Curling tomato leaves

Hi PP, as coub says could be watering.. Have they been very hot & dry?? As that also will give the same sort of symptoms..
Physiological or Nonparasitic Leaf Roll:
Physiological leaf roll occurs during wet weather or when transplants are first placed outside. Typically, the leaves roll upward, at first appearing cupped but eventually rolling continues until the leaflets overlap. Overall growth of the tomato is usually not affected. Fruit are not injured by this condition.
Another type of leaf roll associated with climatic conditions is called" nonparasitic leaf roll". (Note: Physiological leaf roll is also nonparasitic). Nonparasitic leaf roll is considered to be caused by an irregular supply of water or severe pruning. It is a temporary disorder in which the edges of the tomato leaves roll upward and inward, even overlapping when conditions are severe. Most leaves on the plant are affected but the condition is temporary, with the plant assuming normal growth habit within a few days following pruning or irrigation..

Some pics would be good too. How do you water & where are they as Coub says..??

:( If you don't think it is watering & the leaves are yellowing it could be more serious.. Have a look here...

http://www.defra.gov.uk/planth/pestpics/qic2004/qic55.pdf

 

It may be overwatering but sometimes when tomatoes are growing fast at this time of year the top new growth looks all curled up so this might be normal. If its dark green and the new leaves are normal sized (albiet curled up) then there is nothing to worry about.

Below is a picture of my tomatoes taken last night, which is not normal (I've been growing them in the same way for years and never seen anything like this):



The sick plant is on the left with the same variety on the right. The one on the right was a â??spareâ?? that I had just discarded outside about 3 weeks ago and hadnâ??t bothered to tend, however I potted the â??spareâ?? up yesterday, itâ??s a bit smaller than my sick plant but isnâ??t showing any distortion or wilting symptoms. So that makes me think it might be my greenhouse soil (I have dug up the one on the left and put it into a 9" pot in new compost to see if it will recover).

Here's a close up:



Sorry not trying to hijack your thread, I've already posted my problem on another forum and not yet got an answer on whats wrong with mine, I am suspecting its not a disease but may be something residual in the compost, I know that tomatoes are particularly sensitive to weed killers, and just wonder if there may be some residue in my freshly bought compost. I am also growing 7 different varities and they exhibit the same symptoms :(

Looking forward to your photos for comparison.

John

 

David/Pete

Thanks for your replies. Yes I am pretty sure my toms are reacting to a hormone weedkiller too, and I think it was residual in the compost I bought. I had read that tomatoes only need the slightest sniff of weedkiller to start going like this, but never seen it before.

I haven't used any weedkiller for years, I last used glyphosate (RoundUp), which isn't hormone based. I did wonder if my neighbour might have been using some, but my 'spare' plants that are not in this suspect compost are looking OK. If it was spray drift damage they would be distorted as well.

(PS: just did a google and there is a product called Westland Lawn Weed Killer, that contains 2, 4-D which is the 'nasty' hormone that causes this distorted growth, so it seems anyone can still buy it).

I am going to dig up the rest tonight and wash off all the suspect compost from the root ball, then replant them in pots using new different compost - Kill or Cure!

Your advice is most appreciated.

John

 

They were growing OK in the greenhouse soil to start with. They have been in there 3 weeks or so.

I dug them out of the greenhouse soil last weekend when I noticed they were suffering and washed off as much soil from the rootball as possible, then put them into the large pots. I took the picture a day later.

Its not my own compost, so not certain what's in it.

I have used this compost in the past, it's supposedly 'organic'. I bought 30 bags of the stuff (80l each) and dug it in all over my veg patch, including into the greenhouse soil. All my other vegs are growing happily in it.


I had a response from a relative who works as a agrochem rep advising farmers and he thinks it could be contaminated compost. There is one particular weedkiller that farmers use which can find its way into organic compost. It can survive going through the cows digestive system and can find its way into farm yard manure!

But he thinks this is very rare and more likely nematode (eelworm) damage on the roots from a build up in the greenhouse soil. There's no cure available for home growers so I am going to dig up all the rest of my toms and use growbags.

I've managed to scrounge a few new young plants so this season may not be completely tomatoless!

thanks for your help