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Garden Problem Guide
| Symptoms | Possible causes | Possible cures |
| Dying young plants | Fertilizer burn | Mix fertilizer thoroughly with soil |
| Disease (damping off) | Use treated seed | |
| ________ | ||
| Stunted plants, pale to yellow | Low soil fertility | Soil test for fertilizer |
| Poor soil drainage | Add organic matter | |
| Shallow or compacted soil | Work soil deeper | |
| Insects or diseases | Identify and use control measures | |
| Nematodes | Use approved chemicals | |
| ________ | ||
| Stunted plants, | Low temperature | Plant at recommended time |
| purplish color | Lack of phosphorus | Add phosphorus fertilizer |
| Holes in leaves | Insects | Identify and use control measures | Hail | Be thankful it was not worse |
| ________ | ||
| Spots, molds, darkened areas on leaves and stems | Disease | Identify, spray or dust; use recommended rate and time |
| Chemical burn | Use recommended chemicals at recommended rate and time | |
| Fertilizer burn | Keep fertilizer off plants | |
| ________ | ||
| Wilting plants | Dry soil | Irrigate if possible |
| Excess soil moisture | Avoid over-watering | |
| Disease | Use resistant varieties if possible | |
| ________ | ||
| Weak, spindly plants | Too much shade | Move garden to sunny area |
| Plants too thick | Seed at recommended rate | |
| Too much nitrogen | Avoid excessive fertilization | |
| ________ | ||
| Failure to set fruit | Improper temperatures | Plant at recommended time |
| Too much nitrogen | Avoid excessive fertilization | |
| Insects | Identify and use control measures | |
| ________ | ||
| Tomato leaf curl | Heavy pruning in hot weather | Do not prune; use cages |
| ________ | ||
| Dry brown to black | Low soil calcium | Add gypsum |
| rot on blossom end of tomato | Extremely dry soil | Irrigate and mulch |
| ________ | ||
| Misshapen tomatoes (catfacing) | Cool weather during blooming | Plant at recommended time |
| ________ | ||
| Abnormal leaves and growth | 2,4-D weed killer | Do not use sprayer that has, previously applied 2,4-D; do not allow spray to drift to garden |
| Virus disease | Remove infected plants to prevent spreading; control insects that transmit |