Fusarium Wilt

[Barbee]

Have you looked into cover crops to fight the Fusarium? If not, you might research it. Since you have a long growing season, it might work well for you.

[AlittleSalt]

Barbee, it is definitely a thought. I've been watching what is growing well here. Dwarf French Marigolds are growing in full sun and dappled shade. I can't tell you how many times from countless sites that I have read they help with RKN. But I have also read that "Dwarf marigolds are susceptible to fungal wilt caused by fusarium fungi." http://homeguides.sfgate.com/marigol...mix-45249.html Yet, they are growing just fine in the same raised bed that we lost all but three of 17 tomato plants to RKN and Fusarium Wilt.

The three remaining tomato plants in that bed are one cross that I nicknamed VHS Cherry. The plant wouldn't be worth mentioning other than it has survived - it has very low tomato production.

The other two plants in that raised bed are Sweetie Cherry. They are by far the tallest and most productive plants in our gardens. They have never shown any signs of yellowing, wilt, or anything wrong. I'm looking at them right now - they are covered in cherry tomatoes and flowers. I don't know if they are resistant to what is happening or if they just happen to be planted in a less affected area?

EDIT: I should have added that we planted two Sweetie Cherry plants. I wish I had planted more in different locations to compare.

[AlittleSalt]

Finishing some thoughts on post #152 - it isn't too late to start some Sweetie Cherry seeds to grow in different locations in a fall garden. It won't hurt to give it a try.

Onto the next thing I want to write about - Last night, my wife was telling me about a man who was talking about his tomato garden. He is gardening around 20-30 minutes drive to our south-southwest (30+ miles as the crow flies) He is having the exact same problems as we are having - even the leaffooted bugs. I had never seen leaffooted bugs until this year.

His news was not something I wanted to hear. They say misery likes company - Not for me! I would rather be the only one with the problems. I don't want others to have the same problems. I would rather hear that their plants are so healthy and producing so many tomatoes that they are sick of looking at them.

Instead, it tells me this is a widespread thing happening. I have read a post from a Tomatoville member in Fort Worth is having the same problems. That is over 70 miles in distance of at least three gardeners having the same problems with RKN and Fusarium.

Which adds yet more to think about. While playing cards/dominoes, one of my father's favorite sayings was, "Study long - study wrong."

[b54red]

Originally Posted by AlittleSalt

Finishing some thoughts on post #152 - it isn't too late to start some Sweetie Cherry seeds to grow in different locations in a fall garden. It won't hurt to give it a try.

Onto the next thing I want to write about - Last night, my wife was telling me about a man who was talking about his tomato garden. He is gardening around 20-30 minutes drive to our south-southwest (30+ miles as the crow flies) He is having the exact same problems as we are having - even the leaffooted bugs. I had never seen leaffooted bugs until this year.

His news was not something I wanted to hear. They say misery likes company - Not for me! I would rather be the only one with the problems. I don't want others to have the same problems. I would rather hear that their plants are so healthy and producing so many tomatoes that they are sick of looking at them.

Instead, it tells me this is a widespread thing happening. I have read a post from a Tomatoville member in Fort Worth is having the same problems. That is over 70 miles in distance of at least three gardeners having the same problems with RKN and Fusarium.

Which adds yet more to think about. While playing cards/dominoes, one of my father's favorite sayings was, "Study long - study wrong."

The same thing is happening around here and has been for quite a few years. The RKN have been a problem forever around here but this third race of fusarium has really restricted what anyone can grow with any certainty of success. There are always a few plants either hybrids or heirlooms that seem to escape the worst of both each year but there is no way of telling before hand which plants will be lucky. When people see my grafted plants growing so tall and healthy and loaded with fruit they are amazed. Of course if they saw the older ones this week after the EB plague they wouldn't think they looked so good anymore. I removed enough leaves and stems off my plants infected with EB and some gray mold to fill a pickup truck in the past week. It has left me with quite a few of those palm tree looking plants but I still have a fair amount of fruit left on some of them even though I have been throwing away as many split and rotting tomatoes as I have been picking decent ones.

Bill

[swellcat]

I don't want others to have the same problems. I would rather hear that their plants are so healthy and producing so many tomatoes that they are sick of looking at them.

That's kind of you, but, on the other hand, knowing about the shared challenges and hardships grounds us with realistic expectations: not everyone's results always look like an overflowing bushel basket on the cover of a seed catalog. In our conditions this year, maybe every tomato is a triumph.

This fruit grew from seeds from those yellow cherries marketed in a plastic dome. This tomato was at least three times the size of the originals and very rounded in flavour profile with tremendous juiciness and balancing acidity. It was very easy to eat and feels a little like something from nothing . . . especially since the plastic-dome originals were from someone else's kitchen counter in 2013.

[HudsonValley]

Salt, the plants I grew from your seeds are healthy and doing wonderfully. I'm attaching a picture of Pink Ping Pong -- it went out about a month ago, and it's now starting to fruit! (Excuse the deer netting and blossom bag, and the fact that the photo is sideways despite my efforts to edit.)

And here's a question -- have you tried any biological controls/inoculants (beneficial bacteria and fungi) on your plants?

[Barbee]

Originally Posted by AlittleSalt

Barbee, it is definitely a thought. I've been watching what is growing well here. Dwarf French Marigolds are growing in full sun and dappled shade. I can't tell you how many times from countless sites that I have read they help with RKN. But I have also read that "Dwarf marigolds are susceptible to fungal wilt caused by fusarium fungi." http://homeguides.sfgate.com/marigol...mix-45249.html Yet, they are growing just fine in the same raised bed that we lost all but three of 17 tomato plants to RKN and Fusarium Wilt.

The three remaining tomato plants in that bed are one cross that I nicknamed VHS Cherry. The plant wouldn't be worth mentioning other than it has survived - it has very low tomato production.

The other two plants in that raised bed are Sweetie Cherry. They are by far the tallest and most productive plants in our gardens. They have never shown any signs of yellowing, wilt, or anything wrong. I'm looking at them right now - they are covered in cherry tomatoes and flowers. I don't know if they are resistant to what is happening or if they just happen to be planted in a less affected area?

EDIT: I should have added that we planted two Sweetie Cherry plants. I wish I had planted more in different locations to compare.

I am thinking in particular about mustard. Here is a link : http://www.mightymustard.com/15-reasons

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by AlittleSalt

Barbee, it is definitely a thought. I've been watching what is growing well here. Dwarf French Marigolds are growing in full sun and dappled shade. I can't tell you how many times from countless sites that I have read they help with RKN. But I have also read that "Dwarf marigolds are susceptible to fungal wilt caused by fusarium fungi." http://homeguides.sfgate.com/marigol...mix-45249.html Yet, they are growing just fine in the same raised bed that we lost all but three of 17 tomato plants to RKN and Fusarium Wilt.

The three remaining tomato plants in that bed are one cross that I nicknamed VHS Cherry. The plant wouldn't be worth mentioning other than it has survived - it has very low tomato production.

The other two plants in that raised bed are Sweetie Cherry. They are by far the tallest and most productive plants in our gardens. They have never shown any signs of yellowing, wilt, or anything wrong. I'm looking at them right now - they are covered in cherry tomatoes and flowers. I don't know if they are resistant to what is happening or if they just happen to be planted in a less affected area?

EDIT: I should have added that we planted two Sweetie Cherry plants. I wish I had planted more in different locations to compare.

Where the Tagetes marigolds, aka French)have been used they have been grown as a cover crop and nothing else planted there for that season. And it hasn't been all that successful.

Carolyn

[AlittleSalt]

The Pink Ping Pong plant (Say that fast 5 times) looks really good.

-- have you tried any biological controls/inoculants (beneficial bacteria and fungi) on your plants?

No, but here's a search http://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=...A_wQgQMIrQEwAA I would need to go back to college to read it.

I am cooking dinner and had not seen Barbee's and Carolyn's posts.

[AlittleSalt]

Originally Posted by carolyn137

Where the Tagetes marigolds, aka French)have been used they have been grown as a cover crop and nothing else planted there for that season. And it hasn't been all that successful.

Carolyn

Carolyn, I found the same when I was researching using marigolds for RKN control. Some sites says it works and others not so much.

Originally Posted by Barbee

I am thinking in particular about mustard. Here is a link : http://www.mightymustard.com/15-reasons

Barbee, I have read a lot about using mustard greens. I hope it can help. I did read the link.

I thought Vapam had been banned, but I found a site for it. It's for commercial use.

[Rockporter]

Originally Posted by AlittleSalt

Carolyn, I found the same when I was researching using marigolds for RKN control. Some sites says it works and others not so much.



Barbee, I have read a lot about using mustard greens. I hope it can help. I did read the link.

I thought Vapam had been banned, but I found a site for it. It's for commercial use.

Salt, I was interested in that link Barbee put up here. Here is one for TX Ag for growing season of mustard greens which for us would be fall or very early spring.

http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/o...ip_mustard.pdf

[AlittleSalt]

My family does not care for large tomatoes. I keep throwing them away - what few aren't catfaced and concentric ringed. They liked big beef sort of.

Through RKN and Fusarium, there are still very good tasting tomatoes growing/producing here. There is a yellow/orange cherry tomato called, "WOW". I got seeds from Tormato/Gary. It was supposed to be compared to Sungold. I can't compare it to Sungold because Sungold pales in comparison. WOW tastes like a real tomato that is sweet and good.

Japanese Pink Cherry isn't just a knock-your-socks-off sweet medium/large cherry tomato - it tickles your taste buds - makes you smile.

Porter cherry tastes like a real pink tomato.

There are some others, but they will need rootstock help too. Yes, rootstock to grow cherry tomatoes.

You have to adapt and build a better future.

The future gardens will be much smaller. The 45x45' garden will be for my family to grow along with some chickens, maybe some rabbits, and there's the thought of a minnow vat and some goldfish, crayfish and a raised worm bed = some masonry work. Our youngest son wants to raise some bees very nearby. He is 27 and wants to build it all by hand. The growing area will be reduced to the raised beds to grow tomatoes, onions, mustard greens, and French marigolds for their beauty. I most likely will change the raised beds to make them easier to use = carpentry.

I will move the mountains to help my family.

The hardest part will be to get Tomatoville friends to understand why I want to graft cherry tomatoes instead of larger varieties.

This is fitting music - Scorpions - Wind of Change https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFh2vpGeoIk

[My Foot Smells]

Originally Posted by b54red

When you lay the two stems on top of each other to make the cut why would you need any kind of tool other than a razor blade? It doesn't matter if the angle is perfect or not because it will be the same on the two stems. I just match up stem size the best I can and then make the cut through both at the same time. Just make sure to put the scion on the root stock. When I first started doing this I sometimes just put the two back together. Boy was I disappointed when the thing grew out and started making little green inedible fruits. When they say those root stock are not for growing out and eating they aren't kidding.

Bill

Brilliant. I was actually thinking how to match up the cuts, doh!!

[Starlight]

Originally Posted by AlittleSalt

My family does not care for large tomatoes. I keep throwing them away - what few aren't catfaced and concentric ringed. They liked big beef sort of.


The hardest part will be to get Tomatoville friends to understand why I want to graft cherry tomatoes instead of larger varieties.

This is fitting music - Scorpions - Wind of Change https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFh2vpGeoIk

I get ya. Last year all I had was cherries. While I was so tired of picking them near the end of season, they were so easy to grow, loved the taste of all but one or two, and had no disease problems at all. Now I'm struggling to learn how to deal with these larger ones , the problems with the plants and the looks of the bottoms of them. For some I don't know if it a normal look or something else. I didn't think I would, but I do admit I miss my cherries especially Crovarese. a sweet little heart shaped cherry.

Grow what you love to eat. What makes you happy!

[Father'sDaughter]

A tomato is a tomato! And, you need to grow what you and your family enjoy or there's no pleasure or reward for all your efforts.

As for the rabbits, if you're not raising them for food, make sure you don't end up with both a male and female...