Why is my tomato plant drooping?

Tomato drooping usually means the roots cannot keep up with water demand, because the soil is too dry, too wet, too hot, too cold, or the plant is being damaged by disease or chemicals.

Answer what you can see

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Push a finger two inches into the soil. What does it feel like?

Which leaves are affected?

What has the weather been doing?

How fast did this happen?

Drought, heat stress, and wilt disease can all make a tomato hang limp, so use soil moisture, recent weather, and whether the plant perks up overnight to separate them.

The causes in full

Dry soil and drought stressMOST COMMON

How to tell
The soil is dry two inches down or baked and cracked, and the whole plant looks limp, often worse in the afternoon.

What to do
If the soil is dry two inches down or baked hard and cracked, water slowly at the base until the root zone is thoroughly wet. Add mulch after watering, and water again only when the soil is dry two inches down.

Heat stress while soil is still dampCOMMON

How to tell
The soil is damp two inches down, but the plant droops during the hottest part of the day and looks better in the evening or morning.

What to do
If the soil is damp two inches down, do not add extra water just because the plant is drooping in heat. Use mulch and temporary afternoon shade cloth during extreme heat, and water only when the soil becomes dry two inches down.

Waterlogged soil and roots short of airCOMMON

How to tell
The soil feels soggy or muddy two inches down, and the plant droops even though the ground is wet, often after heavy rain.

What to do
If the soil is waterlogged two inches down, stop watering and let the bed drain before watering again. Pull mulch back for a few days, keep foot traffic off the wet bed, and make shallow drainage channels if water is pooling.

Fusarium, Verticillium, or bacterial wilt diseaseLESS COMMON

How to tell
Suspect wilt disease if the soil is damp but the plant or one main branch stays wilted, lower leaves yellow, and a cut low stem shows brown streaking or sticky ooze.

What to do
If the soil is damp and the stem shows brown streaking or ooze, extra watering will not fix it; remove a badly infected plant and keep tomatoes out of that spot for future seasons. Water nearby tomatoes only if their soil is dry two inches down.

Cold snap or late frost injuryLESS COMMON

How to tell
The drooping started right after a cold night, and the newest tips or exposed leaves look limp, darkened, bronzed, or water-soaked.

What to do
If drooping followed a cold snap or late frost, protect the plant on the next cold night with frost cloth and wait a few days before pruning dead tissue. Water only if the soil is dry two inches down.

Herbicide drift or fertilizer burnRARE

How to tell
Look for a recent weed spray, lawn treatment, or strong fertilizer application, especially if the newest growth is twisted, limp, or burned on the exposed side.

What to do
If herbicide drift is likely, prevent further drift and wait to see whether new growth comes in normal; do not fertilize a stressed plant. If too much fertilizer was applied and the soil is dry two inches down, water deeply once to move salts lower; if the soil is damp, do not add more water.

Will it recover?

Leaves drooped from heat or dry soil often recover, but leaves damaged by cold, disease, or chemical burn usually do not; the goal is healthy new growth.

Stopping it happening again

Keep tomatoes evenly watered in well-drained soil, mulch the bed, protect plants from weather extremes, avoid herbicide drift, and rotate tomatoes away from spots where wilt disease has appeared.