Odd Tomato

*

Hello All,

If you can tell from this picture, what*is the black spotting on the tomato bottoms?

This is the second tomato I have found like this*and I am afraid it is a fungus.

I am using an Eco-friendly*fungal/insecticide that is doing good on the bugs...

Thanks,k4lop

(Gerry)

[Newt]

Hi Gerry,

Your picture is blurry, but if the rot is at the bottom aka the blossom end it's blossom end rot.*
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/t...fruit/36c.html

You could try watering with a tablespoon of milk in your watering can.

I'd love to know what your eco-friendly fungal/pesticide is.* I'm always anxious to learn about products.

Newt

*

Hello Newt,

Ooh-Oh, I made a boner....Eco-friendly fungi-pesticide?

I am using some stuff called Ferti-Loam and it is 3-in-one for fungus, mites and insects. I thought I read that it was safe around pets and OK for the environment. What it does say is that it can be used on vegetables and other plants up until time for harvest.....but not that it is safe around pets, children, etc.

Any way, I goofed big time and I am glad you challenged me as I was just about to use it on some butter beans I have growing along a fence where our dogs are kept....but not now.

The good thing is that it has worked great and isn't very expensive. I hate using anything like this but for the past 2 years we have been infested with Japanese Beetles and I bought this as a last resort. Now if I can do something to treat the ground around where they seem to be centralized so I can kill the larva maybe next year we won't have so much trouble with them.

Thanks for all of your advice, it has been really helpful and I have given the tomatoes a dose of milk. The only rain we have had this season has come in 3 days and each day that it has rained has been about a month apart....so the lack of water (even though I have used the hose) has probably caused the "bottom-end rot" as you thought.

Thanks,

k4lop

(Gerry)

[Newt]

Gerry, thanks for getting back to me.* I'm so glad you didn't spray it around the dogs.* I don't have alot of time today to do much research, but I did a quick google for 'Ferti-loam' and found this info from the PAN Pesticide Database.* They list it as a PAN bad actor.* It's copper based and an overdose of copper is dangerous.
http://www.pesticideinfo.org/Detail_...DIST_NR=007401

Apparently the main ingredient is chlorothalonil.* Here's their take on that chemical.
http://www.pesticideinfo.org/Detail_...Rec_Id=PC34550

Then I did a quick google on chlorothalonil and found this.
http://www.scorecard.org/chemical-pr...e_id=1897-45-6

Here you definitely want to read 'Ecological Effects' and 'Environmental Fate'.
http://extoxnet.orst.edu/pips/chloroth.htm

You can make your own fungicide and other disease controls.
http://www.ghorganics.com/page15.html

Here's natural controls for insects.
http://www.ghorganics.com/page9.html

Newt