The leaves started out a rich green; all but one one plant turned a little yellow-lime color. Is it just a lack of minerals? All have been cared for equally but only one is a dark healthy green. They are in pots. They were planted about 4 weeks ago. Nothing but water and sun so far. Is it time for Miracle Gro? Please help me save my plants.
Probably too much water - they do not like having wet feet and must be well drained. Water the soil when dry until just damp. If they stand in mud, they'll have the symptoms you describe. -=>epm
I'm going thru the same this and it happened last year. I'm trying to fix what I think is my problem and will let you decide if yours is the same.
From the Rader's Digest Garden Problem Solver:
Lower leaves have brown spots that grow and continue up the vine compromising the integrity of the plant.
Too wet and moist (NOT HERE!) leaves fall off.
Solution:
Early Blight is a fungal disease most active in warm moist weather. Do not spray water. Bottom water.
Get a synthetic fungicide registered for tomatoes w/ active ingredient MANEB or MANCOZEB.
Don't wet plants or work thru or walk thru plants.
We went to a Home Depot today and found a fungcide that did not contain those ingredients. However, is was clasified as a tomatoe solution. It was by Ortho "Garden Disease Control"
I'll let you know how it goes on this end.
Craig in NC
They are in pots? humm what did you plant them in? Does it have any bark, sawdust or any uncomposted material in it? Did it have any soil aid or soil pep.. or anything that smelled of turpentine.. or strong pine scent in the soil?
Years ago before I knew better I mixed some sawdust that wasn't composted into some soil, plants turned yellow...anything not composted ..rotted.. fully, robs nitrogen from the soil and the plants turn yellow.
If you have 1 that's ok that came from the same place at the same time as the others, then look for anything that the 1 green plant got or didn't get, that the other 3 did or didn't get.
What are they planted in? Is it a soil less mix? did you mix soil with it, if so where did it come from?
Did you find yourself running out of what you were using on the others, and so did something different with that one plant that's green?
Are the pots just sitting on the ground, or are 3 on concrete or asphalt and 1 not?
Are they buried in the soil part way or more? Is the one plant out away from the house more than the others? Or closer?
Is it getting more or less sun/water? Is it further from a neighboring plant? Are they under the drip line of a walnut tree?
Are there bird feeders nearby where sunflower seed hulls or any part of a sunflower plant on or in the soil?
Did you spray or did your neighbors spray anywhere near them with roundup or broad leaf weed killers.. weed and feed with a spreader that could have scattered into some of the pots? Any or all of those things could affect the plants. Kind of run down a mental checklist of what has happened in and around the plants, soil, pots they're in since you bought them.
Also .. in the yellowing.. are the veins in the yellow leaves a different color than the rest of the leaf? If so, what color? What color is the stem of the plant, and of the stems connecting the leaves to the plant.
Janice
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