Tomatoes are an easy-to-grow, annual plant. With proper cultural care, this heavy-feeding crop produces tender green leaves and juicy fruits. However, under certain stresses, you may notice yellow to brown spots on your tomato leaves, an indication of burning. Identifying burned spots on tomato leaves, as well as the cause is the key to implementing the proper remedy.
Sunburn
Tomatoes are a sun-loving plant, requiring between 6 and 8 hours of full, direct sunlight per day. However, loss of vigor and problems with pests and diseases have the potential to make your plants sensitive to burning from the sun. This is particularly the case if your plant has experienced defoliation as the result of attack from insect pests or diseases, as leaf loss leads to sunburn on new growth. Sunburned tomato plants develop light to white patches on the upper portions of the leaves. Keeping your tomato plants vigorous with proper cultural care and practices is the best way to avoid pests, diseases and sun-scorched leaves. Additionally, young tomato seedlings are also in danger of sunburn upon transplant. Avoid seedling sunburn by allowing your young plants to slowly adjust to their environment. Provide some filtered shade for your seedlings during the hottest part of the day for the first three to four days after transplanting seedlings outdoors.
Tomatoes are a warm-weather crop that require full sun, which means six or more hours of sun per day. Tomatoes benefit from exposure to as much sun as they can possibly get. This means site selection for your tomato plants is key. Before planting your tomatoes, observe the garden throughout the course of the day. As the sun moves across the sky, some areas will be in shade while others are not. Gardens surrounded by trees or structures may not get enough sun exposure to properly grow tomato plants.
Although tomatoes require a great deal of sun, new transplants will need to be hardened off before they can be exposed to full sun in the garden. Leave your transplants outside for a few hours each day in the morning, and increase the number of hours each day over the course of one week. Plant your transplants after this hardening off period. Check soil moisture daily during the hardening off period, as the small containers that transplants are grown in will not hold much water, and a great deal of that will be lost to evaporation.
Fruits exposed to direct sunlight, either as the result of loss of leaves or simply because of their placement on the plant, are vulnerable to sunburn. Fruits on the western side of a plant may be particularly susceptible to this because of the intensity of the afternoon sun. Sunburn on a tomato will take the form of a white or light-colored soft spot on the tomato's skin on the side of the fruit that faces skyward. Protecting your plants from defoliating insects like hornworms will protect the tomatoes from sunburn. Check your plants regularly for these large, green pests. Pick off any hornworms you see and drown them in a bucket, or cut them in half.
Healthy garden tomatoes require between six and eight hours of sunlight daily to grow and produce well. Intense sunlight, especially in hot weather or on plants already experiencing stress, can cause some problems. Staying attentive to the signs of sun and heat stress and treating the problem promptly can keep your tomatoes productive.
Water stress
Too much sun may cause the soil to lose water quickly through evaporation, even if temperatures aren't too high. The plant foliage begins to wilt and fruit may stop forming or drop from the plant. Water stress can also lead to blossom-end rot, where the bottoms of the tomato fruits become discolored and sunken. Applying a 2-inch layer of straw mulch can help slow down evaporation and prevent water stress. Regular irrigation that keeps the top 6 inches of soil moist also helps prevent water problems. Water deeply and apply 1 to 2 inches of water at each irrigation. Tomatoes usually only need watering once or twice a week.
Sunscald
Some tomato varieties are more prone to sunscald than others. Those that produce lots of fruits but sparse foliage don't have the necessary leaves to shade the fruit from intense sunlight. Sunscalded fruits develop discolored areas, usually on the top where they are most exposed. The sunscalded spots become tough, then eventually begin to rot. Avoid pruning out too much foliage if your garden receives intense sunlight. Providing some afternoon shade can also protect the fruits from sunscald.
Heat damage
Extreme heat combined with intense sunlight can cause blossom drop. Tomato plants usually shed their flowers without fruiting when temperatures rise above 95 degrees Fahrenheit. Fruits still on the plant usually stop ripening, although they will resume once temperatures cool. Mulching and watering properly won't stop blossom drop, although it will allow the plants to resume flowering and production immediately once temperatures drop below 95 degrees.
Plant protection
Tomatoes don't need fertilizer when they are suffering from sun or heat damage. The fertilizer forces new growth, which further stresses an already stressed plant. Erecting sun protection near the tomato bed can prevent sunscald and other sun and heat problems. A simple shade made by stretching thin white fabric between two stakes still allows sunlight through but protects the tomatoes from the most intense light.
Sunburn
Tomatoes are a sun-loving plant, requiring between 6 and 8 hours of full, direct sunlight per day. However, loss of vigor and problems with pests and diseases have the potential to make your plants sensitive to burning from the sun. This is particularly the case if your plant has experienced defoliation as the result of attack from insect pests or diseases, as leaf loss leads to sunburn on new growth. Sunburned tomato plants develop light to white patches on the upper portions of the leaves. Keeping your tomato plants vigorous with proper cultural care and practices is the best way to avoid pests, diseases and sun-scorched leaves. Additionally, young tomato seedlings are also in danger of sunburn upon transplant. Avoid seedling sunburn by allowing your young plants to slowly adjust to their environment. Provide some filtered shade for your seedlings during the hottest part of the day for the first three to four days after transplanting seedlings outdoors.
Do tomato plants need sun all day?
Although tomatoes require a great deal of sun, new transplants will need to be hardened off before they can be exposed to full sun in the garden. Leave your transplants outside for a few hours each day in the morning, and increase the number of hours each day over the course of one week. Plant your transplants after this hardening off period. Check soil moisture daily during the hardening off period, as the small containers that transplants are grown in will not hold much water, and a great deal of that will be lost to evaporation.
Fruits exposed to direct sunlight, either as the result of loss of leaves or simply because of their placement on the plant, are vulnerable to sunburn. Fruits on the western side of a plant may be particularly susceptible to this because of the intensity of the afternoon sun. Sunburn on a tomato will take the form of a white or light-colored soft spot on the tomato's skin on the side of the fruit that faces skyward. Protecting your plants from defoliating insects like hornworms will protect the tomatoes from sunburn. Check your plants regularly for these large, green pests. Pick off any hornworms you see and drown them in a bucket, or cut them in half.
What if tomato plants get too much sun?
Healthy garden tomatoes require between six and eight hours of sunlight daily to grow and produce well. Intense sunlight, especially in hot weather or on plants already experiencing stress, can cause some problems. Staying attentive to the signs of sun and heat stress and treating the problem promptly can keep your tomatoes productive.
Too much sun may cause the soil to lose water quickly through evaporation, even if temperatures aren't too high. The plant foliage begins to wilt and fruit may stop forming or drop from the plant. Water stress can also lead to blossom-end rot, where the bottoms of the tomato fruits become discolored and sunken. Applying a 2-inch layer of straw mulch can help slow down evaporation and prevent water stress. Regular irrigation that keeps the top 6 inches of soil moist also helps prevent water problems. Water deeply and apply 1 to 2 inches of water at each irrigation. Tomatoes usually only need watering once or twice a week.
Sunscald
Some tomato varieties are more prone to sunscald than others. Those that produce lots of fruits but sparse foliage don't have the necessary leaves to shade the fruit from intense sunlight. Sunscalded fruits develop discolored areas, usually on the top where they are most exposed. The sunscalded spots become tough, then eventually begin to rot. Avoid pruning out too much foliage if your garden receives intense sunlight. Providing some afternoon shade can also protect the fruits from sunscald.
Heat damage
Extreme heat combined with intense sunlight can cause blossom drop. Tomato plants usually shed their flowers without fruiting when temperatures rise above 95 degrees Fahrenheit. Fruits still on the plant usually stop ripening, although they will resume once temperatures cool. Mulching and watering properly won't stop blossom drop, although it will allow the plants to resume flowering and production immediately once temperatures drop below 95 degrees.
Plant protection
Tomatoes don't need fertilizer when they are suffering from sun or heat damage. The fertilizer forces new growth, which further stresses an already stressed plant. Erecting sun protection near the tomato bed can prevent sunscald and other sun and heat problems. A simple shade made by stretching thin white fabric between two stakes still allows sunlight through but protects the tomatoes from the most intense light.
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