Tomato Disease - Growing Tomatoes Free of Disease and Pests

Healthy tomatoes are a thing of beauty. Watching those beautiful tomatoes deepen in color on the vine; the astringent, earthy smell of fresh tomatoes – who could resist! Unfortunately, tomato disease is the culprit that fells many a beautiful tomato crop. Growing tomatoes is fun, most tomato plants are abundant in yield; tomatoes come in a variety of hybrids, each with their own unique coloring, flavoring and culinary properties. It’s no wonder tomato disease is feared by most gardeners. With careful planning and attention to detail, growing tomatoes can be the most satisfactory part of the gardening season.

Tomato Disease – Growing Tomatoes with Organic Pesticides

Tomato disease can be routed with a little care. The most common types of disease are:

• tomato blight
• wilt
• septoria leaf spot
• tomato fungus.

Many garden supply stores offer a variety of environmentally friendly or organic pesticides to control tomato disease. Many of these pesticides are “soap based” making them easily broken down into biodegradable components that not only fight off the noxious tomato pests, but also ultimately enrich the soils the way fertilizer would. Another good option when growing tomatoes is to rotate the placement of the plants each year in an effort to give the soil an opportunity to recover from any soil bound pathogens.

Surprisingly, crowded tomato plants are also a good source of tomato disease. By carefully growing tomatoes 24 inches apart, allowing them to grow in tomato cages and removing diseased plants quickly, you can prevent the spread of tomato plant disease from one plant to another. In the end, you’ll have a variety of tomatoes to enjoy fresh off the vine or in all the many tomato based recipes you can find. Enjoy!

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