If your tomato plants have curled, twisted, or deformed leaves, don’t panic—this common issue has a solution! In this video, I walk you through the top causes of tomato leaf curl—including heat stress, overwatering, herbicide drift, and even viral infections—and show you exactly what to do to fix it or prevent it from happening again.
Whether you’re growing in raised beds, containers, or an in-ground garden, these tips will help you diagnose and treat leaf curl fast so you can keep your tomato plants healthy and productive all season long.
✅ What causes leaf curl (and what’s normal)
✅ How to spot herbicide damage or viral issues
✅ The one watering mistake that stresses tomatoes
✅ Prevention tips for healthy growth and fruiting
✅ When to worry—and when to just relax!
OUR NEW GARDEN GUIDE: https://www.gardenguide.com/
Tomato Yellow Leaf Curl Virus RESISTANT Varieties:
1. Apple Yellow F1 (cherry)
2. Brenda F1 (Roma)
3. Champion II F1
4. Charger F1
5. Pamella
6. Rally F1
7. Conan F1
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Hey Guys, I’m Brian from Next Level Gardening
Welcome to our online community! A place to be educated, inspired and hopefully entertained at the same time! A place where you can learn to grow your own food and become a better organic gardener. At the same time, a place to grow the beauty around you and stretch that imagination (that sometimes lies dormant, deep inside) through gardening.
I’m so glad you’re here!
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20 Comments
I'm concerned about sticky traps in the garden. Isn't there a risk to our already suffering bees? I also don't want to get rid of ladybugs as they help get rid of aphids (and they're cute).
Ok Brian….I thought I was the only one that still had plants in cups and you made me feel like I wasn’t a bad person. If you read this, I appreciate the video on TLC because I have this issue now on some of my tomato plants. The plants are healthy, but some of the growth was a little curly. If you are reading this, I would like to know if you can do a new video on tomato pests and diseases. Right now I have a potential issue with thrips and spotted leaf disease. I don’t know what to do with those blasted things. Thanks for all you do and the great work!
Garden guide looks great! So nice to have all the necessary info in one place, no more looking plants up individually! And the watering guide is such a great idea! I love it! Can't wait for the app to get going as well!
Can't say I'm surprised though after buying your book, which is also amazingly useful. I use it all the time in my garden. So much so, that I keep it outside even though it's not a great place for books. It's just such a great reference for all the general garden information that, as a beginner, I just haven't internalized yet. Super handy!
What do you mean 'use a moisture meter instead'??
no man, just tell them to stick their finger in there and that'll take care of the 'nice nails' issue for them! 🙂 🙂
I amuse myself 🙂
Moisture meter is probably a better method anyway
Out of my 14 varieties of tomatoes, my Paul Robeson is the only one with leaf curl. It’s been curled for weeks. We have had a lot of rain and I wondered if it’s more sensitive to the damp conditions than the others.
Mine were in the cups for 1.5 mos after up-potting them… only a few looked a bit weary with no outside exposure. We had too much cool/ stormy weather with some hail to transplant. However, once I got them in the ground last week in my hoop tunnel (with shade cloth), they are doing fantastic. I do cover them during the occasional storms and overnight. Today, I plan to spread compost, add straw, and do an aspirin drench. Right now, they are looking pretty good after only a few days.
Last year my tomato plants got Curly Top Virus from beetleaf hoppers. Almost everyone in this area had the same thing happen. Nothing to do but rip the plants out and put them in the trash. I had no tomato crop at all last year.
My problem exactly and with my peppers and eggplant. Yikes.
Yes, I have a curling tomato. It’s very healthy otherwise no color changes, no bugs, consistent watering. Weather hasn’t been too hot. I’m in N. California, but we’ve had a ton of wind. I think it’s the wind now that I listened to your video. I appreciate all the other tips listed here and I will keep this video just in case.😊
Excellent advice as always 👍🏻❤
Thanks for reminder. Lots of enviro changes in OK! lol😅
I grow my tomatoes in 15g. plastic pots (due to severe gopher issues), and water thoroughly once a week. Watering needs are hugely affected by climate. Mine is similar to what you used to have. If I watered more than twice a week, my tomatoes would be rotting.
Thank you sooo much!
My tomatoes are starting to curl a bit on the outtermost facing leafs. They're under 50% shade cloth. It's been 108-112 the last 2 weeks where I am, so I kind of expect it.
I think our problem this year is far too much rain. We have received around 25 inches since I planted out in March. I had some that were still in cups waiting for the broccoli & cabbage to come out. They were on the porch and also got the rain, but look far healthier than the ones that were in the ground
I live in the desert area. One thing i have learned was regular and constant watering cycles help must with temps variation from 45-105. Increase the minutes on 100 degree weeks or decrease on cool weeks
I have used compost from the city and this year for the first time my plants have suffered
Incredibly timely video. I have several dozen tomato plants this year (many in containers, mostly 5 gallon buckets) and some are exhibiting leaf curl. Not a lot of yellowing, as best I can tell….but now Im concerned
One thing Ive been trying is spraying a mixture made with citrus peels, red pepper flakes, and turmeric powder. I havent added the dishsoap as suggested yet but…But some of the plants Ive sprayed are some of the ones not doing so hot…
Im getting a lot of flowers (suckers, been picking off) but hardly any fruits. Ive also been supplementing with precompost tea in some places.
Has anyone else had any success or issues with the orange spray method?
The nursery I work at recieved a flat of tomatoes last year that rapidly started looking very unhealthy. Looking at pictures of tomatoes affected by grazon, I was pretty sure that's what it was. We isolated the flat, and when the plants continued to go downhill, disposed of it. I emailed the grower it came from, but never heard anything back. Its odd that just that one flat, out of MANY we purchased from them, was affected.
Hey Brian, I grow all my veggies on my deck, in pots. I have made several planters out of totes with a water reservoir on the bottom. I would love to see you do a show on this method of growing tomatoes. It would work well with your series on patio gardening. My method is to put 2 small weep holes in one side about 3 inches from the bottom. Then wrap in a section of French drain. I cut the top of the tote to fit in the container on top of the French drain. I cut a hole in the center of the top and put a larger pot, the kind plants come in from the store, in the hole so that it is sitting all the way down in the hole. I then put a PVC pipe all the way down one side so one end is on the bottom and one end is about level with the top or the tote. I then fill the tote with garden soil and plant my tomatoes. Once or twice a week I fill the reservoir with water using the PVC pipe until water comes out the weep holes and have never had a water issue with my tomatoes. And the totes last for years before they breakdown in the sun.