7.16.2010

troubles with tomatoes

One reason why we love living down here is the long growing season, we can plant in march and harvest through summer and replant in August or September with a new harvest. Downside? (Because there's always a downside) insect species that I'm still getting used to, new diseases, and rain, lots of rain. Rain you say? Don't plants love rain? Yes. Definitely, however too much rain can cause unstable soils (plants fall over) and rot...mold and rot. Gross.

My tomatoes understand these problems most of all. We try to grow organically (no pesticides, herbicides, etc. The only thing I'd put on my plant is something I'd eat).  So to keep them healthy (or to just keep them alive) I have to be very vigilant.
Keep in mind I can be dangerously forgetful.
Result?
Take a beautiful tomato plant:












Forget to check it for a couple of days? Bad idea.












Where did the leaves go? The end of the branches? Oh. This guy was hungry.












Can't find him? Just look up. He leaves a trail.












That, my friends, is your garden variety green hornworm.  He's such a jerk.
That's not the only problem we've delt with this summer. We've had a terrible case of Southern blight. It's a nasty, mean fungus that's pillaged three of our tomato plants. How rude.
This is what it looks like:












That white stuff? Yeah, that's the fungus attached to the roots, slowly, cruely, killing my summer salsas.
Ugh.

Time to replant.

Any suggestions for southern blight or green hornworm remedies?

1 comment:

  1. Used coffee grounds might help keep the green hormworm off, a lot of critters hate the strong smell and most people have coffee grounds daily. No real cost, and the nutrients go back into the soil.

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