Susan if the fusarium is in the plant when it is young then the blossoms tend to drop off without setting. Sometimes one or two will set but the plant will frequently die before the fruit can get any size. Sometimes the very first noticeable symptom of fusarium will be slow growth on a young plant and a slightly different look to the leaves which I can't really describe. The next symptom will be some yellowing of lower leaves and from there it is all downhill and very heavy rain will make the hill steeper.
I have some varieties that frequently will struggle along making fruit for a long time after the fusarium has affected the plant. Indian Stripe, Cherokee Purple, Neves Azorean Red, Lumpy Red, Andrew Rahart's Jumbo Red, Stump of the World, and Big Beef all show consistant tolerance but by no means are immune to fusarium.
Last year thanks to a cold winter the onset of fusarium was milder than the average year and I was able to have good production from some varieties that usually don't succeed in my garden. This year all of those less tolerant varieties died much earlier and so I got very little fruit from them. I am going to try some of them again in the fall and see if I have any better luck.
|