagate some new plants.

Agreed on all points but it might be a bit unfair to compare to Big Beef which I (also?) had growing next to. I'll go so far as to mention that in late fall i had 3 of my support stringlines fail, all were Rebelski plants heavy with developing fruits. It probably is just coincidence.

Planted 250..100% germination. Transplanted to hoop house 3/1 plants are 7 foot and loaded. Tested last season and was impressed with production and flavor though not as good as early girls but sold better on the stand because of looks.

Soluble 20-20-20 won't burn unless the potting mix (or soil when in the ground) is dry when the fert is applied.

Evidence of dry leaf edges means that they're too dry. Several possible reasons: too little water; dry out before watered again; and are in marginally sized containers -- thus, insufficient root room.

Jean is right about half strength 20-20-20 not burning. I suspect your problem is contained in the next statement:

"I have never checked moisture of the soil any more than 2 inches. I'm not really sure how wet it is supposed to be but its always damp for the most part."

Curling leaves are typically a sign of stress in a tomato plant, with over watering being one of the most common causes.

GardenWebber sprouts_honor (Jennifer from Cleveland) had a wonderful suggestion on how to tell whether or not you need to water your tomatoes, and I quote here: "Get a wooden dowel rod (or two) and sink it in the ground near a plant or two and leave it. Pull it out when you think you need to water. If the top is dry and the bottom is a little damp, it's time to water. If it looks dark and feels saturated, wait to water. I use this technique with potted plants that don't like being over watered and it's helpful with in ground plants too."

Betsy