Imagine: juicy tomatoes are ripening in the garden, but instead of delicious fruits you find blackened tops.
This is blossom-end rot - an insidious enemy that attacks even with careful care. Why does it occur and how to protect plants?
The first signs are dark, sunken spots on the tops of the fruits, more often in varieties with an elongated shape.

Affected tomatoes quickly lose their appearance, and their flesh under the spots becomes dry or watery.
Such fruits can no longer be saved: they must be removed immediately so that the infection does not spread to neighboring bushes.
Leaving them in the garden or in the compost is dangerous - this is a direct path to the spread of disease.
The main cause of blossom-end rot is calcium deficiency, but its lack is not always related to the composition of the soil.
For example, excess nitrogen or potassium blocks the absorption of this element. The passion for potassium fertilizers to neutralize the fattening of plants often leads to the opposite effect: calcium stops entering the fruits. Another hidden enemy is heat. In the heat, the roots absorb moisture poorly, and without water, calcium does not move along the stems. As a result, the plant "takes" it from the fruits to support the growth of leaves and shoots.
If the problem has already occurred, you will have to take the following steps:
1. Normalize watering.
Tomatoes are watered generously, moistening not only the trunk circle, but also the soil within a radius of 50 cm. This stimulates root development and improves the absorption of nutrients. In drought, additional mulch is used or the bushes are shaded to reduce the soil temperature.
2. Add calcium correctly.
Calcium nitrate (10-15 g per 10 l of water) is an emergency aid. The solution is applied under the root in cool weather. It is important not to exceed the dosage and avoid spraying: in hot weather, this causes burns.
3. Balance the feeding.
In autumn, dolomite flour or ash is added to the soil, and nitrogen fertilizers are controlled in the spring. If tomatoes are getting fat, phosphorus compounds are used instead of potassium, which do not interfere with the absorption of calcium.
The main rule is not to panic and act systematically.
Timely watering, reasonable fertilizing and attention to varietal characteristics will help preserve the harvest.
Remember: healthy tomatoes start not only with seeds, but also with proper soil care.