Question
I started roma tomatoes and hungarian wax peppers from seeds. I have planted them out in the garden, but they are all looking terrible. The leaves are turning a yellowish/brownish color and they just simply don't look good. I'm wondering what I've done wrong. Did I plant them too soon or not harden them off well enough, or is this a disease? I also bought three tomato plants and planted them in the same area - two of them look good, but one is starting to resemble the other plants. We've had lots of rain, so I know they are well watered. I don't know if I need to just forget about those plants and start over with store-bought plants, or replant in another area. Please help!

Answer
Hi Tammy,
Thanx for your question.  If you started seeds indoors, they need time to acclimate when introduced to the outdoors.  You need to wait until well after the last frost and when evening temperatures are consistently above 50 degrees F.  First, harden off plants started indoors by putting them in the shade where they will be protected from direct sunlight, wind, rain, cold, etc. for about 10 days.  After that, they should do fine out in direct sunlight.  The description your provide sounds like sun damage for plants that were sufficiently hardened off.  I've learned about this the hard way too.

Make sure you soil drains well and isn't waterlogged.  Tomatoes and peppers love warm days and cool nights for optimal growth although they will tolerate high temperatures, they will stop blossoming and setting fruit if it stays very hot for an extended period of time.  Sidedress your plants with well composted manure for good nutrition of the plants.  Some plants will have yellowed or dying leaves for a while due to the shock of transplanting.  Give your plants some time and they should come out of it.  I'd go out and buy a few more plants to replace the ones that died.  I hope this helps.
Tom