Why do tomato seedlings curl leaves and what to do

What to do if the tomato seedlings wither and curl the leaves. The first step is to find out if curling is a varietal feature, to figure out what was done wrong when planting seeds or while caring for seedlings.

About the causes of leaf curl

There are several reasons why all the leaves of tomato seedlings are twisted. All of them can be combined into groups:

• diseases of a fungal, viral, bacterial nature;
• pest invasion;
• poor agricultural practices;
• sort feature.

You don't need to give up, it's better to start eliminating the causes in time. To do this, it is urgent to find out why the leaves of tomato seedlings curl.

Tomato diseases and leaf curl

Very often, the infection becomes the reason why the leaves of seedlings or adult tomatoes curl. Infections can be of a different nature: viral, bacterial, fungal.

Stolbur

Signs of the disease - discoloration of leaves and deformation of the leaves, located on the tops of the central and side shoots. They acquire a purple or pink-purple hue. The maximum effect in the fight against the disease can be achieved by treating diseased plants with Phytoplasmin.

Bacterial cancer

Deformed leaves that have lost their usual shape are found in tomatoes with bacterial cancer. Treating plants is useless. It is necessary to get rid of diseased seedlings (bushes) as soon as possible, destroy them. Treat he althy seedlings for prevention with a solution of copper sulfate.

What kind of insects in tomatoes curl the leaves

Sometimes you can easily understand the problem of curled leaves by looking closely at their back and stems. Insect flukes that have settled on seedlings suck the juice, damage the surface of the stems and leaf blades. Aphids, whiteflies, and spider mites help curl the leaves.

Aphid

A picture familiar to many: a chain of ants crawling along the trunk, and the tops of tomato bushes with twisting leaves. At the sight of her, it immediately becomes clear that aphids settled on tomatoes in the greenhouse. You need to get rid of not only aphids, but also ants. The ground under the bushes can be sprinkled from ants with shag or red pepper.While there is no tomato on the bushes, treat the entire surface of diseased plants with an insecticide, suitable for this purpose:

• Aktara;
• Spark;
• Proteus.

It's harder to decide what to do if tomatoes are already hanging on the bushes. In this case, it is better to do folk remedies for aphids. Insist wormwood or celandine. In the evening, treat the plants infected with aphids with infusion. To make the solution stick to the surface, add grated laundry soap to it. For 3 liters of water you need 500 g of wormwood, celandine for the same volume needs 2 times less.

Whitefly

The reason that the leaves of the tomatoes in the greenhouse are curling may be the whitefly butterfly, it is quite difficult to find it, since during the day it hides in the lower part of the tomato bush. Tomatoes should be sprinkled with yarrow infusion for the prevention of whiteflies, so that later you don’t have to wonder why the leaves of the tomatoes are twisting.For 5 liters of infusion, you need 150 g of chopped herbs. Be sure to add 100 g of laundry soap to the infusion.

Spider mite

External signs speak of the obvious presence of spider mites on tomatoes: cobwebs on the branches, leaves curled up. Due to the fact that the mites actively suck the juice, the leaves dry, the fruits are tied worse. If there is at least a month before the harvest, you can apply chemicals:

• Borneo;
• Flumite;
• Oberon.

For ardent opponents of chemistry, infusions of dandelion, green onion or garlic can be recommended. For 3 liters of infusion, you need 0.5 kg of dandelion flowers. The same proportions, if the infusion was decided to be made from an onion feather. It takes 15 cloves to make garlic water.

Problems with agricultural machinery

Basic care for seedlings and adult tomatoes consists of watering, fertilizing, creating a certain microclimate (temperature, humidity, lighting). Twisted leaves are a sign that care is bad.

Soil moisture

The main reason why the bushes are partially deformed in tomatoes is soil moisture. At the same time, it does not matter at all whether there is an excess of moisture in the soil or a lack, in both cases the leaves are wrapped, but in different ways.

When the soil is too dry, the leaves curl down, in case of excess moisture, the edges bend up.

Most often, beginner gardeners have problems with watering. Gardeners with experience know all about the dangers of frequent, superficial watering. Wetting only the surface layer (5 cm) during irrigation, the gardener practically deprives the plant of moisture, since the bulk of the roots are deeper. Due to lack of moisture, the plant lowers the leaves down.

The problem is solved simply. The gardener should reconsider the irrigation scheme. Water in the open ground once a week, in the greenhouse, water abundantly every three days. Two buckets of water - the approximate amount of water for an adult tomato bush. Watering is better in the early morning.

If the seedlings are not properly watered, the same problems occur. So that the seedlings do not die, you need to urgently help her. Stop watering when the soil is waterlogged, resume watering after the top layer of soil up to 5 mm thick dries. If the soil is too dry, water the seedlings with water at room temperature, slightly moisten the air in the room with a sprinkler or a household humidifier.

Temperature

In the summer it is easy to understand why the leaves of tomatoes in a greenhouse curl. At noon, the air temperature in a polycarbonate greenhouse can exceed the threshold of 35 ° C. In this case, the outdoor temperature may not exceed 25 °C. It's all about the sun, it warms the air in the greenhouse.

Tomato bushes suffer from heat, leaves begin to curl due to temperature and moisture loss.

In the heat, watering by sprinkling is strictly prohibited. This applies to any time of the day.When watering by sprinkling in the morning and evening, phytophthora may flare up, daytime watering will lead to sunburn. Curling of leaves in tomatoes in a greenhouse can be stopped by watering under the root. The most ideal option for both the tomato and the gardener himself is a drip irrigation system in the greenhouse.

In the heat, you can try to reduce the evaporation of moisture from the surface of plants and from the soil, to do this, cover the tomato bushes from the sun. For shading, white covering material is used, the upper part of the polycarbonate greenhouse is whitened. The system of natural or automatic ventilation reduces the air temperature inside the greenhouse.

Soil for seedlings

Bad soil, one of the reasons why tomato seedlings have curled leaves. Using garden land is a common mistake gardeners make. Garden land may contain pathogens, in addition, due to intensive use, it does not contain trace elements necessary for seedlings.The lack of useful elements in the soil is manifested in the appearance of seedlings.

With a lack of phosphorus, the leaves of the seedlings change color from green to gray-green, while they curl up.

To return the plants to their normal appearance, they need to be watered with a solution of superphosphate or a solution of any complex fertilizer containing phosphorus.

If the color of the tomato bush acquires a slight purple hue, and the leaf plate bends inward, this is a signal that there is a lot of zinc in the soil. Excess copper in the soil leads to the fact that all the foliage is twisted, and the color becomes bright green. Weakened seedlings should be transplanted into high-quality soil, a week after transplantation, feed with complex fertilizer for tomatoes.

Fertilizer problem

Fertilization without a system leads to the fact that the leaves of seedlings and adult tomato bushes curl. Moreover, seedlings twist both with a lack of fertilizers in the soil, and with their excess.

Excess nitrogen in the soil

Lagging seedlings, gardeners are trying to stimulate the shock dose of fertilizers containing nitrogen. With an excess of nitrogen in the soil, seedlings absorb phosphorus and potassium and other trace elements worse. Lack of nutrition affects the condition of the leaves, they change color, they begin to curl.

Gardeners often upset the balance of nitrogen in the soil by applying more nitrogen-containing fertilizers than the norm: ammonium nitrate, urea, and also use mullein or grass infusions. Not to mention that liquid mullein and herb infusions also contain nitrogen.

Having understood why the upper leaves of tomato seedlings curl, you need to increase the content of phosphorus and potassium in the soil, thereby neutralizing nitrogen. Seedlings can be fed with infusion of ash, and adult tomatoes, so that the leaves do not curl, feed with potassium sulfate (10 g / m²), in addition, pour all the tomatoes with a solution of superphosphate.

Features of the variety and leaf curl

Some varieties (often indents) stand out for their appearance. They have a narrow leaf plate, not spreading, the tips of the leaves are bent down. Against the background of other tomato bushes (seedlings), such plants look painful, but in this case the gardener does not need to worry about the fate of the future crop.

The leaves of tomato seedlings curl due to a genetic feature. Adult plants and seedlings in this case are absolutely he althy and no action is needed. This feature is found in tall Cherry tomatoes, in addition, leaves of varieties can be wrapped:

• Honey drop;
• Fatima;
• Japanese crab.

Conclusion

The appearance of deformed leaves on seedlings (tomato bushes) should not cause panic among novice gardeners.In most cases, this happens for the simplest reasons. First of all, create normal conditions for the growth of plants, resort to chemistry in the most extreme cases and they will not wrap.

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