Tomato
Tomatoes splitting after rain: check the watering pattern
Compare stem-end cracks with other fruit damage, review moisture changes, and keep a short record of the next developing fruit.
Notice · compare · choose a next step
Work through the growing problem in front of you
Use a checklist to inspect the plant, review its conditions and keep a record of what you change. Each guide links to university extension references.
Tomato
A dark patch under a tomato: check moisture before adding calcium
Locate the damage, review root-zone conditions and choose the next observation when a tomato develops a sunken blossom-end patch.
Leaf lettuce
Lettuce growing a tall stalk: decide what to harvest and replace
Separate bolting from ordinary leaf growth, record the conditions, and plan a replacement batch for a more suitable growing window.
Radish
Radishes with big leaves and small roots: work through the checks
Use the packet, actual spacing and a sample root to decide whether to thin, wait, harvest or restart a radish sowing.
Cucumber
Cucumber flowers but little fruit: check the variety and flower access
Identify the cucumber's pollination requirements, inspect flowers and covers, and record whether young fruit keep growing.
Vegetable seedlings
Move seedlings outdoors gradually with a hardening-off record
Build an adjustable outdoor-exposure routine, check plant response and decide when conditions are suitable for transplanting.
Tomato
Tomato leaves rolling upward: inspect the pattern before treating
Compare leaf texture, new growth and recent stress, then decide whether to observe the plant or investigate a wider problem.
Tomato
A pale patch on a tomato's sunny side: review its leaf cover
Map the exposed side of the fruit, check why foliage was lost, and protect the next developing cluster without stripping more leaves.
Carrot
Forked or stubby carrots: inspect the bed before the next sowing
Compare the expected root shape with actual spacing and soil obstacles, then choose one practical change for a new carrot strip.
Spinach
Spinach seeds not emerging: check the soil before sowing again
Separate a warm, dry or disturbed seedbed from a calendar delay, and set up a small labeled re-sowing with a useful check date.
Garden pea
Peas slowing in hot weather: decide when to finish the crop
Compare remaining pods, new flowers and the forecast before giving a tired pea crop more time or handing its space to a successor.
Basil
Harvest basil above a leaf pair and track the regrowth
Choose healthy shoots, locate the leaf pair below a cut, and check the plant's response before taking the next harvest.
Snap bean
Pick snap beans by pod stage, not one fixed length
Compare smooth young pods with seed bulges and fibrous older pods, then choose a repeatable picking check for your actual variety.
Vegetable seedlings
Seedlings collapsing at the soil line: inspect the tray and restart carefully
Check the stem base, map affected cells and review shared water, drainage and equipment before starting another tray.
Vegetable seedlings
Tall, thin seedlings: check light coverage before feeding more
Compare the center and edges of the tray, inspect stem bases, and adjust the light setup with a record of new growth.
Vegetable containers
A vegetable pot stays wet: check where the water can leave
Identify the container design, inspect moisture below the surface and record drainage before adding more water or rebuilding the pot.
Sweet pepper
Pepper flowers falling from a container plant
Compare heat, root moisture and other visible damage before choosing one change. Keep a record of the next flowers.
Beet
Several beet seedlings coming from one sowing spot
Count individual stems, check the seed type and make space for the roots you want to keep.
Swiss chard
Pale blotches inside Swiss chard leaves
Inspect both leaf surfaces and the tissue between them, then track whether fresh leaves develop new mines.
Basil
Yellow basil leaves: check the undersides
Pair upper-leaf yellowing with an underside inspection and keep uncertain signs separate from a confirmed disease.
Parsley
An overwintered parsley plant is sending up a flower stalk
Check the plant's history and decide whether its container will continue as a flowering plant or return to leaf production.
Chives
A crowded chive clump needs more room
Check the clump and season, prepare receiving pots, and track each rooted division after replanting.
Leaf lettuce
Harvesting outer leaves from container lettuce
Confirm the lettuce type, select older outer leaves and record what remains for the next visit.
Compact cucumber
A cucumber stayed on the plant too long
Check hidden fruit against the variety's harvest description, remove overlooked oversized fruit and record the next round.
Container tomato
Tomato side shoots: check the growth habit before pruning
Identify a side shoot, recover the variety label and choose a pruning action that matches the plant and its support.
Sweet pepper
Aphid-like colonies on pepper shoots: choose a first action
Inspect the insects, look for natural enemies and use a targeted physical action when the colony needs attention.
Basil
Start another basil plant from a tip cutting
Prepare a healthy stem with nodes, place it in moist medium and check roots before treating it as an established plant.
Turnip
Turnip roots are enlarging: harvest for usable quality
Check the variety, measure an exposed shoulder and use a sample root to decide which turnips to lift next.
Bush snap bean
Direct-sow bush beans into a warm, ready container
Confirm the bean type, measure the potting mix and mark a small sowing that can be checked without digging up its seeds.
Spring radish
Clear a radish container before its next sowing
Finish the old batch, remove competing roots and decide whether another spring-radish sowing still fits the conditions.
Culinary parsley
Sow parsley once and protect the slow-emerging seed area
Prepare a clearly marked parsley sowing and use the packet's germination guidance before deciding that an empty-looking pot has failed.
True spinach
Choose a cool-season window before sowing container spinach
Build a local sowing decision for true spinach, then start one labeled batch when the available season and container conditions agree.
Healthy tomato transplant in its final container
Move a healthy tomato transplant into its final container
Check the plant, choose a planting depth the pot can accommodate, and put support in before the roots spread.
Established container sweet basil moving indoors
Bring a healthy basil pot indoors before cold weather
Choose a plant worth keeping, prepare a bright separate space, and replace the outdoor watering routine with root-zone checks.
Established common chives in a container entering the cold season
Move a chive pot indoors and let new growth set the harvest pace
Use the plant's recent cold exposure and new shoots to separate rest, recovery and active indoor harvest.
Leaf lettuce nursery-cell seedlings moving into a final container
Move leaf lettuce from nursery cells into its final pot
Choose baby leaves or full-size plants first, then release intact root balls and give the new planting room to establish.
Sweet pepper
A pepper pot came with fertilizer: decide when to feed again
Recover the mix and fertilizer labels, account for what is already in the pot, and make one measured application only when the instructions support it.
Compact cucumber
Guide a young container cucumber onto suitable support
Check the variety before choosing support, position it while the plant is young, and gently route new growth while keeping fruit clear of mesh.
Parsley
Share parsley with caterpillars using separate pot roles
Check the insect with a regional identification resource, retain its occupied parsley as a host, and reserve a separate plant for kitchen harvests.
Swiss chard
White crust on a chard pot: check water and fertilizer inputs
Distinguish a surface observation from a salinity diagnosis, review what enters the pot, and choose a drainage-safe rinse or a fresh-mix reset.
Bush common bean
Save a small planting-seed lot from healthy bush beans
Choose the parent before its last pods are picked, let a seed lot reach dry maturity and finish drying before shelling and storage.
Bush bean planting seed
Test an old bean packet before allocating it to a container
Take a random sample, count newly germinated seeds once and turn the result into a cautious use, retest or replace decision.
Mature container tomato selected for next-season seed
Save tomato seed from a healthy, fully ripe fruit
Check the variety and parent plant, use a short monitored wet process, then rinse and dry the seed before storage.
Healthy labeled culinary basil deliberately retained for seed
Let one basil plant flower and collect its mature seed
Give one healthy labeled plant a seed-saving role, keep its flower spikes, and collect the dry seed separately from the leaf crop.
Leaf lettuce
Clean an empty lettuce pot before the next crop
Remove the old crop and trapped debris, scrub the empty pot, then complete appropriate sanitation or choose a replacement before refilling.
Basil
Small flies around rooted indoor basil: check the pot and monitor
Gather insect evidence, use a dated sticky card to monitor adults, and reduce persistent surface wetness while keeping established basil appropriately watered.
These guides help you gather observations and make care decisions. They do not diagnose a disease from a photograph or recommend pesticides.