Crispy leaves in Phoenix area

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dmwade Litchfield Park , AZ(Zone 9b) Apr 15, 2015

I have several tomato plants in my vegetable garden and all have fruits and were growing well until...

About a week or two ago I noticed that one of my plants had numerous dried up leaves and this is getting worse and has spread to a second plant. I don't notice any major yellowing or spots on the leaves that I would expect to see with late blight, just the totally dried out leaves, really crispy dried! So far the tomatoes look good and are ripening.

Any ideas or suggestions? Is this some kind of blight that I am not familiar with? I am new to the area, moved here in July 2014 from Wisconsin and there is a huge difference in gardening from there. Got a lot to learn about desert gardening 😭

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decherdt Fort Worth, TX(Zone 8a) Apr 16, 2015

First, I would check the underside of the leaves with a magnifier. Might be a sucking insect or mites. They can turn leaves from stippled to desiccated in a hurry when it is hot and dry. Nothing comes to mind, other than that.

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1lisac Liberty Hill, TX(Zone 8a) Apr 17, 2015

My guess is Spider Mites. They thrive in hot dry weather. If you see webbing on the plants that would confirm SMs but the webbing doesn't need to be there to still have them. The webbing helps them move from plant to plant.

Spraying the plants with water can help control them since they don't like a wet environment. But this can also add to fungal issues. You can use Neem Oil or a pesticide especially for mites. Just follow the label directions and don't apply anything during the heat of the day.

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