When to Plant Tomato in Little Rock, Arkansas (72221)

Large green caterpillar that can strip a plant of leaves overnight. Look for dark frass pellets on leaves as an early sign.

Tiny soft-bodied insects that cluster on new growth, causing curled leaves and stunted shoots.

Small white-winged insects that feed on leaf undersides, weakening plants and spreading viruses.

Soil-dwelling larvae that sever seedling stems at the soil line overnight.

Dark concentric-ring spots on lower leaves that spread upward, causing premature defoliation.

Water-soaked gray-green patches on leaves and fruit that turn brown and destroy the plant rapidly in wet weather.

Not a disease — a calcium uptake disorder causing dark, sunken spots on the blossom end of fruit.

Soil-borne fungus causing yellowing on one side of the plant, then rapid wilting even when watered.

Cold soil (below 60°F) stunts roots and invites disease; plants put in the ground after the soil warms overtake early transplants.

Indeterminate varieties allowed to sprawl use energy on foliage instead of fruit.

Alternating drought and flood causes blossom end rot and cracked fruit.

Tomatoes can root all along their buried stem — shallow planting wastes this advantage.