Plants melting, turning pale

[goose70]

Ten days ago, we had some unusually cool weather so I covered the plants in my raised garden with my clear, plastic greenhouse cover. I then forgot to take the cover off for several days, the last of which was warmer (around 80 F) and sunny. When I took the cover off the next day, the plants -- particularly lettuce and parsley, looked like they had melted into a tan-brown slime and everything was soaking wet.

I removed most of the plants that were too far gone, but I now see that the tomatoes are also showing some brown/tan on their leaves, although they remain upright and not affected. (Curiously, the thyme seems unaffected.)

My dilemma is whether I should bother trying to replant the area with new veggies as the soil dries out a bit, or is what I'm seeing the result of a fungus or bacteria that needs to be treated before I plant anything else. And should I move the tomato plants somewhere else.

Thanks for any insight you can offer.

 

[Chuck]

By leaving that plastic cover on it is akin to being in a car with the windows rolled up. You cooked/steamed the plants. The lettuce will recover and so will the tomato but you may as well remove any affected leaves/limbs. On the lettuce remove all leaves which are damaged. On the tomato remove affected limbs but do not remove any affected suckers if any were affected but the buds remain ok. The parsley is dead. I see no fungus problems.

 

[YumYum]

I agree that you overheated the plants. I have a very small greenhouse and at 65-70 degrees ambient sun I have to fully open it up because it is very hard to maintain 85 degrees inside.

 

[goose70]

Thanks very much.