Information and discussion regarding garden diseases, insects and other unwelcome critters.
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December 4, 2016 | #1 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: Invercargill New Zealand
Posts: 1,022
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Any Ideas on these please...
Hi...My whole new crop is diseased ...any help would be sincerely appreciated......Thanks Ron
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December 4, 2016 | #2 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: Invercargill New Zealand
Posts: 1,022
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Hi..Some more Photos Thanks Ron
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December 4, 2016 | #3 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: Invercargill New Zealand
Posts: 1,022
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Patti..I can imagine you being so wild when I tell you this...I think some of the soil mix from the NBFT drums etc that I retrieved and bagged up was used in my soil mix when I transplanted???? I started thinking about this and I have probably spread the same disease I had in my old plants into my new plants through the soil.The more I think about this the more logical and heart breaking it is>>>Have I destroyed my plants myself in order to save some money..all the upset for a few dollars.....This raises the question ??can my old mix with perlite etc be sterilized for reuse....I do have my tomato mix saved in plastic barrels from three years ago?? I was told its "rubbish" but it should not have any disease..and mixed with perlite and some calcium etc it should be alright ...as long as I bleach my mixing drum??????
I have just finished my greenhouse roof work for today and now have just done my copper spraying....and then see if I have anything for tea... I am hoping for a nice night and day tomorrow as my plants have a roof but little protection against the wind and cold.....I thought they looked better having dried off some what after the bleach spray..but it may only be in the mind ...With my latest thoughts I will replant them in new soil ...and give them another bleach tomorrow and I will clip off any leaves that has the disease ....and then Tuesday I will spray with copper...In the meantime I will buy some new tomato mix to try some plants out as per your instructions.....I have bought more seedlings IE Russian Red ...$1.50 for 6 .....They have already been bleach sprayed ...all these cheap seedlings are looking really healthy???? Regards Ron Last edited by murihikukid; December 4, 2016 at 04:50 AM. |
December 4, 2016 | #4 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: Vancouver Island
Posts: 5,923
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Oh no.... that is a hard lesson. hope you can salvage them.
KarenO |
December 4, 2016 | #5 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: San Diego
Posts: 1,255
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Hi murihikukid,
What has the day/night temperature been recently? The dying leaf pattern is typical of plants with roots too cold or overwatered. Also, unless you have identified a specific fungal/bacterial disease I would quit spraying with bleach and copper. Those plants are very stressed and bleach and copper sprays will stress them even more. Good luck! Steve |
December 4, 2016 | #6 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Cache Valley, N/E of The Great Salt Lake
Posts: 1,244
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To me, this looks like environmental damage. Due perhaps to taking the plants from a high humidity, low light, calm, indoor environment to a drier, outside, windy, sunlit environment.
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December 5, 2016 | #7 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Alabama
Posts: 7,068
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One of the small plants looks like it may have damping off. A few of the others show some leaves that look like gray mold but for the most part it does look like they may be over watered. The bleach spray used in the proper concentrations will not bother young plants unless they have damaged leaves or disease. Copper if used too strong can cause some stunting especially of new growth. Damp cool nights can increase the incidence of gray mold.
Bill |
December 5, 2016 | #8 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Sunol, CA
Posts: 2,723
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December 5, 2016 | #9 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Alabama
Posts: 2,250
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Overwatered and too cool temps are what I see. Tomatoes should be grown by watering them well, then let them dry out so much that they start to wilt before watering again.
They are also in soil with a nitrogen imbalance. What have you used for fertilizer? |
December 15, 2016 | #10 | |
Guest
Posts: n/a
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Quote:
To me, they also look like the nitrogen-potassium levels are imbalanced in favor of nitrogen (which isn't altogether uncommon). I would give them some potassium (not a full NPK fertilizer; just potassium). It should help the plants to be more vigorous, and it should make the stems and leaves a lot stronger (you shouldn't need to be tying them up at that size, if they have enough potassium and sunlight, but if they already need to be tied up, then potassium probably won't change that, although it will make the stems notably stronger fast). Sudden changes in sunlight and too much nitrogen vs potassium can cause symptoms similar to transplant shock. Root rot could cause the same symptoms. However, to me, they also just look like they've been out of real soil and unfiltered sunlight too long. I wouldn't be worried about most of them too much, honestly, unless you're planning to keep them in containers (then I would worry about your soil). Some extra potassium (e.g. potassium sulfate) should help them to survive the transplant to the ground better, if you're going to plant them outside of containers. Transplanting them when the sun isn't out (hours away from that time) should be best, as the plants may need time to adapt to the soil, and the root damage they've sustained, before the sun hits them. I don't think cold nights are the issue here, since they'd probably be more stout (less in need of tying up) if that were the case. I would suspect the opposite were responsible (constant, warm to temperate, moist conditions). There could be some pythium at hand, but I don't see any *definite* signs that it's there (signs of the disease, yes, but those signs could be caused by all kinds of things instead of pythium). The stems will likely start to wither (and/or look kind of moldy), starting from the bottom or so, if it has pythium. Whether or not, though, potassium should help there. It may not eliminate the pythium if it has taken hold, but it should help the plants to grow much better in the face of it (as should being outside). I wouldn't rule out the possibility of spider mites also being present (given the look of a couple of those leaves in the fourth picture) if you have them in that area, either. They can be invisible and cause general stress to plants. They shouldn't bother the tomatoes as much outside, either, unless the plants are suffering otherwise. I have big issues with spider mites outside with lots of stuff (but they usually only bother the tomatoes if they're indoors or if the tomatoes are next to spider-mite infested plants for a good while—of if they're stunted, say by too high of a soil pH). Last edited by shule1; December 15, 2016 at 02:15 AM. |
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December 5, 2016 | #11 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Illinois, zone 6
Posts: 8,407
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It all looks like pythium to me. I think his media is too mucky, which is causing the symptoms we are seeing. Over-watering and cold nights make the problem worse. I'd re-pot in different media and try adding more perlite. Try to keep them out of the cold, too.
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December 7, 2016 | #12 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: Invercargill New Zealand
Posts: 1,022
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OK...Do I have the answer?? or is this far fetched?
My procedure is this... I have the cut off lower portion of a plastic drum and I use this for mixing the various parts of my soil mix ....Its always been inside as it is now with the left overs of my last mix ..
A week ago I happened to catch my beloved cat standing in my mixing drum and I growled at him ....I checked the drum for dampness but it was OK....so never gave it a thought.. Then trying to figure out what was happening too my plants which were all moved out into my greenhouse in natural lighjt,,,I was able to establish a pattern..You see what puzzled me was why only a number of plants died..why not all ...they were all transplanted basicly within 24 hours of each other in the same mix ...sorry it was not the same mix...same recipe different mix when the drum emptied... I was convinced the answer to half my problem (the smaller plants dieing) was in the mix and thats why I picked on Perlite because there was one healthy plant and I had transplanted it into a container with no Perlite and its soil would not have come from my mixing bowl....Then I remembered the cat and i thought it may not have urinated in my mix cause I surely would have noticed it but what about spraying in it ...would I know if my cat had sprayed my mix ...probably not ....and what if I required two mixes to do my transplanting (which I know I did ) this would possibly mean one mix could have been contaminated.... So I have smelt whats left in the mixing bowl and I think I detect a "spray" odour in it...So I thought that is the only possible answer.... Yes another stupid mistake on my part if indeed this is what happened and from now on the mixing bowl will be covered and bleach sprayed ..not the tomatoes....But is my theory plausible..well only the experts here can tell me that..but it ticks all the boxes... Now I know the smaller and fragile plants quickly died but what about the others.....am I dealing with two different things here or has this been my problem right back to when I first discovered a leaf problem on my original half and fullen grown Tasty Toms and Black From Tula's.. I know I topped my soil content in my individual plant growing drums back then from my usual mix recipe from the plastic mixing bowl...was this contaminated also and instead of my problem being a disease was it "sprayed Soil".... Now I looked after my plants very well and there are again certain factors that are related to my wintor plants and too my new plants so could have "Marley" my cat been spraying my mix all along.....and here is the most important question of all ?? has anybody had any experience of this type of problem and does it result in the leaf problems that I still cannot equate to a mold or blight based on looking at photos etc....of that type of disease.... So I got out my self watering propagator and planted another 40 seeds in it ....and will start again remember we have just moved into summer here.... and see what happens using another mix that will be protected at all times from Marley...Its past the ideal time but I have to try before I burn the house down...Meantime I am posting some more photos to be looked at ...I am afraid I cannot get good closeups with my Nikon CoolPix camera..I am sure there is a way its just I do not know how ..its like growing Tomatoes... Also with a number of members using a cat as a photo of introduction somebody surely somebody will know ? Cheers Ron Last edited by murihikukid; December 7, 2016 at 08:43 PM. |
December 7, 2016 | #13 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Illinois, zone 6
Posts: 8,407
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I doubt that one cat could cause that much damage. Do you have an outdoor garden? The plants on the right in the bottom pic look like they have a chance if planted outside in good soil. Just kill the ones on the left; they're done.
Sorry you're having problems, man. Maybe you could dry ditching the soil-less mix and going straight hydro. I still think the problem lies in your media. |
December 8, 2016 | #14 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: Southeastern PA
Posts: 1,420
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I agree. If you are moving into summer, it's warm enough so get those plants into the ground and give them a chance. They are dying where they are! You have nothing to lose.
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December 8, 2016 | #15 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jul 2015
Location: Southeastern Pennsylvania
Posts: 1,069
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Agree there's really no way one cat could generate enough urine to cause problems in that much medium, even if he's been peeing in it for a while. Also, there are no pathogens in cat urine that could negatively affect plants like that, so bleach won't do anything.
The latest photos show the kind of damage that can happen when bleach is applied to foliage at too strong a concentration. Agree that the medium looks very heavy and mucky and moving the plants ASAP is important. What is the granular yellow-green stuff on the surface of some of those pots? I can't get a good enough view at this resolution. |
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