GardenBanter.co.uk - View Single Post

22-07-2004, 08:02 PM

wrote in message . ..
I came to this group the first time yesterday, and immediately found
the answer to my problem: what was causing the ends of my tomatoes to
rot. Blossom end rot due to low calcium. So can I simply treat this
by sprinkling lime in the soil? If so how much? It seems to be
linked to nitrogen content, so will switching to low N fertilizer help
by itself or will I need the lime treatment as well.

thanks for the great information

Hal

BER is more a problem of uneven watering than of calcium deficiency.
Uneven watering interferes with the plants ability to obtain calcium
from the soil.
BER is rarely ever a problem for a tomato plant that has a thick
organic mulch as this supplies nutrients and more importantly keeps
soil moisture even.
A fast source of calcium for the folks who screw up in their watering
and mulching practices is calcium chloride - the same stuff for
deicing pavement, dirt road dust control, and filling tractor wheels
for weight. A spoonfull in a watering can applied as a foliar drench
works just fine every couple of weeks.