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2 of my potted tomatoes are getting some freckles. They are outside in the sun and moved in each night. T is from 20°C to 30°C, relative humidity ranging from 45% to 65%, and very rarely above that. I am in south central Europe. To me, this looked like Septoria leaf spot or early blight, but i am no expert. enter image description hereenter image description here

sanjihan
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septoria leaf spot tomatoes Sanjihan Even experts are unsure IDing anything via pictures and I have to tell you you are becoming quite the expert. I am sending this article, this leaf spot is so familiar to me I stop worrying about it once I've gotten plenty of tomatoes from my plants. Are you going to go for perennial use of tomatoes?

This disease is only seen in my greenhouse/garden, even in pots. Never in my sanitary grow room. Simple fungus, spores splash up on the plants, or dust impregnates the spots of water on the leaves. At least this is not blight. But it could be...just one spore of blight and then there is nothing you can do. Kind of a wake up call. I'd quit watering over head, cover my tomatoes, prune up the lower leaves closest to the ground.

Neem is an interesting 'organic' pesticide/fungicide. I never consider this a safe 'organic'. I also never spray it during the day. In fact, I like doing dunks at night with smaller and potted plants.

I will be trying to spray Neem on my tomato plants this year, before they flower and subsequently spraying avoiding the flowers. This is also a shield. Neem is used to make plant leaves shiny. Go figure. Once they set fruit, no more spraying. And I won't be doing but a few plants. Tomatoes...can't imagine considering tomatoes as perennials even in a greenhouse. Once they do their thing they look like awful, sickly plants. I always thought they were annuals, can't imagine them as perennials. They are fungus magnets in my opinion. It doesn't help that the spores are in the garden soil you used! Grins. I can be a horrible nag!! 'I told you so'...!!! My poor husband, you've no idea!

Hey, my potted tomatoes are always in potting soil. Just getting dusted with soil with wet leaves is enough and I always get this disease. So I am just being bad.

stormy
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  • As always, thanks! :) yeah, perrenial tomatoes are still my goal. At least other pots are doing ok..for now. I've got no leaves touching the ground, I use water bottles to water it, so there is no splashing. I really have no idea where I went wrong. except for garden soil :P and I am sure your husband is doing just fine :) neem sounds so familiar. I think florists spray flowers with it for decorative purposes. Also, notice that little black insects in the images. Those tiny little flies. Just a thought, could they be a disease origin? – sanjihan May 31 '17 at 20:53
  • A vector for disease? Possibly. I swear I have never know a plant so inundated by disease. Yet if not hit by blight so very prolific. Can't imagine growing tomatoes as perennials. It is a relief to send them to tomato heaven each fall! Just the spores in the air and dust alighting on moisture on the leaves/stem will spread fungus. My tomatoes in pots, in potting soil, correct pH, exacting fertilizer, taken inside at night...will be full of fungus and powdery mildew even though not a single garden was ever grown here or near here. I get great crops but tomatoes get more babying... – stormy May 31 '17 at 21:05
  • I recently rememered this conversation... I wouldn't recommend spraying tomato (or any living plant) with neem, because then there is no way for plant to exchange gasses and water. In effect, neem would suffocate the plant. – sanjihan Jun 08 '17 at 15:03