Ferline toms

[brownfingers]

A great many of the fruit on my ferlines are getting BER even when very small. It can't be watering because all my other toms ( gardeners delight, alicante, roma and the T&M experimental are all fine. All done in same compost. Regimes exactly the same. Could it be down to the seed? They were fresh this year.

[Bigmallly]

If I ever get fruit on my Ferline BF, I'll get back to you................

[Potstubsdustbins]

I don't think it could be the seed as the actual problem is a lack of calcium take up, if your regime is the same for all your plants I can't see it being the watering that's causing it. Maybe that variety is more prone to the problem.

[PyreneesPlot]

I have BER on my Roma & San Marzano but not on any others (sungold, black cherry, prince borghese, marmande, ola polka, GD) and they are all in the same bed and get the same treatment.

[maverick451]

I havent had any BER on my ferline at all, I have had a problem with other varieties though, namely Floridity, Big Daddy and Black Russian.

I have to say im quite impressed with the Ferlines so far.

[PyreneesPlot]

I'm looking forward to hearing how the Ferline do and how they taste as it is a new variety to me and we always get blight eventually.

[brownfingers]

I'm looking forward to hearing how the Ferline do and how they taste as it is a new variety to me and we always get blight eventually.

I'm growing them this year because my neighbour grew some last year and the taste was as good as it gets. yields weren't particularly big though.

[Sharpy]

Thought it was just me with "Ferline" woes. Planted one of each tom`s in the GH to at least give us something should blight strike again. And it looks pathetic up against the Alicanti and sweet million.
Flowers when they do form are dying off almost as quick as they form. Then the stunted growth !. Those outside are looking good, fruit well on it`s way.

Lesson for me is, don`t grow Ferline indoors.

Cure for BER is either a Lime slurry mix or try some crushed up egg shells.

[muddled]

I don't grow ferline but for blossomm end rot I bung a handful of epsom salts in the watering can each time I water them until it goes away....which it does, very quickly.
(precision was never my strong point....can you tell?)

[brownfingers]

Thought it was just me with "Ferline" woes. Planted one of each tom`s in the GH to at least give us something should blight strike again. And it looks pathetic up against the Alicanti and sweet million.
Flowers when they do form are dying off almost as quick as they form. Then the stunted growth !. Those outside are looking good, fruit well on it`s way.

Lesson for me is, don`t grow Ferline indoors.

Cure for BER is either a Lime slurry mix or try some crushed up egg shells.

I blitz eggshells in a grinding mill down to a fine powder and addit to my final potting compost, so that should be covered. The growth isn't stunted, flowers are fine, and fruit is setting ok, it'a just that when they get to the size of a marble, they get BER.

[maverick451]

I ate my first Ferline today and I have to say it was delicious, much better than I expected

[brownfingers]

I'm not expecting to neck many ferline this year. Nearly every one gets BER at some point, even though I use powdered eggshells and have been dosing with epsom salts.

[brownfingers]

It just gets worse with the BER, even though I'm dosing with epsom salts. I'm going to let more trusses develop than I usually do. hoping that they may provide better toms.

[Aberdeenplotter]

Blossom end rot is normally caused by erratic watering and as someone mentioned it is the calcium uptake which is affected. Epsom salts - Magnesium Sulphate will not remedy a shortage of calcium. The only soluble form of calcium is calcium nitrate but this does also add nitrogen into the equation which will give a boost to the foliage

[brownfingers]

When I pot my toms up into their final position, I mix some FB&B in with the compost along with powdered eggshell and some of that granular slow release fertiliser. I wonder if they are getting too much nutrients which could possibly inhibit the uptake of calcium? I've done this every year to very good effect, but this year is pants. I do always seem to get lots of foliage, but loads of fruit too.