So I started my tomatoes way too late last year and ended up with many greenies at the end of the season. I am in the inland Pacific, so our seasons are quite short. I got my tomatoes planted at a good time....I thought. I planted throughout March, started them in my Aerogardens, then up potted to Solo cups, then to one gallon bags, under good lights. I hit my first snag when the nights refused to warm up to 50. I hit my second snag when my right knee gave out. I already was prepared to get the left knee replaced, so this slowed me down considerably. The third snag wasn't unexpected, I had to leave the first of June to travel for the birth of my first grandchildren, twins, a boy and a girl. I left my tomatoes to my husband's care. When I came back in mid-June, it was still not warm enough to plant. My craft room and my guest room looked like jungles. Some of the tomatoes were six feet tall with almost ripe tomatoes. Some were just doing ok. Some look pretty terrible. My dear husband knows nothing about tomatoes and over-watered. I have been planting as quickly as possible in grow bags. The first ones I got in have greened up beautifully, but I still have some whose leaves are yellowed, or rusty, or really dark. The just look bad. They are planted a compost blend similar to Mel's Mix, with some Tomato Tone and Xtreme Gardening Mykos Pure Mycorrhizal Inoculant Organic Root Enhancer. I just fertilized with a weak fish emulsion mix. Maybe I should just be patient, considering how healthy the first ones I put in have gotten, but I can't stand to see them looking so sad.

Should I add some blood meal to help the unhealthy ones green up? What else should I do? Thanks for any advice.

Shou

Patience is a virtue... you'd be surprised what tomatoes can overcome. Give them time to put some fresh leaves on, and then take away the old not so healthy leaves when they do. I mean leaves that are yellowish but not totally brown, keep what looks like they can use it to get the new leaves started.
This is a situation I've seen many times, especially at my friend's farm. The logistics of getting things in at the right time are a challenge. This year for example, they bought new tunnels for a big tomato grow. Plants were started at the usual time and when planting time came they were absolutely beautiful!! I've never seen a better batch of seedlings just ready to take off. But the tunnels were delayed. Didn't arrive on time, and then it was a huge job to prepare the site and install them. So the next time I saw these plants, a shadow of their former selves with many sad looking leaves, just planted into the new place with as much compost as they had to go around. I have no doubts at all, the next time I see them they'll be green, bumptious and loading up with fruit. The same situation last year, was because a hurricane took the skin off the old greenhouse and they were waiting to get new plastic for that. The year before, similar. Those plants produced excellent crops once they got going.
It's true that a few plants, maybe some varieties find it harder to bounce back and might be stunted or make an early exit after setting a few fruit, but overall the recovery of tomatoes from late planting adversity is pretty amazing.

Good luck with the knee, btw, and congrats on the twins!!

First congratulations on the grand babies!!! I thought I did everything right this year as well.. my plants decided to bloom late and now I’m just getting tomatoes at this point I don’t feel I have time.i can’t give advice but I wish the best for you this year

Congratulations! They are very starved and it's going to take some time for them to green up. I would continue with your fish emulsion but at full strength. Follow bower's advice on removing the old leaves as new healthy growth comes in. It's easier to produce new growth rather than to try to pump nutrients into old leaves. Your younger leaves will respond best.

Thanks for the reassurance. I thought that after the way the first ones in recovered it might be ok, but the fall clock is ticking.....