![]() ![]() Practice 4 year rotation, tomatoes following the cole crops in an area that was limed and manured last year. This fungus overwinters in old tomato and potato debris and some weeds. Keep tomato plants regularly watered and fed because dramatic fluctuations in temperature, soil moisture and soil fertility may cause fruit disfigurement in tomatoes. Try to keep the leaves as dry as possible by only wetting the ground around the plant. The protection you give them must allow for excellent ventilation, and you must be able to get in to prune and pick the tomatoes. Keep plants dry by placing them under an overhanging eve, on a balcony or porch, or under a structure that you create. Once you know how your plants become infected you can plan proper control measures. ![]() What you can do to minimize loss from late blight However, once one part of the plant is infected, the spores that form there are much more likely to infect other parts of the plant. ![]() Spores must fall on the fruit in order for them to become infected. Additionally, there is some feeling (although this is still being debated) that plants initially become infected in the spring by splash-up caused by raindrops falling on bare, infected soil.Ĭontrary to popular thought, late blight does not travel inside the plant to infect other areas. The dampness can come from rain, heavy dew, condensation in a greenhouse or tent or even your sprinklers. The clue to understanding how to deal with it is to know that the fungus only grows on tomato plants that are wet for over 48 hours at a time. When the spores land on either potato or tomato plants, it needs the right conditions in order to germinate. The fungus spreads itself by forming spores that are carried by the wind. This A2 type is much more aggressive and is capable of surviving for long periods on old vines and even in the soil. Scientists at Simon Fraser University recently identified a separate “A2” type which previously was only found in Mexico. If conditions are right for the fungus, the entire plant becomes diseased and dies quickly.Īlthough late blight has been around for many years, infections have become much more severe in the 1990s. The leaves develop brown spots which eventually cause the whole leaf to turn brown and drop off. ![]() Most new varieties are resistant to the common fungal diseases, but late blight (Phytopthera infestans) is dreadful here on the Coast. The Tomato Late Blight fungus really has hit Coastal gardeners hard and, from what we hear, has now even made its way into the Okanagan. Plants may show symptoms of disease on foliage, but crop remains unaffected.We’ve often spoken to gardeners who just shake their heads despairingly when we mention growing tomatoes. Here’s some varieties to try! Click the images to find out more… CRIMSON CRUSHĬordon variety, ideal outdoors. Transfer to growing bags or 30cm (12in) pots if growing indoors, or harden off before planting outdoors in late May. Prick out seedlings individually into (7.5cm) 3in pots, transferring into a 13.5cm (5in) pot as they develop. Cover seeds, water in and germinate at a temperature of 21C (70F) lowering to a growing temperature of 18C (65F). Sow seeds either in modules, 2 per unit or in a 7cm (21/2in) pot in a general-purpose compost. Spread by wind currents, blight spores can be carried on hands and equipment, so hygiene is key and growing resistant varieties boosts success. While early blight in June can be problematic, late blight in July and August quickly shrivels leaves and damages fruit. You can grow these varieties indoors too, although glasshouses offer protection from blight spores landing on foliage. Recent years has seen a few F1 resistant varieties introduced, with two new ones launched this year, ‘Summerlast’, a dwarf patio variety, and ‘Crimson Blush’, a beefsteak variety. While there’s a wealth of tomato varieties available there are far fewer resistant to blight disease, the scourge of gardeners trying to grow tomatoes outdoors. Nothing beats a home-grown, sun-ripened tomato, so to pick those luscious red fruit as early start sowing seed under glass now to April. ![]()
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