What Does A Tomato Plant With Yellow Leaves Mean?
Tomato plant leaves turning YELLOW?
If you have a tomato plant bearing yellow leaves then this is generally not a good sign. The leaves may be turning yellow right before your eyes and you may have no idea why, or even worse, what to do about it! Well, before you go and do anything in a hurry, be sure to read over this article as you will find some helpful tips here.
CAUSES for tomato plant leaves turning yellow
Leaves on tomato plants turn yellow for a whole host of reasons, and there may not be one quick, easy solution. One thing is sure though, the health of your tomato plant is suffering and something needs to be done about it. Possible causes for the yellowing of your leaves are:
Lack of water
Yellow leaves on your tomato plant could be a sign of under watering. This is one of the first and easiest things to check. Touch the soil around the bottom of the plant to see if it is slightly moist, but not overly wet. If it is dry and you have a busy schedule, you may want to setup a simple drip hose system.
Lack of sunshine and soil nutrients
Believe it or not, something this simple may be the cause for the yellowing of your tomato leaves. This is likely to occur as the plant is maturing and bearing a lot of fruit.
Lack of nitrogen in your soil could be another possibility, so you could try adding a little nitrogen or other plant nutrients to your soil.
Another soil deficiency could be magnesium, yellowing leaves is a sure sign of this. Most often this deficiency will turn the area between the veins of the leaf yellow. It is not usual for the whole leaf to change colour.
Blight – Fungus or bacterial problem
When your tomato plant leaves turn yellow it could be a fungal or bacterial related problem. These pathogenic organisms cause a disease in your plants which are commonly referred to as blight. Blight is a condition where the organism literally cripples your tomato plant, resulting in chlorosis (browning of the leaves) and then, ultimately, death. Early blight happens annually and is a common problem for most gardeners. Usually, this will develop into a problem when the tomato plants are heavy with fruit and there has been a lot of rain. The leaves must be wet for the infection to occur, and spores can be transferred through wind and splashing rain water.
To treat bacterial problems, talk to your local garden center to get the right advice and treatment. You don’t want to go putting a mix on your lovely plants, only to watch them wither away, as you have chosen the wrong one!
Pest problems
The cause of your yellow tomato plant leaves could mean that you have a pest problem that needs to be dealt with. Possible pests include worms or caterpillars, for they can affect the health of your plant. I recommend using some sort of organic pesticide to treat this problem.
Chlorosis
The root cause for the yellowing of your tomato leaves is chlorophyll degradation. Either your plants aren’t producing enough of it or the chlorophyll is being destroyed by something. This symptom is known as chlorosis. Chlorophyll is what plants produce to make them appear a rich green color. There are many reasons for chlorosis, some include over or under watering, insects, disease, excessive fertilizers, excessive shade, or just poor drainage.
So you can see that there are many reasons for the cause of your tomato plant’s leaves turning yellow. Use this article as a guide to figuring out why they are affecting YOUR tomato plants. Have faith that your tomato plants will return to full health in no time.
