Tomatoes

[BismaAbbid]

Hi bunnings team ,

I need your advice about my tomato plants. I was on holidays for a month and after coming back some branches have turned yellow and now leaves are turning brown and withering. Plants had lots of access to sunshine and water as I set up an irrigation system for watering . Can you please guide me if it is normal or If I need to do something.

Plants have lots of tomatoes on them.

One more thing my cherry tomatoes are big enough as the size of small tomato but are still green, what can I do for it.

I bought mandarin plant in October. It has small green mandarin should I remove it as the plant is very small about 2feet?

 

 

  

Thanks.

[MitchellMc]

Hi @BismaAbbid,

It sounds like you’ve actually done a lot right already, especially having irrigation in place and plenty of sun. The good news is that tomatoes are very resilient, and the fact that they are still loaded with fruit is a strong sign the plants are not in serious trouble.

Yellowing branches and browning, withering leaves after a period away is quite common and is not always a sign of disease. Often it comes down to water management and plant maturity. Even with irrigation, tomatoes can suffer if the soil stays too wet for too long, particularly if the system ran on a fixed schedule while weather conditions changed. Over-watering can cause roots to struggle for oxygen, which shows up as yellowing lower leaves that later brown off. Under-watering can look very similar, so it is worth checking the soil moisture rather than relying purely on the irrigation schedule. Push your finger or a small trowel down 8 to 10 cm. If it is still very wet a day or two after watering, reduce frequency. If it is dry at that depth, increase it slightly. As an observation, your soil looks bone dry in the photos, but that could just be the top layer.

Older leaves naturally yellow and die back as the plant focuses energy on fruiting, so some leaf loss at this stage is normal. You can remove clearly dead or diseased leaves to improve airflow, but avoid stripping the plant heavily while it is fruiting.

If the plants are heavily loaded with tomatoes, they may also benefit from a light feed with a tomato or vegetable fertiliser that is higher in potassium. This supports fruit development and overall plant health, but avoid overdoing nitrogen as that can push leaf growth at the expense of fruit.

For your cherry tomatoes, size alone does not determine ripeness. Many cherry varieties grow to near small tomato size before they start to change colour. As long as they are firm and healthy, patience is key. Warm weather and consistent watering will help, and they will colour up in their own time. You do not need to do anything special to force them, just keep the plant healthy and avoid sudden changes in watering.

Regarding the mandarin tree, if it is only about two feet tall, it is best to remove the fruit this early on. While it is exciting to see fruit forming, a young tree will put a lot of energy into developing those mandarins instead of building roots and structure. Removing the fruit now will help the tree establish properly and result in a stronger, more productive plant in future seasons.

Please let me know if you ahve any questions.

Mitchell

[BismaAbbid]

Thank you so much Mitchell for your detailed response appreciated.

I'll check soil for water and fertilise  them as well.

Yes I'll remove mandrins as plant isn't mature yet .

I've a three years old mandrin tree I noticed, there are a lot of ants are walking over it is it fine or they can can harm tree as well ?

Thanks

Bisma

[MitchellMc]

Ants themselves are generally harmless to your mandarin tree @BismaAbbid, but they often indicate that there are sap-sucking insects on the plant, such as aphids, scale, or mealybugs, which produce a sugary substance that the ants feed on. Check the leaves, stems, and around new growth for white, cottony clusters, small bumps, or sticky residue, as these are signs of these pests. If you spot them, you can use a horticultural oil to safely control the insects, which will usually discourage the ants as well.

Mitchell

[Dave-1]

Good afternoon @BismaAbbid 

My tomato plants look like yours, I tend to think that I over water them and also that the soil wasnt prepped before (yeah should have turned compost through the beds earlier) That plus the heat on the hot days has yellowed my lower leaves. The fruit is still going and I just manage dto havest my first tomato this week. I am usually 3 weeks in front with planting them out so now I am heading into the super hot month with the plants and its harder to manage the water/and the root lacking oxygen (didnt know that) with too much water  

Dave