Death of a Tomato Plant

The plant on the right is a Cherokee Purple. It's hard to tell in this picture, but the leaves are all droopy. We've had a lot of rain recently, and that's allowed Verticillium Wilt to really take off inside this plant.



I've pulled out the wilty plant, and so far, the other Cherokee Purple (I planted two) is still fine, but one of the Olivette Jaune may be toast. Interestingly, this is only the second year that this garden bed has been in existence, and last year it held melons and other non-tomato-family crops. The wilt is just pervasive in the soil here, and in the right conditions it can do some serious damage.

The good news is that Rutgers and Wuhib have both always made it through "wilt season" just fine, so I will still have tomatoes, even if some plants have to be pulled from the garden.

And, while the rain "taketh away," the rain also gives. The local blackberries have really picked up the pace!



We are still harvesting green beans, cucumbers, and zucchini from the yard, and the blueberries are adding to the blackberries.

The little pepper plants are loaded with little peppers, so pretty soon we will have a lot of those to also add to our meals.

Hope all the other gardens out there are doing well!