What causes the base of tomato plants to turn black and white fuzz?

The base of my tomato plants have turned black with a white fuzz on them. The ground around the plant is also turning white like a calcium deposit is building up.


My sister used Miracle grow on the plants them added epson salt around the base of the plant.

What causes the base of tomato plants to turn black and white fuzz?
Sounds like mold, you should transplant and try to spray a solution of 3 tablespoons of 3% hydrogen peroxide(standard first aid grade) in one gallon of water on the stalk and roots. Make sure you let the soil dry out before watering, over watering is one of the most common gardening mistakes.





Also Miracle Grow contains salts so I wouldn't recommend using that and Epsom salts. Try Fish Emulsion 5-1-1 instead of Miracle Grow, it's cheap, simple, ORGANIC and works better than Miracle Grow. Plus you can use the Epsom Salts with it, be careful though because salt builds up in the soil and gives you problems later. Corn Meal will help control future mold and will act as a slow release fertilizer.





Peace, SSSSpaceman SSSpliff
Reply:Aphids... soulds like you have aphids. You should find something at Lowes or home depot to get rid of them.
Reply:OK, this early in the year too much water is probably the answer...but here in Southern Illinois, we get a lot of tomato blight. That is a fungus that is in the soil and gets on the leaves when water splashes on the leaves from rain or watering. I have only lost a couple plants to the blight in 10 years. Solution:





1: Mulch around the bottom of the tomato plants. I use either grass clippings, (make sure there has been no "weed and feed" put on the grass) or I get a few bales of hay and spread it around. This way you can also pick tomatoes after it has rained and not get mud all over your shoes.





2: I pick all the leaves and stems off my tomato plants up to 1 foot off the ground. This takes some time, but the water will not splash up on the leaves, and I will have good tomatoes all summer and fall until the first heavy frost.





srockey
Reply:Spray it with liquid detergent. easy