tomato and pepper with blossom end rot

HELP..... lots of green tomatoes but it seems a bunch have blossom end rot, mostly the larger ones, i need to look to see which ones. Has anyone used kelp to add to the soil to help this?

What does this look like? I had two ripe roma tomatoes and I picked both today. I looked at the bottoms to find a hole in each one, so I cut them open to see if a bug or worm had crawled inside. I did not find any, but they were both black and looked rotten in the bottom portions of the tomatoes. Do you know what causes this? I have TONS of green ones on the vine, and I don't want to lose all of them to whatever this is.

If we can identify it, perhaps we can battle it!

Alicia Zimmerman
North Tonawanda, NY

Link to previous thread.
lack of magnesium and calcium? Treatment epsom salt, calcium (crushed Tums tabs or powdered milk):
tablespoon of epsom salt and 2 tablespoons store brand boxed powdered milk, sprinkle around the base of the plant and gently scratch in & water. http://faq.gardenweb.com/faq/lists/tomato/2000082444023571.html

I have not used kelp for BER.

From all I have read so far about that problem, it stems from under watering. Tomatoes need 1-3 inches of water weekly. This article explains it, but others I read say that amending soil isn't enough, adding enough water ensures that those nutrients (calcium most importantly) are being carried by water all the way to the fruit.

http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/3000/3117.html

Well I just discovered this problem in my own SFG. Except I only have it on 1 tomato plant out of 5, and none of my peppers. I did put crushed eggshells and epsom salts in the holes when I planted my tomatoes in the spring, Mom swears this works for her. I also added some more epsom salts on top just last week. I have read it can be caused by too little OR too much watering. Well I have been trying to be consistent with the watering but of course we can't control Mother Nature. We had massive rains Friday night, lots of flooding in our area. Our yard is not graded properly and there was some standing water right next to my SFG box. This morning I found BER on just the one plant, a Golden Jubilee. It looks like the fruit is just at the beginning of the BER, there is a brown spot at the blossom end but it's not mushy/rotten yet. Most of the fruit on that one plant was affected, but not a couple of the oldest ones at the bottom of the plant. I find it odd that it's only the one plant, I hope this doesn't mean the rest of the tomato plants are going to follow suit. I've added some more crushed eggshells but obviously that's not a quick fix. Thanks for the powdered milk suggestion. I'm not going to be watering for another day or 2, the soil in the box is still quite wet. What do you all think of pouring a little regular liquid milk around the plant?

I have a friend that is using raw milk on her tomatoes every few weeks. She swears that are doing better than in the years she did not use the milk. I believe it certainly cant hurt putting a bit of milk to the roots. Let us know how that goes for you. Good Luck!!

You know I was just talking to my Mom on the phone. She was here visiting me around tomato planting time. She reminded me that I'd already planted 4 of the plants before she arrived and I had 1 empty square. We bought that Jubilee while she was here and she says I didn't put any eggshells in that hole. (I must've not had any shells saved at that time). I don't remember, but if she's right that would explain why it's only effecting this one plant! Mystery solved!

Does it have to be raw milk?

martha wrote:Does it have to be raw milk?

I don't think it matters. She buys the raw milk at a local dairy farm mostly to support the farm.

What kind of TUMS do you use? I can't seem to find any plain flavored ones. The closest I can get is wintergreen regular.

I found four of my Opalka paste tomatoes with brown tips. I'm not sure it blossom end rot, it's only the tip, which on an Opalka is a very pronounced nipple. It may be just the wicked heat we've had!

Pattipan

pattipan wrote:What kind of TUMS do you use? I can't seem to find any plain flavored ones. The closest I can get is wintergreen regular.

I found four of my Opalka paste tomatoes with brown tips. I'm not sure it blossom end rot, it's only the tip, which on an Opalka is a very pronounced nipple. It may be just the wicked heat we've had!

Bumping this topic to the top again. Anyone have an answer to my TUMS question??

Patti

I've been using Kirkland (from Costco) brand antacid tablets... Calcium Carbonate 500mg Fruit Flavor. I don't think wintergreen would be a problem, and probably would be better than the fruit flavor, but that's what I had in the house.

The label says:

Each tablet contains calcium 215 mg and magnesium 5 mg.

Inactive ingredients: adipic acid, dextrose, FD&C blue #1, FD&C red #40, FD&C yellow #5 (tartrazine), FD&C yellow #6, flavors, maltodextrin, mineral oil, polyethylene glycol, powdered cellulose, talc.

I don't know how bad the colors are, or the polyethylene glycol, but otherwise, I think it's all okay stuff. Maybe the wintergreen would be better, as a matter of fact, since it probably uses wintergreen oil, instead of the amorphous "flavors"

I put one tablet in each hole when I planted my tomatoes, and I've dissolved four tablets in a gallon of water for supplement once a week for my 12 plants. So far, most of my tomatoes are doing well, though only the Stupice has ripened at all. My Mortgage Lifter isn't happy, and I'll probably pull that one soon - it has one fruit on it, and the leaves are turning yellow and curling up. The rest of the plants seem pretty good - nice green foliage, and setting fruit (except for Mr. Stripey).

Thanks, Wyldflower! That's basically what I needed to know. I haven't found any more brown tips on my Opalkas, but I may give them a little calcium anyway.

I still have not got a ripe tomato yet, other than the Sweet 100 cherry tomatoes. The Opalkas and WV 63's are hanging thick, but no sign of red yet! That's pretty typical though, in previous years most of the tomato harvest and canning has been in August and September.


Pattipan

We had that problem last year. I asked at our local nursery and she said they just need calcium. She sold me a spray for $6.00 called BLOSSOM SET by Dexol. I went home and sprayed this years' plants, especially the blossoms. They have produced perfect tomatoes in the same location as last year. I think she said it adds calcium to the plant and should be use for plants already established since adding it to the soil wouldn't solve the problem in time.

FYI

I just ground up a whole bunch of Tums and sprinkled them on the soil, then watered well. Not sure if it was that or dumb luck, but I don't seem to be getting BER on my squash anymore.

camprn wrote:

martha wrote:Does it have to be raw milk?

I don't think it matters. She buys the raw milk at a local dairy farm mostly to support the farm.

You're right, it doesn't matter. Powdered milk, mixed about half as weak as you would if you wanted to drink the stuff, and sprayed over the leaves and/or watered into the soil, works just as well (and you can get it in organic form). Milk is a good natural fungicide for powdery mildew and a couple kinds of fungal blight.

I would just like to update that I added crushed eggshells around the affected tomato and fed it some milk a couple of times. It seems to have solved the problem, all of the newer tomatoes on that plant are free of BER. Mom told me back before I first planted that she used to have a bad problem with BER and since she started adding eggshells when she plants she never has BER anymore. As usual Mom was right!