Lime, crickets, and tomatoes

MikeA57 · Jul 11, 2012

Two unrelated questions here concerning my tomatoes. I was experiencing bloom rot on my tomatoes when they started coming in and I was told to put Lime down around the plants and work it into the dirt. I put what I thought was a good amount but not too much and now we've had several days of pop-up showers around the area and the tomatoes are really starting to ripen up and come in. But when my wife and I went out to pick last night, I know that we threw away more than we put in the bucket because of bloom rot. I put the lime around the plants this past Saturday and I know that it's not going to fix the problem in an hour but, how long does it take the lime to work into the plant and reverse the bloom rot? Do I need to put another dose down? Or just sit back and be patient? This is my first garden so I'm very new to all of this.

And then, I never knew crickets could be so destructive or so ravenous! They have really been doing a number on my tomatoes and my cantaloupes. I threw 5 or 6 tomatoes and 1 cantaloupe away last night that had been eaten by crickets.

So, how do you get rid of them in your garden?

Egon · Jul 11, 2012

Tomatoes usually like slightly acid soil (ph 6.0-6.5)so the lime may not be the answere. It's best to check the PH and then adjust the soil ads required.

Blossom end rot may be caused by too much water or cycling between too much and not enough which effects the calcium uptake. Too low a PH will also affect calcium uptake.:thumbsup:

Straight from a Google of

"Blossom end rot".

Baby Grand · Jul 11, 2012

MikeA57 said:
<snip>

And then, I never knew crickets could be so destructive or so ravenous! They have really been doing a number on my tomatoes and my cantaloupes. I threw 5 or 6 tomatoes and 1 cantaloupe away last night that had been eaten by crickets.

So, how do you get rid of them in your garden?

Just to clarify: are these crickets or grasshoppers?

hunterridgefarm · Jul 11, 2012

As Egon said water has a lot to do with end rot.

Also the lime is good but needs to be applied for best results at or before planting. You can get a calcium spray for the tomatoe they may help. I buy calcium chloride in the 50lb bag and sprinkle it around my plants. It is absorbed more quickly by the roots. Check with your local farm supply to see what they carry.

If it is calcium in most cases the fruit that is set will be affected. The new fruit with proper calcium and water should be fine.

MikeA57 · Jul 11, 2012

They're Crickets. Big, fat, black crickets.

And, I'm getting ready to send some soil samples into the Extension office to put some food plots on our hunting land so I'll make one up for the garden as well.

Thanks guys!

Gods Country · Jul 11, 2012

As pointed out blossom end rot is typically caused by a calcium deficiency due to the lack of water or fluctuations in watering. It’s a common problem, and tough to deal with.
The lime you put down won’t help your current set fruit. It should help future fruit that has yet to set. Next year be sure to add the calcium when you plant and it should help thwart the problem, although BER can be a bugger to avoid.

jonyyuma · Jul 12, 2012

I am breaking up some sheet rock and incorporating it into the soil around my plant thet have BER..Only three plants have it...I am also adding Epson salt to the water I pour into the PVC tube at the roots of one of the plants..Early girl and Better Boy plants do not have it yet..We just had rain after a couple dry weeks, hence the watering of the roots.

Baby Grand · Jul 13, 2012

MikeA57 said:
They're Crickets. Big, fat, black crickets.

And, I'm getting ready to send some soil samples into the Extension office to put some food plots on our hunting land so I'll make one up for the garden as well.

Thanks guys!

That's just wierd. We never see crickets in the garden. Lots of hoppers, but no crickets.

jonyyuma · Jul 13, 2012

Baby Grand said:
That's just wierd. We never see crickets in the garden. Lots of hoppers, but no crickets.

We don't have any grasshoppers or Crickets, I GUESS the Squash bugs ate all of them...I am really getting fed up with them. the third year in a row, for this squashbug infestation...I am going to burn the field next to my garden this fall to try for some relief..