Pulling out tired tomato plants is one of those end-of-season chores that seems straightforward: yank the vines, toss them into the compost pile, and turn this year’s garden into next year’s free fertilizer. But if those plants have brown, spotted, yellowing, or dying leaves, adding them to an ordinary backyard pile could be a mistake. Several diseases commonly described by gardeners as tomato blight can survive in infected plant debris, potentially giving pathogens another opportunity to cause trouble. Penn State, for example, says the fungus responsible for early blight can survive on infected debris in soil, as well as on seed and volunteer plants. Before turning diseased vines into compost, take a closer look at what actually happened to your tomatoes.
