16,949 Garden Web Discussions | Growing Tomatoes

Hi dirtguy50 and welcome. No upper 40s won't hurt them. I tend to cover them if we get down to 40 since I know it will be colder than that at ground level.

We had such a nice long run of upper 50 and 60 degree nights that I decided to jump the gun with a few test plants too. After the next couple of nights the long-term forecast looks good unless we get hail storms.

Dave

Dave,
thanks for the help. The forcast is now saying 40 on Thurs night, so I may cover them that night at least.

Does seeing spider mites require some sort of magnification? from my careful inspection I can't see anything movie, but I may just not be able to see them.

Anyone else have a suggestion if it is not mites?

Mites are one of the smallest pests out there. Usually best to use one of those 20x or 30x magnifiers to see them really well. Another clue is that they prefer low humidity, and dry soil. If your humidity is high, it's likely something else.

I already started some new seeds after washing everything in bleach solution. Had to toss out almost all of the opalka, eva purple ball and san marzano to prevent further spread of the problem but thankfully there still is time. I also sprayed the other seedlings with safer soap last night and so far they look good.

I believe I got the aphids from miracle grow soil mix. I always clean everything thoroughly before starting new seeds so I know it isn't anything from inside the house. Definitely won't go for that mix again.

So Dave you think it is the aphids? That is actually much better than what I expected. I was totally thinking that it was some kind of bacterial/fungal problem and I will be doomed this year.

I contacted the local extension office and they said it could be: 1) ethylene damage 2) temperature fluctuation, 3) whitefly damage. I am pretty sure it isn't 3. I had bags of stuff ready for the compost bin near the seedlings and they were definitely decomposing quickly before I got them outside. Also had mangoes on the counter near them. So it is quite possible a freak ethylene damage.

I never heard of ethylene damage myself but evidently tomatoes are very sensitive.

Heat mat usually helps, but I think a controller is mandatory as most mats run way too hot without one. I have had no problem sprouting up to five year old seeds with regulated heat in a reasonable amount of time.

Interesting. I assumed the larger plumper seeds had more stored nutrients and were probably more "mature" and more developed when they were harvested.

This is the first time I've tried to grow tomatoes from seed, and it's difficult figuring out what could be wrong and how to fix it. Three different varieties have been under a grow light since sowing, and are now 8-12" tall ~ they've been transplanted into larger pots once.

Here's what's happening. Some curled leaves and some yellow leaves. There are a few that look just fine and strong; some that have 10% yellowing on leaves that look otherwise healthy; some that have 80% or more yellowing leaves (kind of striped with yellow, the plants look OK except for the yellowing); some that look good except for some curl in the newer, topmost leaves. Some leaves fell off of the yellow ones, or looked dead so I pinched 'em off.

I may have watered too much... and unfortunately, I also added fish emulsion (2 Tablespoons to 1 gallon of water) which, after reading this, appears to be way too much fertilizer for them.

So the next time I watered them, I made sure they were pretty dry and just used plain water and soaked them good. I've always avoided getting water on the leaves.

I also didn't have much air circulation going on, when they were under the grow lights. I also think the grow light may've been too close to the leaves. Additionally, they were really close together under that one grow light. After reading this, it occurred to me that they might need more room. I guess tomatoes need elbow room and fresh air, just like everything else :-)

Today I am setting them outside in a large cold frame, plenty of elbow room, and there's a light bulb installed (to keep it a bit warmer inside the cold frame).

The tomatoes don't look like a lost cause, yet. I'm hoping they will recover in their new environment. I'm praying they don't have a fungal disease.

Wish me luck... and oh, any comments or advice would be really appreciated.

Bigtomato ~ what does the epsom salts do?

Thanks all for the helpful comments on here. My Roma's looked puny and yellow so i decided to search. i think I am over watering. All my other plants are nice, green and growing, including other tomato varieties, but the flat of Roma's is not doing much. I use recycled materials for my pots, but have drainage holes, etc. Anyhow, great advice. thanks!

Thanks elight, this is exactly what I was wondering. My containers are in liters, and I wasn't sure of how much each liter represented in cubic feet. This is great information to know, thank you!

3.78 Liters (litres) per US Gallon.

I had 1 Red Robin give 10, 1/2" and am growing more in 2 8" stacked strawberry pots. Great (one crop) tomatoes. I have gotten oodels of great tasting fruits off 2 Tiny Tom, and they just keep coming. When I trim the plant I stick it in a pot and most become a new tomato plant to give friends. I think I have 10 starts. Only bad thing is one tomato ripens pea size next almost 3/4". Makes no sense.
Alvin

My red robins sat all winter with blooms that wouldn't open. But they were very healthy. I have one that is loaded with tomatoes now and some are starting to ripen. A fresh tom in April will be great!

The others are blooming and I planted them in the garden to see how they do outside of the pot.

I didn't get any toms over the winter as I had hoped, but it was nice to rub a leaf and get that fresh tomato smell on my fingers!

Tomatoes no way. I like to plant early, and usually push the envelope in late April with a W-O-W and an early variety, looking for a "June" tomato. Tomatoes no, potatoes yes. FWIW, planted potatoes in mid-March, and they're breaking ground now.

I planted 12 rows of sweet corn on March 18th in North Central Missouri...it's up with a good stand and good color. Planted 60 tomatoes on March 31st because they were getting so tall from being in this great sun on the deck...sure hope this fantastic early spring weather holds up. I have about 60 more tomato plants that are 3 inches tall, but I would sure hate to lose the first batch.

The variety "Delicious " is the current record holder with a tomato over 7 pounds

I had a Gold Medal tomato at a little over 3 lbs. last year. It had good flavor.
I have heard that Big Zac is the best tasting of the HUGE tomatoes.
Grandpa Charlie & Grandpa Willie are excellent tasting BIG tomatoes.

Whenever I get ants around my plants or in the compost bin, I always sprinkle corn meal on top of the soil, around it. One day later all ants would be gone. I hope that will work for you.

Some organic ant-killers. Most I haven't tried.

Rather than repeat it each time, for 1-5:

= You'll need to keep these ant-killers from picking up soil moisture, so put them on small squares of cardboard or plastic, or in an upside-down small lid with low sides.

= Place near the nest or near ant pathways.

= Remove when you water or when it's going to rain.

1. Dry cornmeal or grits. Theoretically the ants take it back to the nest and eat it, and it swells in contact with the moisture inside their bodies and kills them. This worked for me, though it took a few days.

2. Same as the above, but crush a bit of uncooked white rice.

3. Mix 1/2 cup sugar, 1/2 cup molasses, and 1 tablespoon yeast. The ants take it back to the nest and they all die. [Extra can be stored in the freezer.]

4. Mix 1 part sugar with 2 parts borax detergent; add enough water to make a gel. If your soil is high in boron, you shouldn't use this.

5. Ground-up citrus peel is supposed to repel ants. Store in the freezer until needed.

6. If the ants are nesting away from the plants, you can pour hot water in their nests. Seems to me I tried that once, but so long ago I don't remember details.

7. If the ants are nesting away from plants, you can spray them with a mixture of isopropyl alcohol and water. This is useful when you find a winged swarm moving to a new home. I have used this and they died quickly. I used the leftover pine sawfly larvae killer that I had on hand, which was equal parts of isopropyl alcohol and water, with a small amount of dishwashing liquid.