Has blight struck yet?

jungliemac

We have blight and am going to dig up all my potatoes at the weekend. hope it doesn't get my tomatoes though! Amazing how quickly it takes hold. Last week they were fine now all spotty and wilting.

poppyoscar_3

if it's any consolation we have tomato blight in SW France too - everyone I know has it!! i'd put it down the the bizarre weather because it's the first year in eight that i've had to pull out all my plants and burn them. i don't grow potatoes because of the colorado beetles!!!!!

Farway

absfabs wrote: »

Like you I'm hoping someone will give us advice how to treat this, but in the meantime I don't think the diseased stuff should be composted.

Bad news is there is no cure once you have it.
It is normally treated by protective sprays before the blight arrives

Blight is seasonal, wind and weather dependant. It normally starts in the west country [warm part of UK first] and travels with the prevailing westerly wind onwards & upwards across UK. Stops at Northern England / Scotland where only spores with wooly jumpers dare go :rotfl:

The spread is monitored and warnings available to allow farmers etc chance to spray before it arrives. This year the wet & warm weather caught us all napping

The spray provides a protective film on the leaves, which stop the spores getting hold. Normal spray is Dithane 945 or a copper based one [Bordeaux mixture]

More here {Royal Horticultural Society]

http://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profiles0803/tomato_blight.asp

and here [Potato Council]

http://www.potato.org.uk/department/knowledge_transfer/fight_against_blight/advice_blight.html

absfabs

Thanks Farway.

I've been holding on to my precious but according to above hopelessly infected tomatoes, a few of the toms are just changing colour... is there any hope that anything will ripen? Should I spray them anyway?

Or should I bin them fast before they spread more spores that might come back to trouble us next year?

Is there any risk to pepper and aubergine plants in the vicinity? No signs on them so far. Should I spray them?

nodwah

Stops at Northern England / Scotland where only spores with wooly jumpers dare go :rotfl:


We get blight in the frozen North too!!!

A couple of my spuds have it on the lower leaves.

You should never compost blighted material as the spores can survive for several years, burn or bin it. They usually advise a 3 or 4 year crop rotation too so you're not growing in the same ground.

arkonite_babe

My spuds have been affected too here in NI. I nhave just sprayed mine, with great reluctance anmd I shal watch them to see what happens. My tomatoes are ok so far though. Fingers crossed

lyns_2

Got it as well fine one day and spots the next where can i get Dithanet from quick

arkonite_babe

Dad has more bliught that I have and we are literally less that half a mile away from each other.

I only have a few lower leaves showing signs of blight.

fishy1ta

I've grown a few tomato plants in a glasshouse, and they have flowers but no fruit yet. They are about 4-5ft tall and I've removed the tops to stop them growing. Should the fruits be developing by now? How long does it typically take from flowers to fruit? I'm up in sunny scotland which may be a factor. Also, they have a few wee green bugs (greenfly) on some leaves, how do I kill them?

absfabs

Hello fishy1ta, you could tap the stem gently to help polination, or else get the cotton wool bud out, or a clean finger. Misting is supposed to help as well.

If there are just a few green flies, you could rub them of with fingers. Horrible at first but I got used to it by now, or else wear gloves.

My toms were only just starting to set fruit 3 weeks or so ago, and that's in the SouthWest, so probably normal to be a bit later up North.