Tomatoes going Bronze...?

[joz]

I have 2 Cherokee Purple and 3 Arkansas Traveler tomato plants that have, in the last week, started to go bronze-colored. The stems and the leaves are darkening, and the leaves are curling a bit and getting... tougher? almost rubbery.

There don't appear to be any bugs on... no aphids or mites. I have seen a few stink-bugs, and some orange bugs with very thin, angular black legs.

Is the bronzing a virus? A blight? A cry for calcium/nutrients/more or less water?

On these 5 plants I only have 3 tomatoes, so if I have to pull them it's not THAT great a loss... tho I would really have liked the Cherokee Purples (2 of the 3) to ripen.

Should I be concerned about replanting in the same area? I'm hoping to start new tomatoes from suckers off the unaffected plants for a fall crop, as we're now hot enough to limit pollination.

Thanks.

Fluffy green healthy Roma tomato

Bronzing Arkansas Travelers

 

[journey11]

Weird! I've never seen that happen before. I think it may be a nutrient difficiency (or overload), perhaps not enough phosphorus. Here's a chart ...check to see what you think best describes it from the other symptoms and let us know. If nothing else, take a soil sample to your local ag extension agency and see what they find.