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Di Taylor
assistant gardener
New Zealand
188 Posts |
 Posted - 30/01/2009 : 05:24:42
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I am heartbroken, when the first plant died, I blamed the dog - thought maybe she had stood on it, now I am sure, I have bacterium wilt/canker in my tomatoes  The attached photos will show what I mean. Most of my seeds this year have been grown from stuff I bought over the internet, the area of garden they are in used to be lawn, I layered it up with newspaper, fresh compost from my own heap, some peastraw pellets, lime, organic dynamic lifter fertiliser and lots of commercial compost. They were fed with a brew made from dissolved sheep pellets and blood and bone, and apart from a week in december when I was away and a friend watered, I have been very routine watering well each morning that it looked like it would be a hot day, the only evening waterings have been the accidental ones my husband did before I told him off for doing so
This first one is my yummy dark pink/red tomato, guess I wont be saving its seeds after all, and cos it was from the mystery mix I dont know what it is, notice it has the telltale spot starting that apparently is splash from infected plants
As you can see the tomatoes look fine they are my first brandywine which I intend picking over the weekend....
but the leaves and marks on the stems are a giveaway
This below is the one we thought might turn out to be tigerella, but the marking have never ended up bold enough, they are subtle, the tomato itself in slightly watery and my husband described it as a bit spicy rather than sweet, certainly compared to the subarctic, they were firm, fleshy and sweet and it was light, very juicy and spicy
Where did I go wrong, was it likely the soil, or could it have been the seeds ?? 
A good year is when more things get harvested than die!
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Edited by - Di Taylor on 30/01/2009 05:26:54 |
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tessa
head gardener
Australia
3682 Posts |
Posted - 30/01/2009 : 09:23:02
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gosh...that's heartbreaking, di.
the unfortunate thing is that tomato plants are really frail things.
i'm not sure what the tell tale markings are there. my plants usually get struck down by mites before they have time to catch any diseases.
could it just be old age? they look more aged to me, than diseased.
when did you start your crop? how old are they?
and those brandywine sure are ridged. i've only ever grown them once...and mine were not as ribbed as that.
have you started any kimberleys? there may still be time to get in a crop of those.
cranky people live longer. i'm going to live forever! perth, wa |
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Di Taylor
assistant gardener
New Zealand
188 Posts |
 Posted - 30/01/2009 : 10:04:55
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The plants shouldnt be "old" yet, unless that what heirlooms do,they were sown in spring, August thru to Sept indoors. The ones you see are the beginning of the crop, we havent picked any brandywine yet and only about half a dozen or so of the other cultivars, for most people doing outdoor toms in NZ this is when they just start to ripen so wouldnt have thought old age would set in until march or april. I did think my brandy wine were quite ridged but have seen photos of all sorts. I did sow a couple kimberleys a couple of weeks ago and nothing so far, just in case I sowed a couple more and a couple of Canabec Super too last weekend, so fingers crossed. I am going to go out and prune the bad bits off, pull out the hopeless ones, some have never even set fruit!! and put them in the bin not my compost Not sure what I will be left with after all that
A good year is when more things get harvested than die! |
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tessa
head gardener
Australia
3682 Posts |
Posted - 30/01/2009 : 11:59:08
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sometimes, after i hack down my tomato plants, they come back stronger than before.
i wish this for you, di.
have you asked the folks at TV what they think it is?
cranky people live longer. i'm going to live forever! perth, wa |
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Mary-Anne
garden sage
Australia
10809 Posts |
Posted - 30/01/2009 : 12:12:30
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Sorry to hear about your tomatoes Di, thats bad luck.
Friends are the flowers in the garden of life
Love Your Enemies... It Will Drive Them Nuts |
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Di Taylor
assistant gardener
New Zealand
188 Posts |
Posted - 30/01/2009 : 16:44:42
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Yeah might try TV, pretty sure I know what it is just horrified at how many plants are affected and not sure where the problem is likely to lie
A good year is when more things get harvested than die! |
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medburygardens
gardener
New Zealand
639 Posts |
Posted - 31/01/2009 : 03:06:05
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| Interesting point tessa made about how ribed your brandywines are,mine aren`t ether,they look more like a tomato call Chapman |
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Di Taylor
assistant gardener
New Zealand
188 Posts |
Posted - 31/01/2009 : 07:46:39
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Picked the first brandywine this morning and we are not overly impressed, certainly not what I was expecting from a tomato with such a fab reputation However they have ripened despite disease and were great on a toasted sandwich for lunch. They are very solid and fleshy inside, is that how they should be? Our favourite is still the mystery pink with green top so far, it is a lovely flavour
A good year is when more things get harvested than die! |
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tessa
head gardener
Australia
3682 Posts |
Posted - 31/01/2009 : 08:43:23
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wait a minute.
aren't brandywines potato leafed? your's look regular leafed. and they are not very prolific...yet you have three tomatoes in one picture.
yes they are meaty. they are also pink. did you scrape some skin to see if it was yellow or clear?
make sure you save seed from your mystery pink. when you find one you like...it's good to keep with it. since this presumably came out of that pack of mixed heritage seeds...i would guess it is a stable, open pollinated variety.
give it a name for your own garden...and 60 years from now...someone will share seeds from it with a story about you and it will be called aunt di's or nanna di's pink and will come complete with one of those tomato lore stories.
cranky people live longer. i'm going to live forever! perth, wa |
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Di Taylor
assistant gardener
New Zealand
188 Posts |
Posted - 31/01/2009 : 09:25:08
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Alot of the "potato leaves" are dead so you cant tell....scrape the skin ?? yellow or clear ? never heard of doing this, what would I be looking for, I assume pink would be clear and red would be yellow??? and no they are not "pink" brandy wine like I was expecting.....I am starting to wonder about the place I bought them from  I have seen a photo of the mystery pink I have grown on a NZ garden website so have contacted them to try and find out name, mainly because if it is bacterial canker I have then it can stay in the seeds and then the next generation get it, I have bought some copper as that is how you treat canker so I guess I will see, needed some copper for my stone fruit anyhow Yeah I dont know about the brandywine ones and tigerella are not that either
A good year is when more things get harvested than die! |
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medburygardens
gardener
New Zealand
639 Posts |
Posted - 01/02/2009 : 02:50:28
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I sure between all the tomatoes growers here we have enough varieties that you wont need to buy Sh*t seed again,last count i had 45 different tomatoes in my tin.Once you build up a collection and learn ferment your seed well,you can trade for just about any variety you want.
There will be no more buying seed for me anyway |
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tessa
head gardener
Australia
3682 Posts |
Posted - 01/02/2009 : 07:57:23
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me neither.
di neither 
cranky people live longer. i'm going to live forever! perth, wa |
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Di Taylor
assistant gardener
New Zealand
188 Posts |
Posted - 01/02/2009 : 10:40:47
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I just need to grow some healthy ones so I can save the seed. Had another look today, if you don't factor in the dud brandywines and also the ones i pulled out and dumped "off the property" yesterday, the rest are looking ok-ish, I have sprayed with copper, letting plenty run down the stems into the soil, bit of systemic uptake cant hurt. It is definitley bacterial canker as the last symtom described in my pests and diseases book has now surfaced, very distinctive marks on the tomato skin that follow a set pattern of colour change. I have it pin pointed now so I can only treat and hope for the best and of course pick a different spot for my toms next year. At least spraying with copper isnt toooooo toxic.
A good year is when more things get harvested than die! |
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tessa
head gardener
Australia
3682 Posts |
Posted - 01/02/2009 : 17:00:18
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it isn't? sorry, but i thought it was. it's a heavy metal, isn't it? but sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do. at least it is a natural substance and not a man-made chemical compound. i drank from copper pipes for the first 100 years of my life...and just look at me now.
cranky people live longer. i'm going to live forever! perth, wa |
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medburygardens
gardener
New Zealand
639 Posts |
Posted - 02/02/2009 : 03:00:07
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Di-using cooper like you have would be ok as a oncea,but i`m sure you know already that you would want to use it again to soon.
Gee tessa you are doing well to still be growing a garden at your age.lol must be those cooper pipes |
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medburygardens
gardener
New Zealand
639 Posts |
Posted - 02/02/2009 : 03:07:37
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| my last post the word should be WOULDN`T,my edit symbol has disappeared on me, |
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Tomato diseases