Re: [tomato] wilting plants
Margaret Lauterbach (Tomato@GlobalGarden.com)
Sat, 30 May 1998 08:49:20 -0600
At 10:13 AM 5/30/98 -0400, you wrote:
>I live in south GA (zone 8?) I haven't noticed any black marks but the
>bottom leaves are yellowing.
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Margaret Lauterbach <mlaute@micron.net>
>To: Tomato@GlobalGarden.com <Tomato@GlobalGarden.com>
>Date: Saturday, May 30, 1998 9:28 AM
>Subject: Re: [tomato] wilting plants
>
>
>>At 05:46 PM 5/29/98 -0400, you wrote:
>>> I have 3 plants (different types one of which is an early girl) that
>>>are spontaneously wilting. any ideas? this started to happen after my
>wife
>>>staked them up. My plants are about 5 1/2 ft tall any I don't want to
>lose
>>>anymore. thanks zach
>>
>>Where do you live? Are there any black marks on the lower stems or leaves?
>> Are the bottom leaves yellowing? Margaret
>
Zach, if you lived in my area, between the Rocky Mountains and the
Cascades, I'd say you might have curly top disease in your tomatoes. But
you're in the wrong area. I hope someone from Georgia will be able to help
you. It sounds like the plant is not circulating water and nutrients.
Verticillium and fusarium wilts are notorious for blocking circulation. I
wonder if you could sacrifice a branch, and see if it has black, brown or
olive marks at the cut (I think the "veins" discolor in verticillium, so
you'd be looking at a cross section of the veins. Usually textbooks show
the blackish veins of the trunk of the plant, but by then for sure you've
killed it. There's no cure for verticillium or fusarium wilt, but just buy
plants that have a VF after their name, indicating resistance to
verticillium and fusarium. And don't plant tomatoes in that spot again.
Your county agent may have a better diagnosis than my long-distance one.
Take a branch in to the county extension office and ask them the problem.
Good luck, Margaret