Knowledgebase
Tomato leaves #874824
Asked June 26, 2024, 2:49 PM EDT
Douglas County Minnesota
Expert Response
Hi,
This looks like herbicide damage. If the damage is light, plants may outgrow it.
https://extension.umn.edu/plant-diseases/tomato-disorders
https://extension.umn.edu/yard-and-garden-news/noticing-herbicide-drift-your-garden
I hope this helps. Good luck.
No herbicide has been used near the plants. I have had this same issue for the last couple of years. New leaves emerge nicely, than they transform. I get tomatoes but the plants look terrible.
Leaf curling can be linked to too much water, insects, disease and herbicide drift or residue.
Do you know what was here before you put the garden in? Herbicides can linger in soil, and in manure composts or hay used in gardens.
I can't offer a firm diagnosis but you know the history of this garden, whether you've added soil amendments or fertilizer, when you planted and what weather has been like since you put the tomatoes in. Remember that it's wise to move your tomatoes each year so they're not growing in the same place, where diseases can linger.
I hope these pages might lead you to an answer:
https://site.extension.uga.edu/bartow/twisted-curled-tomato-leaves-its-not-what-you-think/
https://extension.sdstate.edu/why-are-my-tomato-leaves-curled
https://www.montana.edu/cope/email-format/admin/view.php?draft=12643&uid=64d129a8dec491.28541207
https://backbonevalleynursery.com/tomato-leaf-curl-2/
Good luck.