Tomato vines in compost
 

I have often heard that tomato leaves are poison. Do you put your plants in your compost?


Thanks
Mike

For the most part, I don't. I do compost tomatoes though.

It is not a good idea to compost tomato vines because you will just help the spread of disease to next year.

That is what I have been told so I dont do it.

Worth

I compost my vines.

I compost mine... wow they make a big stack! Just don't use the compost on tomatoes the next year, or until it's really completely broken down. If you have viruses it's another story, you have to burn them afaik, but most other pathogens are killed in a proper hot compost process.

I dont have enough to worry about so I stack mine up in the ditch buy the street and shred them up with the lawn mower.
Worth

Only the leaves that I prune. I have a small compost bin so I feel that the thicker vines take VERY long to break down. Anything with disease gets tossed.

Greg

I haven't touched my garden beds ,, still have old vines on the cages.. i was thinking of pulling them all out after removing the tomato cages I used in the one bed,, also think it might be a good idea relocating my new plants off to the side where last years roots fed in the soil. I don't believe I need tilling anymore,, just a couple shovel fulls of mg for each plant when the time comes. And this year going to lay out a couple soak hoses for convenience during the hot summer days.

I burn my vines and compost the bit of ash they may. I do not add them directly to my compost because by the end of the season they have diseases. I cold compost and that does not add enough heat to the process to kill those pathogens.

I compost them all.

Seems like there could be a market for a gardener's blow torch

As worth said: you have to be aware of spreading disease, as fungal spores (septoria for example) will over winter in the compost and infect the soil where it's placed; not worth the headache IMO.