Some Common Tomato Plant Diseases

Bacterial Disease Plant

Tomatoes are easy to grow and can be used in many different recipes afterwards. However, like most crops, there is always the risk of disease when growing tomatoes and it is important to know about the most common tomato plant diseases.

Tomato Disease Identification

There are quite few different tomato diseases which might affect tomato plants and several pests. Most types of pest and disease problems can be dealt with if you catch them in time but can also wipe out all your tomato plants if ignored. Some diseases affect the foliage, others affect the stem or the fruits themselves. It is very important to catch the diseases early on, as many can be treated.

Early Blight

This is often the first disease to attack tomato plants. It appears early in the growing season and makes the lower leaves turn brown. If left untreated, tomato blight spreads up the plant and to other plants. To deal with blight, you need to catch it early. Pick off any affected leaves and place mulch around the plants because blight is one of the tomato fungal diseases and spreads via spores and the mulch limits the amount of spores and water splattered on to the plant during watering and rainfall.

Tomato Spotted Wilt Virus

This virus, also known as TSWV, is a serious tomatoes plant problem. Affected plants will wilt and often die. Infected leaves will become distorted and pale green, often with purple gray ring spots. The plant stems will have brown purple streaks. TSWV is spread by aphids and thrips. There is no cure so controlling aphids and thrips is the only way to prevent this disease. Remove any affected plants because this disease is infectious.

Bacterial Wilt

Bacterial wilt is another of the most serious tomatoes diseases. Plants affected with wilt will die quickly without curling tomato plant leaves or discoloration of the stem or foliage. To identify this tomato disease, cut and peel a section of the bark just above the soil line. If the center of the stem looks waterlogged, this is the start of bacterial wilt. More advanced bacterial wilt will make the stem center brown and hollow. There is no cure for this tomato plant disease except destroying the affected plants.

Blossom End Rot

This first appears as a light brown water-soaked spot on the blossom end of growing tomatoes. The affected area sinks, becomes leathery and turns brown then black. If you have rotting tomatoes, this tomato plant disease might be the cause. Blossom end rot is caused by a calcium deficiency due to fluctuating soil moisture. Root pruning and using too much nitrogen fertilizer can exacerbate the problem. To avoid blossom end rot, you should avoid wet and dry cycles and instead water your plants frequently and uniformly. Don't cultivate other crops too close to the tomato plants. Sunscald results in a similar looking white, sunken patch on the fruits. To remedy this, make sure your tomatoes are adequately shaded from the sun.

Bacterial Canker

This is one of the more destructive tomato plant diseases and is caused by bacteria. Infected plants wilt from the lower leaves up, then the leaves turn brown and due. The disease, if left untreated, moves up the plant and white spots appear on the tomatoes. Tomato stem disease, caused by bacterial canker, causes brown or yellow streaks and the center of the stem might be yellow or reddish brown. Infected steams contain a yellow pus.

To avoid bacterial canker, use disease free seed, sterilized pots and pasteurized potting mixture. Don't work with the tomato plants when they are well. Wash your hands frequently when working with diseased plants.There are many more tomato plant diseases but these are some of the most common ones that you should know about when growing tomato plants.

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