[sirpsycho]

Most of my tomato plants are growing fine, in fact they are growing very quickly and most are close to 6 foot tall now.

The only problem is the curling of the upper leaves - from the very top down about a 1/3 of the way or so. A lot of the leaves are curling inwards but still green. Trusses are forming so it doesn't appear to be causing too much trouble but I suspect it must be doing some sort of longterm damage.

I've read up on the web and looked at various photos but I can't diagnose the exact problem. Maybe a lack of minerals or too many minerals, or too much water or too little. I've been feeding them standard tomato feed each week since they were planted in may. I keep the window and door open most of the time to keep the temperature from getting too high and to keep a good airflow through the plants.

Anyways, please see the pics below. Thanks in advance for your comments!

[michael brenock]

the symptoms look very like weedkiller or spray contamination especially the growing tips. It is also possible if you are feeding very often there may be a build up of nutrients in the soil. A good watering will alleviate this. The curling of the leaves may be due to very high temperatures during the day even for short periods. The edges of the lower leaves will recover but the upper ones will probably wither and turn brown.It is not a nutrient deficiency and not a virus.
michael brenock horticultural advisor (retired)

[Maeve Drogheda]

Hi Sirpsycho,

I had the same problem with some of the tomato plants also, but put it down to the extremely hot weather, so I cut the withering leaves, and gave the plants a good watering, and left the door to the glass open during the day, this seems to have sorted the problem. I open the greenhouse every morning and close it every evening. Nothing has withered since. I don't use chemicals nor to my neighbours so that is why i put it down to the exttemely hot greenhouse. But I am no expert.

[sirpsycho]

Thanks for the replies all. I'm putting it down to swings in temps. I installed a max/min termometer (nicked the baby's one!) for a few days/nights and there was a huge swing. 9C min to 37C max. Even with the door and window opened!! The chili's and peppers are LOVING it but the tomatoes still look dodge. Today is gonna be another hot one, hopefully there's a breeze to cool the greenhouse.

[Lius]

I have had a version or other of the same probem every year and tried all the remedies suggested on this site an other sites with no improvement in the appearance of the foliage.

The good news is thar I always get harvest of tomatoes no matter how bad the plants look. One year I was going to dump the plants but let them grow and got a bumper crop which lasted into November.

I reckon the tomato plant is dooing what it needs to do to survive in this hostile environment of ours.

[Maeve Drogheda]

I have been very successul with my tomatoes this year, we have been eating them since end of May!! BUT the fruit that is coming now is a lot smaller, the tomatoes are turning red before they have grown very big. I grow tumbler and principe bourgese, the first lot of fruit was the normal size but the second lot is very small about the size of a malteeser!! Anyone any ideas what I did wrong?

I have to add that it is not all the tomatoes just a few on the tumbler plants.

[breezyacre]

Hi everyone please take a little time to read this as this tomato problem is what pertains in my garden every year. I have a small tunnel and a smaller glasshouse. I have been growing tomatoes in the tunnel. I have taken some pictures that show curling and also plants with brown spots particularly at the edges of the leaves. I am putting it down to extreme temps in the tunnel. This year I planted the tomatoes in pots of compost to ensure greater sterility of planting medium and therefore reducing the risk of soil bourne difficulties. The results are depressingly the same though. The leaves curl and as you can see are mottled and some are yellow and withering. The one thing though is that I seem to have healthy trusses. Am I right in thinking that the problem is down, in the main, to too high temperatures during the day with a shocking, to the plant, fall during the night. I have since transferred the plants to the glasshouse and have been dousing the floor with water during the day to reduce the temps. I think they are happier there but it is really too early to say. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[breezyacre]

Hi Sirpsycho, as you can see from my message I have a similar problem. Are your toms in a glasshouse or in a plastic tunnel. The reason I ask is that I am coming around to the conclusion that the tunnel becomes hotter and is definitely harder to ventilate.

[sirpsycho]

Hi Breezyacre,

Sorry, just checked this thread now. My toms are in a glasshouse (minus the glass - polycarbon one, you can just about make it out in one of the pics above).

I'm nearly glad we are getting this dreadful wet weather, the temps are now hovering around the 10-20C mark but my plants appear to be looking even more worse for wear. They are still growing but there is a lot more curling up of the leaves.

Try and get your hands on a max/min thermometer to check your temp range.

[michael brenock]

the curling of the leaf especially the upper ones is usually caused by high temperatures and too much of a difference between day and night temperatures. Ventilate well during the day and even on a warm night , keep the atmosphere moist during the day and do not overfeed.
michael brenock horticultural advisor (retired)