I killed my tomato plant

[Ohioguy]

This is a first for me. I planted a yellow pear tomato, and I remembered reading that you are supposed to plant them deep. It was about 9" tall to begin with, and I planted it with about 4" sticking out of the hole. It grew pretty well over the past 3 weeks, and was about a foot tall. Then it fell over, and started to wilt every day. Today I finally figured out that the plant was rotting right at ground level. Evidently the daily waterings were simply too often, and so I killed it with water. I've never had that happen to a tomato plant before. Then again, I'm not certain I've ever watered them that often, either. During the time the tomato was growing, I kept planting other plants, and so I needed to get the watering wand out every day. Since I already had it out, I went ahead and got the tomato too.

Now I'll have to decide what other vegetable to put there.

[General Schvantzkoph]

You can put another tomato plant in, you still have time. I've been spraying my tomatoes with copper fungicide spray this year to prevent blight. Last year was a complete disaster in my area (New England) because of late blight.

[zxcvbob]

Look for a Stupice or Early Girl tomato plant to replace it. (You probably still have time to replant with any variety except a really late-season one)

Bob

[General Schvantzkoph]

I'm using both copper and neem oil.

[zxcvbob]

late >blight.

I wonder if I should somehow sterilize my old tomato cages? (made of rusty concrete reinforcement mesh) Or maybe discard them and build new ones? They are at least 10 or 15 years old. Do you think blight (etc) spores could overwinter in the rust? I leave them outdoors exposed to the cold and snow, that's one reason they are so rusty.

Bob

[balvenieman]

late >blight. Last year I brought home what looked suspiciously like potato blight on some commercial cucumber sets; in addition, it took out a tomato in short order before I got them disposed of. Fortunately, those plants were in containers so the soil is isolated and I'll grow other things in those containers for a few years. This year, it was a sudden onslaught of downy mildew that caused me to pull a batch of "little marvel" peas on 1 May, just as they were their most productive. Since then, I've sprayed _everything_ (well, almost) with neem oil at least weekly, depending on rainfall. I also sterilize my trellises, shears, knife, butcher's cotton twine garden ties, etc. with 91% alcohol. This is my first year using neem oil. In past years, I've used copper fungicides with only spotty, unreliable results so if the neem doesn't kill stuff outright....

[balvenieman]

I'm not qualified to answer your questions. My trellises and tomato cages are wire, too, and they stay outside year-'round but I don't have winter as you know it. This is the first time I ever have sterilized trellises but I know for certain that some of them (made of galvanized

6") "field" fencing were exposed to the contagion. I may be deluding myself that what I'm doing actually serves some purpose but, what the hell, it sure wouldn't be the first time....

[David Hare-Scott]

The rate of evapotranspiration varies greatly with the weather. Water after testing the soil if it is needed not after a certain time interval has elapsed.

David

[jeorgefergusion]

I would like to give advise you that Tomato seedlings will need either strong, direct sunlight or 14-18 hours under grow lights. Place the young plants only a couple of inches from florescent grow lights. Plant your tomatoes outside in the sunniest part of your vegetable plot. I hope that this will be help.