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What else besides calcium deficiency could be causing tomato blossom end rot?

Each year my tomatoes develop a brown rotten area on the bottom of the fruit. I always add steer manure, sweet lime, bone meal, epsom salts, and time-released fertilizer to the soil. Is there something I am missing?

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tomato blossom end rot is caused (generally) by a lack of calcium, sound like you are amending the soil, but in my area, The Great Basin the lack of calcium is caused by too much limestone clay, causing the soil to be so basic that the calcium isn't available (ie too much calcium means too little available to the plant) introduction of organic matter typically helps, but isn't much of help to established plants, depending on your soil maybe sulfur would help, be sure to water enough also.

here are some blossom end rot links:

http://faq.gardenweb.com/faq/lists/tomato/2000082444023571.html http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/factsheets/Tomato_BlossRt.htm http://www.uri.edu/ce/factsheets/sheets/blossendrot.html

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What @Grady Player said, except I would add to not only water enough, but to water regularly. Stressed plants are more prone to all sorts of things, of which Blossom End Blight/Rot is one.

It can take several years to amend the soil enough to reduce the problem - after several years of working on improving my clay, I had no blight last tomato season, but it has taken quite a bit of work to get to that point.

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    Absolutely... Also the variety matters, with smaller tomatoes not exhibiting anywhere near the vulnerability of big tomatoes like beefsteak.
    – Grady Player
    Jun 17, 2012 at 17:23

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