Tomatoes! Help!

[vraiblonde]

A couple of my tomatoes have blossom end rot, which the intarweb says is because of calcium deficiency.

So how do I correct this? Make them drink their milk? Is there a supplement or something I can buy somewhere? I feed them this stuff specifically made for tomatoes, but apparently it's just not good enough.

Anyone?

[jetmonkey]

1. Maintain the soil pH around 6.5. Liming will supply calcium and will increase the ratio of calcium ions to other competitive ions in the soil.
2. Use nitrate nitrogen as the fertilizer nitrogen source. Ammoniacal nitrogen may increase blossom-end rot as excess ammonium ions reduce calcium uptake. Avoid over-fertilization as side dressings during early fruiting, especially with ammoniacal forms of nitrogen.
3. Avoid drought stress and wide fluctuations in soil moisture by using mulches and/or irrigation. Plants generally need about one inch of moisture per week from rain or irrigation for proper growth and development.
4. Foliar applications of calcium, which are often advocated, are of little value because of poor absorption and movement to fruit where it is needed.

[jetmonkey]

Control of blossom end rot is dependent upon maintaining adequate supplies of moisture and calcium to the developing fruits. Tomatoes should not be excessively hardened nor too succulent when set in the field. They should be planted in welldrained, adequately aerated soils. Tomatoes planted early in cold soil are likely to develop blossom end rot on the first fruits, with the severity of the disease often subsiding on fruits set later. Thus, planting tomatoes in warmer soils helps to alleviate the problem. Irrigation must be sufficient to maintain a steady even growth rate of the plants. Mulching of the soil is often helpful in maintaining adequate supplies of soil water in times of moisture stress. When cultivation is necessary, it should not be too near the plants nor too deep, so that valuable feeder roots remain uninjured and viable. In home gardens, shading the plants is often helpful when hot, dry winds are blowing, and soil moisture is low. Use of fertilizer low in nitrogen, but high in superphosphate, such as 4-12-4 or 5-20-5, will do much to alleviate the problem of blossom end rot. In emergency situations, foliage can be sprayed with calcium chloride solutions. However, extreme caution must be exercised since calcium chloride can be phytotoxic if applied too frequently or in excessive amounts. Foliar treatment is not a substitute for proper treatment of the soil to maintain adequate supplies of water and calcium.

[Vince]

Alright, enough of the Endrot. Black on the bottom. Put somemore bonemeal at the bottom of the plant and water it in. Should stop it. Did you put what I told you when you planted them?

[Baja28]

Talk to BS or DR. He added a calcium tablet to hers and it cured them.

[Vince]

Or you can just put eggshell from breakfast around them. Yeah, it works and yes I'm old school. Been doing it this way for years.

[toppick08 (Premo)]

Originally Posted by Vince

Or you can just put eggshell from breakfast around them. Yeah, it works and yes I'm old school. Been doing it this way for years.

yep.and epsom salt.

[desertrat (Premo)]

Originally Posted by vraiblonde

A couple of my tomatoes have blossom end rot, which the intarweb says is because of calcium deficiency.

So how do I correct this? Make them drink their milk? Is there a supplement or something I can buy somewhere? I feed them this stuff specifically made for tomatoes, but apparently it's just not good enough.

Anyone?

Ground up people calcium pills worked. First few had rot, the next batch doesn't.

[backagain39]

Originally Posted by jetmonkey

1. Maintain the soil pH around 6.5. Liming will supply calcium and will increase the ratio of calcium ions to other competitive ions in the soil.
2. Use nitrate nitrogen as the fertilizer nitrogen source. Ammoniacal nitrogen may increase blossom-end rot as excess ammonium ions reduce calcium uptake. Avoid over-fertilization as side dressings during early fruiting, especially with ammoniacal forms of nitrogen.
3. Avoid drought stress and wide fluctuations in soil moisture by using mulches and/or irrigation. Plants generally need about one inch of moisture per week from rain or irrigation for proper growth and development.
4. Foliar applications of calcium, which are often advocated, are of little value because of poor absorption and movement to fruit where it is needed.

Damn pass the slide rule.............

[Nanny Pam (Premo)]

grind up the TUMS and WA-LA