subject: Keep Tomato Diseases Away From Your Home Garden [print this page] It doesn't matter if you are the local tomato gardening guru, or the rookie that's only learning the ropes, tomato diseases can sneak up on you and wreck your whole crop. The good news about gardening tomatoes is that they are likely one of the most forgiving foods to grow for neophyte gardeners, you should still be careful because there are lots of diseases that can attack the garden. Luckily, proper preventative measures and good garden upkeep should keep your plants healthy and fruitful. In the event of the appearance of a malady, early detection is the best medicine as far as keeping your plants productive for the rest of the growing season.
As discussed previously, prevention is the single most important factor in avoiding issues that might come up in your garden. Winter season is a good time to do some information gathering in regards to diseases that are more common in your specific geographical area. Educate yourself with this information before going out and picking your seeds for the upcoming season, and pick a tomato type that is more tolerant to the tomato diseases that might be prevalent in your region. Various different hybrids of tomato are produced specifically to resist certain pests, fungi, and diseases, and are assigned a certain letter "code" to designate the particular resistance. If the plant has the code "T" it designates that this tomato variety is resistant to Tobacco Mosaic Virus. Many other different codes are out there, and more research is essential to find out which tomato is the best for you, and a trip to the garden store is a beneficial initial step in the process.
Many aficionados, when asked about the most delicious tomato variety, will certainly rant about the delicious heirlooms. Although they are the best tasting, they are not very disease resistant, and have a higher tendency to be adversely affected by some type of malady. The reason for this is that they have been bred over the decades for flavor and not resistance. If the wonderful flavor of heirloom tomatoes is what you wish for, then you have to put a little extra work and preventative maintenance into your growing plan. You will probably have to get some kind of cages or stakes to keep the vines off the soil, and make sure your soil is well fortified with nutrients, especially humus of the organic variety. Making your own humus from home compost is a terrific way to keep your soil particularly nourishing. You should also put down a layer of mulch over the soil to keep moisture in, and keep from over watering.
An additional time honored method in keeping tomato diseases at bay is by rotating tomato plants with other vegetables every season. If you continue to grow your tomatoes in the same place every year, the soil will become depleted of the nutrients that are specifically beneficial to tomatoes. By planting something else in their spot next season, it will give the soil time to replenish itself with other nutrients and minerals. Not only will rotating your crops be helpful for the soil, it will help to keep different fungi at bay that could be damaging to your tomato plants.
Tomatoes are genuinely one of the easiest vegetables for the amateur gardener to successfully grow, and without doubt one of the most delectable! One caution though, it is essential to take precautionary steps, do a bit of preventative care, and water the garden properly to keep tomato diseases out. Make sure the soil is kept moist, but not over-watered, don't water the plant leaves themselves, and keep a layer of mulch over the top of the soil. Another consideration is the type of tomato you choose to plant, preferably one that is resistant to diseases common in your local vicinity. Keep these techniques in mind, and you should be one step ahead of the other tomato growers in your locality, and likely produce some of the largest and juiciest tomatoes around!
