Hello Gardeners, I’m Amanda McNulty with Clemson Extension and Making It Grow. People are coming to the Extension office with problem tomato plants and sometimes their issues could have been avoided with proper watering. Two clients were using an overhead sprinkler and watering for fifteen minutes every day, which got only the top of soil wet- as a result one had diseased leaves and the other had blossom end rot, a calcium and water-related issue. Tomatoes need a deep root system to provide a consistent supply of water with dissolved nutrients to the fruits to the plants. Extension Vegetable Specialist Tony Melton advised these growers to apply water through a drip irrigation system at a rate of a half inch, twice a week, and to mulch the soil around the plants to help conserve soil moisture and keep soil from splashing on the plants’ stems and leaves and causing diseases.
Use Drip Irrigation for Tomato Plants
