Blossom End Rot
Friday, August 5th, 2005 • Related • Filed Under
Blossom end rot on fruits such as tomatoes occurs because the plant is deficient in calcium. It also attacks peppers, watermelon, squash, eggplant and sometimes cucumbers.
Blossom End Rot (left)-University of Kentucky, Blossom End Rot on watermelon-Tom Isakeit
It starts out as a small watery looking spot that turns brown and begins widening as the fruit ripens. The tissues then look dry and leathery. Calcium deficiency can be lessened with the application of lime or gypsum.
July 5th, 2006 at 6:34 am
I wanted to ask a question. I do have a problem with the tomatoe plants and the blossom end rot. Can I add the lime or gypsum now over the existing soil without harming the plants? Please let me know. Thank you very much.
July 10th, 2008 at 12:06 am
I have golden summer squash that is turning brown in the middle of the squash. Leaves look great and so far no signs of bugs. Why is my squash seemingly rotting in the middle?
August 17th, 2009 at 5:08 pm
everybody is telling me about blossom end rot, but nobody is telling me how to stop it, thanks al. also about the yellow leaves and white spots on them.
May 8th, 2011 at 12:04 pm
It’s true that BER is calcium-related but it rarely means that there’s insufficient calcium in the soil. The problem comes about when the plant is unable to distribute sufficient calcium to the fruit regardless of how much is available to it. It’s now known that plant stress causes the distribution problem. The stress can be brought about by any number of reasons including irregular watering, fluctuating temperatures, even high winds. All you can do is try to determine what has stressed the plant and adjust your methods if it seems you’re responsible.
There is also the simple and inexplicable fact that some varieties of tomato are more prone to BER than others. The plum varieties – Roma, etc – are famous for developing BER. No one knows why. I’ve had plum varieties adjacent to other varieties in the same soil, same watering, same conditions, and the plums developed BER. The others didn’t.