Growing tomatoes: why do the leaves turn yellow?

You've planted your permaculture tomatoes and are patiently waiting to start enjoying your first harvests! But now, over the last few days, you've noticed that your leaves are turning yellow. Whether you're a beginner or a seasoned vegetable gardener, advice is a gardener's best friend! To help you better understand why the leaves on your plants are turning yellow, stay with us because now is the time to focus... on tomatoes!"

The right plan for non-yellowing tomatoes in permaculture

Yellowing tomato leaves in your garden can turn out to be the cause of many sources. To put a stop to this scourge, it's vital to understand what problem is plaguing your plants. But to fully understand the cause of yellowing leaves, it's essential to analyse each symptom. Pulling out diseased leaves won't solve the problem! It's important to find out what's causing the yellowing. This analysis requires certain skills. If you don't have them, don't panic! We're here to help you find a solution!

Act like a professional to treat the leaves on your garden tomatoes

To diagnose the yellowing that's spreading across your tomato plants, you're going to have to act like a real expert, and quickly at that, in order to limit the damage as quickly as possible. To do this, we're going to take a look at the various sources of this mysterious yellowing. You'll be able to use the information we've given you in this article about the various tomato diseases and pests. This will make it easier for you to compare the condition of your leaves with the pathologies and other causes affecting them, and to study in detail which parts are most affected. Whether you favour greenhouse growing or tomatoes in the vegetable garden, keep a close eye on the spread, which is a strong indicator of how to deal radically with your problem.

How to identify those responsible for yellowing on the leaves of your greenhouse or vegetable garden tomatoes

• The Tobacco Mosaic Virus (TMV) causes a physiological pathology that blocks the completion process of new leaves that occur after the virus has appeared and discolours existing leaves causing the yellowish appearance of the leaves
• If your tomato leaves curl up before turning yellow, this is verticillium wilt. This form of fungus is devastating for all your feet. The infestation starts at the root and then eventually contaminates the entire plant, preventing the sap from playing its part in your tomato's development
• Tomato virosis causes leaves to turn yellow, but is characterised by the additional appearance of small spots that are brighter yellow than the yellowing itself
• ToCV (Tomato Chlorosis Virus), better known as tomato chlorosis, causes yellowing around the veins giving the leaf a skeletonized appearance
• If the leaves turn yellow starting at the bottom and end up turning black quickly impacting the tomatoes at the same time, this is a case of alternaria
• If you notice that your leaves are turning yellow between the veins while curving inwards or outwards, your plants are affected by the virus of the Begomovirus family, also nicknamed the Tomato Yellow Leaf Curl Virus (TYLCV)

How to prevent tomato leaves in your garden from turning yellow

In the greenhouse or vegetable garden, your tomato plants can turn yellow for a variety of other reasons. Unfortunately, it's not always easy to distinguish between the different types of yellowing. However, it is essential to be able to distinguish between them. That way, you can treat them quickly and naturally, while respecting your garden's ecosystem.

Yellowing leaves can be caused by asphyxia at the root level. This happens very often if your soil is poorly drained, it is important to equip yourself with tools for soil in permaculture that will best suit such as the grelinette. Excess or lack of water in your tomato plants can also cause yellowing of the leaves. To avoid the yellowing leaves phenomenon, remember to check that your tomatoes are not deficient in manganese, calcium, iron, magnesium or nitrogen.

To encourage a healthy tomato harvest, we recommend planting hardy tomatoes such as Belle maurinoise, Baron Solemaher, Thessaloniki, Muddy Waters or Scoresby Dwarf. You can also use grafting to help strengthen your plants. The important thing is to adapt tomato growing to your region and your garden. If you follow our advice closely, even your tomatoes will blush with pleasure...