×
  • Home
  • Daily
    • Composting
    • Container Gardening
    • Easy Healthy Recipes
    • Food Preservation
    • Garden Design
    • Garden Tools
    • Growing Fruits & Berries
    • Indoor Gardening
    • Pests & Diseases
    • Seeds & Seedlings
    • Soil & Fertilizer
    • Spice & Herb Gardening
    • Vegetable Gardening
    • Watering & Irrigation
  • Freebies
  • Videos
  • Magazines
    • Food Gardening Magazine
    • RecipeLion Magazine
  • Guides
  • Cookbooks
    • Beverages
    • Bakery
    • Breakfast
    • Appetizers
    • Salads & Dressings
    • Soups
    • Entrées
    • Side Dishes & Sauces
    • Desserts
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Affiliate Program
  • Sponsor Program
  • Give a Gift
  • Privacy Policy & Terms of Use
  • Manage Account
  • Authors
  • Keyword Index
  • Join

Food Gardening Network

Growing Good Food at Home

Join
Mequoda Publishing Network
  • Daily
    • Composting
    • Container Gardening
    • Easy Healthy Recipes
    • Food Preservation
    • Garden Design
    • Garden Tools
    • Growing Fruits & Berries
    • Indoor Gardening
    • Pests & Diseases
    • Seeds & Seedlings
    • Soil & Fertilizer
    • Spice & Herb Gardening
    • Vegetable Gardening
    • Watering & Irrigation
  • Freebies
  • Videos
  • Magazines
    • Food Gardening Magazine
    • RecipeLion Magazine
  • Guides
  • Cookbooks
    • Beverages
    • Bakery
    • Breakfast
    • Appetizers
    • Salads & Dressings
    • Soups
    • Entrées
    • Side Dishes & Sauces
    • Desserts
  • Sign In
  • Search

Tip #6: How to Avoid Tomato Diseases

Super Freebie: The Best Way to Grow Tomatoes

arrow-left Previous
Next arrow-right

Tip #6: How to Avoid Tomato Diseases

By Amanda MacArthur

Tomato-plant diseases are caused by bacteria, fungi, and viruses—and the diseases can spread through the soil, water, air, infected tools, animals, and even by gardeners themselves. Use these techniques to avoid tomato diseases in the first place:

Rotate crops regularly

Many bacteria, fungi, and viruses live in the soil for years and are just waiting to prey on your tomato plants! Minimize the likelihood of these diseases when you plant tomatoes no more than once every three years in the same location.

Avoid planting other crops such as potatoes, peppers, or eggplants nearby, too. As members of the same plant family as tomatoes, these crops are susceptible to the same types of diseases as tomatoes and having any of these plants nearby could facilitate more rapid spread of any developing disease.

Good old-fashioned crop rotation is good for your plants and good for the soil.

Improve your soil composition

Before planting your tomatoes, add a good amount of compost or organic matter to improve the soil. Extra nutrients and good aeration help grow stronger plants that will resist disease and infection.

Grow disease-resistant tomato varieties

Many hybrid tomato varieties have been developed specifically to resist particular tomato diseases. You can plant disease-resistant tomato varieties to ensure the healthiest plants and harvest. Tomato-disease-resistant codes are listed on seed packets or seedling containers in capital letters. They include:

  • V = Verticillium Wilt
  • F = Fusarium Wilt
  • N = Nematodes
  • A = Alternaria
  • T = Tobacco Mosaic Virus
  • St = Stemphylium (Gray Leaf Spot)
  • TSWV = Tomato Spotted Wilt Virus

Water your garden properly

Don’t underwater or overwater your tomato plants. By keeping a regular watering schedule, you’ll keep your plants vibrant and healthy. Overwatering and watering directly on the plants—instead of the preferred watering method, directly at the base of the plant on the soil—leads to consistently wet conditions, which allows bacteria, fungi, and viruses to thrive and multiply. Never use a sprinkler system to water your tomatoes.

Destroy infected plants

Throw away or burn infected plants. Don’t keep infected plants over the winter in your garden, and don’t throw them on your compost pile either. Disease-ridden plants, even when dead, will spread the disease to other plants or even your soil.

arrow-left Previous
Next arrow-right

Tags

compost pile, hybrid tomato varieties, overwatering, tomato diseases, tomato spotted wilt, tomato varieties, tomatoes, water your garden

Comments
  • Alain M. June 3, 2022

    when mulching tomate plant in a pot what type of mulch is to be use so not to hut the plant.

    Reply

Click here to cancel reply.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

TABLE OF CONTENTS

  • The Best Way to Grow Tomatoes
  • 7 Top Tips for Growing Your Own Tomatoes at Home

  • Tip #1: Choose Your Tomato Variety
  • Tip #2: Decide Whether to Grow Your Tomatoes from Seeds or Seedlings
  • Tip #3: Ensure the Right Soil, Sun, and Fertilizer for Your Tomatoes
  • Tip #4: The Right Way to Water Your Tomato Plants
  • Tip #5: How to Avoid Tomato Rot
  • Tip #6: How to Avoid Tomato Diseases
  • Tip #7: Recipe—Make the Best Roasted Tomato Sauce Ever!
  • BONUS Recipe—Make Fresh Salsa with Your Home-Grown Tomatoes!

Enter Your Log In Credentials

This setting should only be used on your home or work computer.

  • Lost your password? Create New Password
  • No account? Sign up

Need Assistance?

Call Food Gardening Network Customer Service at
(800) 777-2658

Food Gardening Network is an active member of the following industry associations:

  • American Horticultural Society
  • GardenComm Logo
  • MCMA logo
  • Renewd logo
  • Manage Account
  • Join
  • About Food Gardening Network
  • Contact Us
  • Affiliate Program
  • Sponsor Program
  • Give a Gift
  • Privacy Policy & Terms of Use

Food Gardening Network
99 Derby Street, Suite 200
Hingham, MA 02043
support@foodgardening.mequoda.com

FREE E-Newsletter for You!

Discover how to grow, harvest, and eat good food from your own garden—with our FREE e-newsletter, delivered directly to your email inbox.

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest

Powered by
Mequoda Publishing Network
copyright © 2023 Mequoda Systems, LLC

Food Gardening Network® and Food Gardening Magazine® are registered trademarks of Mequoda Systems, LLC.