Curly Top Virus ( CTV ) on tomatoesLast year , the Beet Leafhopper which transmit ‘ Curly Top Tomato Virus ’ was rearing in our garden and devastated many of our Lycopersicon esculentum plant life . I recede only 4 plant out of 74 to it but only because I take over-the-top measures to protect them . Here is some information on the beet leafhopper . , how to identify it , symptom and how to protect your plants .
The Beet Leafhopper flies in on the wind in early June through July , jump on the Lycopersicon esculentum plants and savor them . It is a giving job in the Southwest and inland in California where it is blistering . They do n’t even like to eat tomato plant life but sample them , channelize the disease in the process , then fly off to visit other plants .
beet leafhopper – good manners ofhttp://www.coopext.colostate.edu/TRA/PLANTS/curlytopvirus.shtml
beet leafhopper – courtesy ofhttp://www.coopext.colostate.edu/TRA/PLANTS/curlytopvirus.shtml
Identifying Beet LeafhoppersThe beet leafhopper is very small - about 1/8 inch long , pale green to light chocolate-brown green and has wings that look like a tent when fold up vs spread out like a moth . See photo on left-hand . They come when conditions are wry , hot and Laputan . Sound intimate ? This is typical June conditions here in the great Santa Fe area .
I comment they leave after the monsoons total in July when it is cooler and wetter . You will screw if they are in your garden as they come in and when you walk around your garden , you ’ll see leap little green bug that fly off when you walk by . Then they leave — fly to the next garden . Because of this , you ca n’t really spray anything to get them because they hop-skip so fast and only ride out in the garden a short time — here today , gone tomorrow . By the fourth dimension you notice something is wrong with your tomato plant , they are long gone . It take about 2 weeks for symptoms to show up .
Symptoms
beet leafhopper – courtesy ofhttp://www.coopext.colostate.edu/TRA/PLANTS/curlytopvirus.shtml
Your tomato plant industrial plant folio will begin to curl and the underside of the leaves and veins will deform a purplish vividness as visualise above .
Tomato Curly Top Virus - beginning microscope stage and advanced stages
The folio then start to droop and the plant will look stunted . You might recollect it necessitate water system but it does n’t , it is tired of and wo n’t recover . ‘ Curly - Top Virus ’ is only transmitted from bug to plant and isNOTtransmitted from works to plant hence you will see a goodly flora next to a sick flora . The picture show above show 2 industrial plant with curly top . The first one is beginning to be sick with curly leaves and the veins will turn violet . The second plant in the picture is forward-looking .
Now there are three case where you may remember you have curly top virus but may or may not have it .
Physiological Leaf Roll - Photo courtesy Clemson University
The first condition that may not be Tomato Curly top Virus isPhysiological Leaf Rollthat can happen on some love apple and could be due to various factors include focus and that is not inevitably curly top - if you plant has roll out leavesbut no purple veinsas shown above , it possibly has physiological leaf roll and look for why it may be stressed . It is getting enough H2O , too much water , too much nitrogen ? Also drought , pruning , root damage and transplant shock can all be reasons for leaf roll . For more information on this condition gohere .
Tomato Curly Top Virus-beginning stages and advanced stages
Phosphorus deficiency in tomatoes happen when the weather is still cold - not in June .
The second condition is ahead of time in the season , sometimes the leaves change by reversal purple when it is still cold outside . This is aphosphorus inadequacy . This never pass in June or later when it is warm but more in May if you plant ahead of time and it is still cold out of doors .
The third condition ( no pic ) is if you are turn a empurpled or smutty variety of Lycopersicon esculentum your flora may have imperial veins so do n’t pull it unless it start to looks sick with the curly leaves and looks like it needs weewee .
Physiological Leaf Roll-Photo courtesy Clemson University
RemediesThere is NO remedy for this virus and if your tomato ( or pepper for that matter ) shows sign of the disease , you should pull the plant . You could leave the works in BUT if another wave of leafhoppers come by and a healthy leafhopper bites your ghastly plant life , it only take 10 minute in 90 ° degree Fahrenheit weather for it to be able to transmit the disease to one of your healthy plants . The just thing to do is deplume any sick of plant and throw out of it . I do n’t compost ANY tomato plant that shows disease .
Here are some remedies:• Leafhoppers do not care ghost and if your plants are partially shaded , that may help oneself keep them off but since most of us produce tomatoes in full Sunday that might be difficult .
Put row cover over tomato plant
Phosphorus deficiency in tomatoes happen when the weather is still cold-not in June.
• The principal thing I do is create a forcible barrier between the bugs and the plants . I now cover all Lycopersicon esculentum plant with row screening until the hemipteran pass . enclose the row covering fire around your Lycopersicon esculentum cage and put a while on top of the batting cage BEFORE they come .
• last you could put out some tomatoes later in the season after the bugs leave but you ’ll have to put in early season potpourri so you could still harvest before the season terminate . I buy gallon size at that full point so as not to be too far behind . A couple of years ago when I was out at the Santa Fe Community Garden , I detect many row of sick tomato plants but one words of perfectly salubrious plant and when I asked about them , it turned out they were put out about a calendar month later than the eternal sleep of them and by then the leafhoppers were gone .
Dry , sunny , verbose weather are perfect conditions for the leafhoppers so look out this summer - conditions are good again !
Put row cover over tomato plants
I remove the course overcompensate after the monsoon season amount . They ordinarily leave or are suppressed by then . Monsoon season historically comes in too soon - mid July .
