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Old April 24, 2011   #1
dereckbc
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Default Wilts & Dies

Hey folks new to the forum, but an avid gardener that needs some help please.

A little background I live in Sherman TX just north of Dallas about 50 miles. We have what we call Black Gumbo soil and this is my 5th year growing tomatoes here.

I started from seed at the end of January and set out 15 plants about 3 weeks ago at the end of March. In each planting hole I dig the dirt out into a bucket and mix in about a pound of Back To Nature cotton seed compost, and 1/4 cup of Epsomma Tomato Tone fertilizer.

This year something is happening i have never experienced before, has me stumped and very angry to say the least. 8 of the 15 plants up and died over a period of 2 weeks.

It all starts the same, one day the plant is green, healthy, blooming flowers, and putting on fruit. Then i will get up in the morning or notice at some point in the day a plant looks wilted like a lack of water, then by the end of the day or next morning it is flat on the ground dead.

First i thought cut worms but there is no evidence at ground level. I dug a few up looking for clues and the only thing I have noticed is along the stem below grade from say to to 4 inches down is the stem looks like it has been pinched. Just like if you were to bend a branch or stem in half and it fractures.

At first thought I assumed it was wind damage on the first plant because it was just below grade. But as this went on the areas is quite below grade and no way for the wind to bend the plant over that deep.

Does anyone know what is going on and how to prevent it from happening to the rest of my plants? It is getting too late in the season to replace plants as summer heat will soon be upon me shutting down production.

THX

Dereck
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Old April 24, 2011   #2
chalstonsc
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I hope it is not bacterial wilt, but the symptoms sound exactly like it. I have it in my soil and had to begin to grow my tomatoes in containers because I am not aware of any cure, and it does not go away. I have been able to grow everything else in the ground except tomatoes.

Did you grow tomatoes in the same spots in previous years?
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Old April 24, 2011   #3
dereckbc
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Yes i have been growing tomatoes in the same garden for 4 years previous.
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Old April 24, 2011   #4
RonnyWil
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Sounds like voles. They burrow under the plants eat the roots and the plants dies almost instantly. If another dies, pull on the plant and see if it comes out of the ground with no roots. I lost about a dozen plants year before last to voles. Last year I boiled peppers and garlic and drenched the ground around the plants and had no problems.
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Old April 24, 2011   #5
texasweed
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Have you tried looking for a caterpillar called borers?

Last edited by texasweed; April 25, 2011 at 10:21 AM.
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