Kitchen Garden Forum

My outdoor tomatoes are showing some really odd signs. The very uppermost leaves are folding inwards, revealing a purple underside. The rest of the plant does seem affected, but not so much. Overall, nothing appears to be dying, but I have never seen leaves on tomatoes do this before. I can't see signs of insests, while whatever it is has passed from one plant to the next, with six infected.
Is this serious?
Is there anything I can do to stop it?

Hello Barry
I think that you might in fact have two problems here. I suspect that the leaf curling is due to wide variations in temperatures that we are having the moment - hot afternoons with high light levels followed by very cool nights. No much you can do about this!
The purple leaves are likely to be due to low nutrient levels or low nutrient uptake caused by dryness at the roots. A good watering with a general purpose soluble feed should sort things out. You might need to do this every 2-3 days for a week or so.

Hope this helps.

John

Hi John,
I am already feeding the tomatoes with comfrey tea on a very regular basis and the plants have grown well up to now. I am also worried because I am seeing this manifestation across a wide range of different variety and it is definitely spreading.
Do you still think it is a feed problem?
You may be right about the cold, though!
Barry

Hi Barry

It sounds to me too like the effects of cold nights. Even here in our relatively mild peninsula, a bare mile from the sea, the temperature was down to 4.5C early yesterday morning. If I have watched the forecast aright, I think you have been having some cold winds in Kent.

Hi Alan,
Yep, very cold winds, not at all typical for June!
My one concern about the temperature theory is that not all the plants have this condition, which appears to have spread, although I have only noticed it within the last couple of days, which is when the cold nights have been with us. As I say, the plants look healthy enough otherwise, but I really don't like the fact that it is the new growth at the top which is demonstrating the curled leaves and purple undersides!
Barry

I think you are right about it being due to cold and cold winds, I planted 5 cape gooseberries, two were in a more exposed site and turned purple slowing growth, three planted in a sheltered sunny corner, are three times the size and looking fine.

I have four tomato plants in the polytunnel and they have all gone from looking quite good to looking quite sick. The have leaf curl, purple leaves, blotchy leaves, I water every day as they are drying out really quickly.

This is definatley the last year I am growing tomato plants as three years on the trot they have failed me. I would love some really healthy plants with plenty of fruit, instead I get sick plants and it is only a matter of time before blight hits them. I am almost feeling like ripping them out of the PT and getting rid before this happens.

We have had very hot days and cold nights. I have tried this year to swill down the flags in the PT with water to reduce the heat.

Hi Catherine,
Not only have we had fairly hot days with a lot of wind the night temperature on 4th to 5th July was below 7C here. This is a very low temperature for July.
JB.