Fight Against Blossom End Rot | Growing Tomatoes

[@carolavant3778]

'Always learn something from you, Greg! Thank you for all of your good help and support!

[@denniscleveland669]

To use egg shells, I first crush them up and then run them through an old coffee grinder, set at the finest possible setting (Greek). The finer you get them, the quicker they’ll dissolve and become usable by the plants. Then I add them to my compost so they time to dissolve.

[@tater357]

Have you ever heard of making a slurry using lime in a 5 gallon bucket with water and watering your plant with it? It also works for blossum in rot. I usually use about a 1/2 cup of lime to a 5 gallon bucket each time. It will cover about 4 tomato plants.

[@tommathews3964]

Lime is a great source of calcium, and readily available as a slurry, but it also raises PH. If you need to raise PH, that's great, but if not you might be causing yourself some problems. Once you get that PH out of whack it can be tough to get it back right, especially to lower it. Gypsum will not raise PH and it's a big reason why it is a widely recommended source.

[@krisrooney2283]

I have and it works fantastic except I use about a hand full to a gallon. And have had no major issues with rise in pH levels I don't use it on a regular basis but as an emergency solution. Great tip though👍

[@lorayejones4777]

Great advice. Only had one plant and used tums and it worked. Love your advise , you coved the subject with good clear concise information. Got to love it!

[@gardeningwithhoss]

Glad it was helpful!

[@johnporco599]

Wish I saw this video last week. I wasn’t experiencing blossom rot, but I wanted to prevent it. I drip irrigate so water movement is not a problem. My plants are about 10 weeks in the ground and setting some fruit and lots of flowers. I saw a foliar spray at a garden center (CaCl2) water soluble calcium so I thought this was a good idea. It wasn’t. All the flowers that got sprayed on almost every plant (44) were dark brown or black the next morning. I sprayed early evening as directed. Instructions said ready to use, do not dilute. I flushed the plants and flowers with lots of water but the damage was done. 24 hours later blossoms dropped like flies. Not only that, but the tender growing tips of many plants also just turned black and died. Chemical topping was not my intent but that’s what happened. I’ve been growing good tomatoes for over 50 yrs. Sometimes it’s better to do less than more. Hoss is right. Foliage sprays are stupid.

[@bobbun9630]

Not mentioned: Mulch--this makes it far easier to keep the soil consistently moist. Tomatoes have a wide, shallow root system, so mulch should be both between the plants and the rows if possible. Grow in the ground if you can--containers dry out quickly and can be hard to keep consistently watered, especially if they're not really big enough for the plant. Pick less prone varieties--Roma types are infamous for blossom end rot. Growing in soil with a decent amount of clay in it probably also helps, both by providing more calcium natively in the soil and by retaining more moisture, but I suppose most people aren't going to be in a position to change their soil.

[@priayief]

That's a good point about using mulch. And I've learned that it is helpful to check and replenish your mulch periodically during the growing season. And I can confirm that Roma types are more prone to B.E.R. But not significantly so. B.E.R. is easily detected at an early stage and can be prevented in most cases by reviewing and adjusting your watering schedule.

[@janielumpkin3418]

I have clay soil so that makes it hard to have a good garden

[@janielumpkin3418]

And I’m on a hill. Any help would be greatly appreciated

[@haram2163]

@@janielumpkin3418 Mini swales and berms for the hill. Organic matter for the clay and mulch.

[@bobbun9630]

@@janielumpkin3418 Clay is not a problem, at least not by itself. However, having more of it can lead to problems like poor drainage, unworkable clods, and compaction. You're on KZbin, so there's lots of information available. Search for something like "managing clay soil", and that should get you some ideas. Most if not all states have universities that operate agricultural extension services that can also be a good source of information. My personal view is that mulching and disturbing the soil as little as possible (especially when it's wet!) are the way to go. In this case what mulching does is slowly add organic material and encourage soil life to dig through the soil to promote drainage. It will also prevent crusting during dry periods. You can add gypsum, but it will take a lot. Time and consistency are your friends in this process, as there are no quick fixes.

[@joelhenderson5404]

Greg I put shells in the fall where I'm planting my mators the next year. Works for me.

[@DuncanMcPheeHandymanSolutions]

Hey thanks man for the tips I’m. Just learning and your knowledge is super helpful so bless ya man ;-)

[@gardeningwithhoss]

Happy to help!

[@LukeRT]

Can you use to much calcium? Or can you go to town with it. I keep my chicken eggs and grind them to a powder and thrown on my garden beds. But I have alot, will it damage if to much is used?

[@priayief]

You can add any type or any amount of calcium but if your watering regime is inconsistent or deficient, it won't stop B.E.R. The first, quickest, cheapest and simplest thing to do is amend your watering schedule.

[@carolavant3778]

I completely agree! I've got my garden on drip tape, but last year the weather just killed me! We'd get a week of torrential rain, then two weeks of no rain at all. The crazy rain for days again, then a dry spell. Those extremely rainy periods seemed to be the culprit, because when the rain became less or not at all, I could keep a good schedule with the drip tape system and the BER cleared up.

[@priayief]

@@carolavant3778 That's my experience also.

[@gregblanton9386]

True, but keeping soil moisture consistent should be a given for anyone wanting to garden successfully.

[@elainebouley4002]

Great information Greg I’ve had problems in the past with that , I’ll try some of you suggestions 👍🏻

[@jimmyjames372]

Very nice, thank you!

[@michellesgarden]

I've been using calcium nitrate for 3 years on my tomatoes and I always have beautiful tomatoes. I was wondering what to fertilize my greenbeans with. I saw a farmer using 8-24-24 but I don't know where to buy it. What's your take on that?

[@gardeningwithhoss]

check out our bean growing guide. It has a fertilization schedule for beans hosstools.com/bean-growing-guide/

[@cjr4497]

My bell peppers and watermelons used to have end rot problems. Drove me nuts. I started using the Hoss Calcium Nitrate with my other liquid fertilizer and the problems went away. I bought an injection system this year to make things easier. No more toting a bucket and watering can.

[@gardeningwithhoss]

Thanks for sharing

[@mjb9176]

The Roma’s and San Marzano’s have BER while the Celebs, Opalka’s, Salva’s and Sunshine’s right next to them do not. Same raised bed, same soil conditions, same watering schedule. Therefore it’s the variety that is prone to BER in my case. Easy fix is to toss the seeds and cut down the three offending plants. Lesson learned. By the way, try growing the Salva’s. They were first to fruit and no issues at all in my zone 4 garden.

[@gardeningwithhoss]

Thanks for the update. We love hearing from those in other zones.

[@ganpatbarhai1589]

Good morning sir.

[@tommathews3964]

Folks, Greg concentrates on tomatoes here, with good reason, but be aware that you can also experience Blossom End Rot (BER) in some of your other nightshades, like eggplant and peppers, and also in cucurbits, such as squashes, cucumbers, melons, etc. Thanks Greg, as always!

[@esmysyield2023]

Hi, everyone @hoss tools. 👋

[@Ftybr57]

I’m just not sure I want to use a piece of sheet rock has been processed with chemicals to put it in my tomatoes. Grow everything organically I just don’t know if I could do that one.

[@brycekirby1567]

Excellent advice, great video, not too " in the weeds"

[@gardeningwithhoss]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@vivalaleta]

Hah! I put dry wall and vermiculite out of our old walls into our garden and people thought I was crazy.

[@ouch65]

What is Epson salt for .. what are your thoughts and if so, at what stage of planting do you add Epson salt?

[@wandaduckworth1357]

I heard Epson salt can make that worse but I don't know

[@OlPossumOutdoors]

I always put a small amount in the bottom of hole when planting. Throw some dirt on top so the roots grow down into. Also when I start seeing a few yellow leaves, sprinkle on top of ground around plant and water in.

[@kveale17]

he mentions it at 1:10

[@davidward1259]

Greg is 100% right, Epsom salt is not for blossom end rot, but it does provides two elements vital to plant growth which are absent from a lot of fertilizers. Both Magnesium and sulfur can be provided from the application of Epsom salt (make sure you DO NOT use the scented type - you want plain Epsom salt or magnesium sulfate and you can find it at the grocery store or pharmacy). Add Epsom salt at the rate of 1 to 2 TBL per gallon of water for a boost applied every 2 weeks, or 1/2 tsp per gallon every time you water. You don't want to mix Epsom salt with any liquid fertilizer solution containing Calcium as they are not compatible and will precipitate out of solution. If you are using a water soluble fertilizer with calcium, just use your Epsom salt solution as a side dressing. You can also add Epsom salt directly to the soil when you apply a granular fertilizer at planting time. Apply it at a rate of 7 grams per 10 square foot area of planting bed and scratch it into the soil. For blossom end rot (calcium deficiency) "back in the day" for a few tomato plants (or peppers) we would just shove a Tums in the ground near the plant (Tums is "calcium carbonate"). It's OK for a couple of plants, but like Greg said it's not cost effective the more plants you have and it's slow to correct BER. My preferred solution to prevent BER is to use a water soluble fertilizer with calcium nitrate as a component. There are a number of formulas you can buy or mix to add calcium nitrate. Just remember calcium does not play well with high phosphorous level liquid fertilizers. I sometimes use a foliage spray of calcium chloride on my tomatoes and peppers more often than not. Just make sure to get the food grade calcium chloride dihydrate (it's used in beer and wine making and is inexpensive). JR Peters Co. recommends a foliar spray applied as a 200 to 400 ppm solution which is 1/2 ounce of calcium chloride in 3 gallons of water applied weekly as a fine mist. This gives a rate of 324ppm. Either way (spray or fertilizer) I like to apply a calcium boost as soon as the plants start to bud and set flowers.

[@thehighwirecom]

Ibfed mine greek yogurt (and egg added egg shells to the ground for future)

[@savageairsoft9259]

Does lime work? Or crushed limestone? Thanks Hoss

[@bobbun9630]

Garden lime (which is crushed limestone--don't use quicklime, hydrated lime, or masonry lime!) does work, but it can also increase pH. Tomatoes prefer a slightly acid soil, so that's less than ideal.

[@04DynaGlyde]

Thank You!

[@mrOnlinePolice]

Doesn't drywall contain other chemicals that will negatively affect the soil?

[@KDial]

I was in the drywall industry for 40 years. And it truly was made of gypsum years ago. But now it is made using fly ash. But I don't believe that it contains anything that negatively affects the soil.

[@johnzink3309]

Thx

[@dollyperry3020]

Great video

[@gardeningwithhoss]

Thanks!

[@Mstymntntop]

If you spray calcium…it doesn’t go down, but doesn’t it at least stay where it was sprayed? In the up position?

[@gregblanton9386]

Only roots take in nutrients, not the plants above ground structure or its fruit.

[@Mstymntntop]

@@gregblanton9386 you believe that plants are unable to uptake nutrients from a foliar spray? Good luck!

[@gregblanton9386]

@@Mstymntntop i know😉

[@theplanelife4097]

In the human body, calcium and magnesium work together. Without magnesium, calcium can't be used. So someone like me that has very heavy calcium in my well water, it doesn't help to add calcium. I have to add the magnesium for my plants to use the calcium that is already there. This is why some people swear by using epsom salt. It does work as long as the calcium is already there and the plant just can't use it. The same is true for the human body.

[@ogadlogadl490]

Your forgetting Vitamin K in the equation, Vitamin K moves the calcium to the bones, if lacking that’s have you have calcium clogging up the arteries. Very interesting how it all works in the human body once you start digging.

[@theplanelife4097]

@@ogadlogadl490 yes, I thought getting into the Vit K2 and Vit A, as well as the hormone we call Vit. D produced by sunlight just like plants and chlorophyll, working with calcium and magnesium would be TMI in a gardening group. LOL.

[@ogadlogadl490]

@@theplanelife4097 Got cha! 💙👍🤣

[@powervoc2]

Great info, but I've got a question... How do you get your T posts so straight?

[@gardeningwithhoss]

level

[@carlinporter9315]

Is that this year’s tomatoes

[@gardeningwithhoss]

no

[@citylotgardening6171]

👍

[@Big-Char.]

Greg is this a recent video?If it is your way ahead of the game on your maters.

[@gardeningwithhoss]

last year's re edited.

[@katrinagarland5219]

Please get a microphone... it would make it so much easier to understand you. Thanks

[@AmandaRedmond919]

I feel like I've seen this video before.

[@dgc940]

Off subject but every year I have a garden but maybe never again. all my neighbors have pecan trees and aphids kill me dead. all I can grow is corn cucumbers and eggplant. Ive had 15-20 lbs watermelons on vine just to see the vine die before ripe. Tomatoes look good and healthy in hydro just to watch spider mites kill them dead. So this year just growing corn I give up. Ive sprayed sprayed sprayed both nontoxic and chemicals. I GIVE UP. Ive tried all the BS stuff dish soap alcohol peppermint neem oil they do nada.

[@nigelkakashi]

I think its the plant taking the water out the fruit causing the problem

[@KishorTwist]

BER is indeed an _overwatering_ problem, not calcium.

[@garnieross9958]

Bone meal.

[@jeffreythomas2787]

Sheet rock has vinyl in it ,very bad for your garden😮😢😮😢😮😢😮😢😮😢😮f j b 😊