Sudden Deformed Tomato Plants

Question: My tomato plants were looking beautiful and healthy until after the storms  over the week end of 6/23,24 and 25/ 2023.
Then suddenly look like this. What could have gone wrong to make the stems limp and curling, leaves dieing?

responder: The Question Asker Replied June 29, 2023, 9:06 PM EDT
response: Thusday 6/22/2023, early afternoon on a day with no wind we used an herbicide around the outside of the garden fence. The tomato plants are 5 feet from edge of garden and slightly uphill from sprayed area.  We had nearly 4 weeks without rain so I was watering 2 to 3 hours every other day. I had watered on the Wed. before using herbacide on Thur. . Could the herbacide have leached, hurting the plants?  Friday night, 6/23/2023, through Monday  morning, 6/26/23 we had gentle rains during the days and storms in the nights of Fri and Sat. Total rainfall of all 4 days was 2.5 inches. Could a nearby lightning strike have sort of come up through the ground and hurt the plants? Or, we have moles and voles. Could they have destroyed a whole row of 10 plants plus a few plants in the next row, that fast? Those or the only 3 possiblities I can think of.  The problem does not look like blight to me. We have had problems with blight in years past. It has never present like this. Thank you for your consideration.  Sincerely, Kat Cimenski

responder: Evelyn Locke, MN Master Gardener, Tree Care Advisor, Volunteer    Replied June 30, 2023, 7:45 AM EDT
response: Thank you for sharing your very thoughtful insights into your tomatoes health. My first thought looking at the pictures was “herbicide damage”, cupping and curling is a hallmark of herbicide damage. It has been so hot that drift even with only a light breeze is possible because the chemicals are volatile and affected by temperature.  Too much water can cause wilting and stems to curl over but a couple of inches over 4 days would probably not have much affect unless your soil is heavy. The weed barrier will also trap moisture keeping the plants too wet longer.  Moles can take out a whole row of tomatoes very quickly but they usually take the plant as well as eating the roots. Their burrowing also causes depressions around the plants.   Lightening can travel through wet soil so if a strike were close there is a potential for damage. Unless your soil is very sandy the tomatoes should not need so much water. Let the soil dry to 3 inches between waterings and a moisture meter can be very useful. Inexpensive ones work well enough to be worth the 15-20 dollars.  I speculate the tomatoes are showing herbicide damage and too much water. They look healthy enough to recover but it is going to be a “wait and see”.  They are set back, sadly.

responder: The Question Asker Replied July 07, 2023, 11:59 AM EDT
response: Hello Evelyn, Thank you for your responce and advice.  The tomato plants are still living and look somewhat recovered,  even producing fruit. My question is, in case the damage is from the herbacide,  is it safe to eat the fruit from affected plants?? Thank you for your consideration. Sincerely, Kathie Cimenski   On Fri, 30 Jun 2023 11:45:40 +0000, "Ask Extension" <<personal data hidden>> wrote:

responder: Evelyn Locke, MN Master Gardener, Tree Care Advisor, Volunteer    Replied July 07, 2023, 10:27 PM EDT
response: https://www.canr.msu.edu/news/protecting_tomatoes_from_herbicide_drift See above for pictures of what herbicide damage looks like.  If you can’t determine what pesticide caused the damage and check a label for safety information they should be destroyed.