On Thu, 12 Jun 2014 21:12:11 -0400, "Bunny McElwee"
wrote:

some snippage...

issues. All of a sudden, it got quite hot here (I'm in Charleston, SC, not
sure what zone, but I think its 9). so I watered daily to keep up with the
drying soil as the temps got into the 90's every day. No rain for some time,
at least no to speak of to boost the garden. SO, about 3 days after the
temps started rising, I noticed that during the day, even after I had
watered, it looked like the plants were wilting. Overnight they would perk
up, but then about 3 days after that, they stopped perking up, even though I
watered. then they began to yellow, leaves curled, and the plant just
stopped growing or doing anything. Tomatoes all over them, and they looked
ok, but the plant itself, looked dead. SO research I did, for days on the
web. I know I have wilt. I do not know for sure which one. I took out 3
plants, looks like I have 2 more almost gone, and 2 more starting to show
the same signs. The soil in the bed was actually brought from a neighbor,

Bunny, I had a very similar problem but mine involved peppers and
basil. Some were in raised beds, like yours, and some were in large
pots (whiskey barrel size). They started off well after transplanting
then wilted days later once the heat hit them and the rains dwindled
to nothing. Watering didn't seem to help them and they quickly died
no matter what I tried. I pulled them up, gathering as much
surrounding soil as I could, just in case. After checking everything,
it seems the plants themselves were contaminated/infected, apparently
at the nursery. The soil in the beds and planters was OK. I've since
planted replacements where those bad plants were and the new ones are
unaffected and still going strong. I hope that your soil is similarly
not infected but it sounds like something bad was in the soil, from
your description. Seems like it would have affected all the raised
beds that had that same soil in them. Hmm...

As for the tomato plants themselves, when you pulled up the plants did
you notice anything unusual about their root system? Do you know
which varieties were affected? Could they have been heirloom types?
Those old varieties have wonderful flavor but are not bred to combat
certain pests and diseases. The stress of excessive heat and little
rainfall certainly could have contributed to the plants' condition.
There could be a variety of causes that worked against your plants. I
know how frustrating it is to figure out the cause so that it doesn't
happen again.