Tomato end rot

[FallingforPhil]

Ughh...the drought in the midwest is wreaking havoc on my garden!! I'm trying so hard to water, but several weeks of 13+ hour days have gotten in the way... :o

My tomatoes are starting to come in, but the ends rot out before they reach full size. Is this just a lack of water? Or is something eating my poor tomatoes?

TIA!

[Katy]

OMG! This is exactly what's happening to my tomatoes (at my FIL's house). He's making sure he waters it daily (sometimes twice) and they're producing like crazy, but they're rotting before they even finish ripening.

What does this mean? :confused:

[fuzzy]

Y'all have blossom rot. It means there's not enough calcium in your soil. Its super easy to fix -- go to any home and garden store and buy an end rot/bottom rot/blossom rot treatment. Just spray it on and it should take care of everything.

We used this (http://www.gardensalive.com/product.asp?pn=8324) product -- its organic.

[chefker]

Yep, what fuzzy said. :) That is a good product.

Another good supplement for tomato plants, is epsom salt. I sprinkle a spoonful around the base of each plant every 2 weeks, watering the plants after I do so.

I'm not sure what it does exactly, but my uncle gave me this tip, and I have to say, my tomatoes are looking very healthy!

One of my cousins uses broken up cuttlebone (what birds use to sharpen their beaks, etc.), when planting her tomato plants. I've not tried that, but it seems like a good theory.

[Katy]

looks like I'll be heading out to the store as soon as I finish catching up and shower. Thanks ladies!

[Katy]

Okay, I called around and checked, my OSH doesn't have it, my Lowes doesn't have it and my Home Depot doesn't have it. Any suggestions on where I can get it ASAP?

[FallingforPhil]

No luck here, either....I checked Walmart and Target. Might try Menards after dinner.

[Katy]

Okay, I just called Lowes (again) and they have a similar product to address blossom rot. I"ll go check it out now and report back (in an hour or so as I"m going to run some other errands)

[Katy]

Jeepers, that was one BIG'ol pain in the ass. I ran my errands and as such, stopped at a local home & garden place first - they had no clue what I was talking about. Then I hit up Home Depot - again, no clue from one sales person and another guy remembered seeing it one year, but obviously, they don't carry it this year -- whatever! Then as I'm heading towards Lowes, I remember that I pass two garden/nursery stores. They knew what I was talking aobut and got me some product (even told me how to prevent it next year - mix gypsum in the soil before planting).

This is just stuff I add to water and spray on the plant once a week. He said I'll notice a HUGE improvement on the next batch. I didn't get the organic stuff that the gals posted here (heck, I had a hard enough time finding ANYTHING) but the best bet was a nursery and garden store. There they know exactly what you're talking about and can help you.

[fuzzy]

Bizarre...my FIL picked some up at Home Depot this weekend with no problems....ummmm....

[JuliaK]

I'm nowhere near being a tomato expert but I've read that adding crushed egg shells to the soil can help add calcium. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.

[magrat]

This is happening to mine too! I thought it was very strange, never would have guessed why it was happening. I think it was only a problem for a while there when I didn't water... :)

[FallingforPhil]

Araugutht! I give up! I've been to Walmart, Target, Menards, and Home Depot, and NO ONE seems to know what I'm talking about. The guy at home depot was a complete ass, and told me there was NOTHING I could do, and that I should cut the bottom off of the tomato, and it would be fine. :confused:

I may try the eggshell suggestion, or perhaps epsom salts. Anyone else tried these non-traditional methods?

[Katy]

don't you have a little gardening shop or nursery? That's where I wound up getting it. Also remember that you'll have to remove all the tomatoes that are on there now. Heck, in all this time, you could have mail ordered it by now.

[kemaji]

I ended up ordering the stuff online, from the link posted above.

My question is, I've applied it once already and have removed the tomatoes that already have end rot. How many times do I need to apply the solution? Should I just apply it periodically though the summer?

[Katy]

My bottle says to spray every 7-10 days from the beginning and then periodically after that (what the garden store man told me too).

[fuzzy]

I may try the eggshell suggestion, or perhaps epsom salts. Anyone else tried these non-traditional methods?

Epsom salts are good for tomaotes (and peppers!) anyway, so you might as well add them and see if they help.

My gardener, er, um, I mean my husband said he's heard that egg shells do work, but not as quickly. And, he says you'll need to make sure you use plenty of water.

Good luck!

[pacificbliss]

When my tomatoes had it I bought some stuff online from an organic gardening supply store. My Dad uses eggshells and that has worked for him. He bakes the eggshells in the oven and then crushes them into a powder.

[kemaji]

So, I've sprayed my tomatoes with that stuff three times and they are still coming up with end rot. I'm tired of discarding my tomatoes! Should I spray more often? Or make it stronger? Does anyone have any suggestions?