Topsy Turvey Tomatoes - leaves have yellow spots

by Carole
(Santa Barbara, California)

Q. My Topsy Turvey Tomato plant's leaves have yellow spots. Could this be from over watering? I live in Southern California & we have been having a heat wave, so I am watering twice a day. Tomato plants are blooming, but getting more & more yellow leaves. Should I cut leaves off?

Tomato Dirt responds ...
A. Short answer: it sounds like your plant needs fertilizer. And yes... pinch off those yellow leaves.

Tomatoes in pots and containers require frequent watering or they will dry out. But watering leaches nutrients out of container plants. So you need to be especially vigilant to include tomato fertilizer in your container gardening plan to get best results.

Add a slow-release fertilizer (like Osmocote) to your containers when planting. Nutrients will disperse over time.

One easy way to fertilize tomatoes is to mix a small amount of soluble, balanced tomato fertilizer (like Miracle Gro Tomatoes) into water. Fertilize and water at the same time.

When it comes to fertilizing tomatoes in pots, little and often is better than a lot, less often.

Check out other information about fertilizing tomatoes in containers.

Of course, if the yellowed leaves have black or brown spots, that could indicate a disease such as early blight, late blight, Septoria leaf spot, and several other tomato diseases.

Good luck and happy gardening!
Your friends at Tomato Dirt