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Tomato blossoms drying and falling off

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by maiaia on September 07, 2004 12:23 AM
Howdy all,

this is my first time growing tomatoes (or anything, for that matter). I've got them in containers on the roof of my shed; I started them from seed ( a little late in the season) and have two heirloom varieties: green zebra and black krim. Plants are very healthy-looking, about 2' tall and blooming. Problem is, the blossoms are drying out and falling off, and I'm not getting any fruits. From a quick search online, I suspect that the flowers are not getting pollinated, hence the flowers are falling off. Should I help them along with Q-tips? Can anyone confirm this, or give me other input?

thanks all,

maiaia

ps - I'm harvesting my first cucumbers today. Loads of fun!!
by weezie13 on September 07, 2004 05:08 AM
Maiaia,
Can you tell us just a bit of..............
What kind of dirt you have in your containers, What your watering practices where/are,
and What kind of fertilzers you are using....

That helps us narrow things down a bit for you!!!

Sounds maybe somethings missing in your dirt>???

There's a couple other gardener's here that may be able to help you a bit more than me on this...

Papito??? Phil???

Weezie

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Weezie

Don't forget to be kind to strangers. For some who have
done this have entertained angels without realizing it.
- Bible - Hebrews 13:2

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http://photobucket.com/albums/y250/weezie13/
by maiaia on September 07, 2004 06:33 AM
Hi Weezie,

thanks for getting back to me.

The dirt I'm using is Miracle Gro Enriched Potting Soil - it has Miracle Gro plant food in it (little beady looking green things). In addition to that, I've given it Miracle Gro Tomato Plant Food (18-18-21) twice since I've put the plants in their final containers.

My watering habits vary depending on the weather. If it's foggy half the day and temps stay below 70, I water about every other day. If it's sunny, dry, and hot (high 80s or low 90s) like it was today, I water them 2x/day. I was watering everything with a bucket until today, when I started using the hose.

What do you think? I read elsewhere in this forum that someone else had a similar problem; her great grandma told her to take a broom and whack the bushes. She did, and it worked. So today I gave the containers a good shake. =) I inspected the flowers and couldn't really see any pollen, though.

thanks again,

maiaia
by weezie13 on September 07, 2004 06:45 AM
Maiaia,
It may very well be the potting soil has fertilizers in it, and then you're double whamming them with more fertilizers... [dunno]
Not completely sure on that, but it can happen,
when you're over fertilizing your plant may run into problems....
If the potting soil already has plant food in it,
and you're feeding it again, it stresses the plant out!!!
Plus everytime you water, it releases some more of the fertilizers in the dirt/soil provided in the bag...
Hence the blossoms falling????? Or drying up.

I'd lay off the extra fert...
And maybe just watch it for a bit...

The other thing with fertilizers is the Miracle Grow usually is for the green~lush growth......
You should find something with a high middle number only, my personal favorite is Schultz Plus 10~60~10... that's for the flowers and the fruiting process....

Find some Alfalfa Meal and stir it into the dirt
gently with out distrubing too much of the soil/roots....

quote:
What do you think? I read elsewhere in this forum that someone else had a similar problem; her great grandma told her to take a broom and whack the bushes
I have heard that for fruit trees, not too sure about tomato plants/??? but hey, maybe a good tapping/???? but it's usually done with a plant that has a sturdy/woody stem/trunk????

Let us know how you do....
We love [Cool] updates [critic]
Keep us posted...

Weezie

P/S I too started all my tomatoes from seed this year and also got them in very late....
But at least one or two first fruitings are always better than none if you don't plant them at all!!!!

* * * *
Weezie

Don't forget to be kind to strangers. For some who have
done this have entertained angels without realizing it.
- Bible - Hebrews 13:2

 -
 -
 -

http://photobucket.com/albums/y250/weezie13/
by maiaia on September 07, 2004 08:31 AM
Weezie,

thanks again for your reply. I poked around the internet some more and found this, from:

http://faq.*********.com/faq/lists/cornucop/2000073525003506.html

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"Blossom-Drop" is a condition suffered by tomatoes, peppers, snap beans, and some other fruiting vegetables where the plant blooms but fails to set fruit, the blooms die and fall off. It may be caused by the use of excess nitrogen fertilizers or dry windy conditions, but the most common cause is temperature extremes. Tomatoes, peppers and beans are especially picky about the air temps when it comes time to set fruit. If the night temps fall below 55 or rise above 75 or if the day temps are above 90, the pollen becomes tacky and non-viable. Pollination cannot occur. If the bloom isn't pollinated, the bloom dies and falls off.

Control: Water the plants deeply once a week, mulch heavily to maintain constant soil moisture levels, establish windbreaks as needed, avoid using excessive amounts of nitrogen fertilizers, and wait for temperatures to moderate and stabilize. Earlier timed planting can help attain fruit set prior to the on-set of high temps, and the use of protection can compensate for cool nights. Some recommend attempting hand-pollination with an artist brush or a gentle shaking of the plant/cage/support prior to the hottest part of the day will also help. Fruit set will resume when temperatures moderate. Hormone sprays, such as "Blossom Set", may prevent some blossom drop due to LOW temperatures. However, the resulting fruit are often misshapen. But studies prove that hormone sprays do not prevent blossom drop due to HIGH temperatures.

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So I will hold off on the fertilizer, like you said, and watch it. Temperatures around here should drop off over the next week, so maybe that'll do the trick.... We'll see. I'll keep you posted.

maiaia
by maiaia on September 13, 2004 04:28 AM
Hi Weezie,

you'll never believe it. I spotted my first little tomato today in one of my Black Krim plants! Seems like giving the bushes a little shake really did the trick. I confess I didn't have a lot of faith, but I was wrooooong. I can tell I'm about to see more tomatoes, too; 'cause the blossoms are drying but the stems are staying put. YAY! [grin] Can't wait to eat homegrown tomatoes. The cucumbers are great, and the eggplants are starting to flower.

More later....

Maiaia

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