I have TYLCV-Looking for some long-term advice.

[checkerkitty]

Hey everyone! This has been a learning year if ever there was one! I nursed a tomato plant in a container through the summer (since the poor thing made it through the compost of death by sheer luck) and had some nursery purchased transplants that I potted up but never planted in the the ground. I noticed some whiteflies hanging around and knew what would happen if they were infected. I let the transplants die and the container plant looks exactly like the pictures of TYLCV infected plants.

I know the virus can host in alternate plants. I'll admit, I've got a little weed issue in the yard right now that I can manage with a pair of leather gloves and some time. However, we have a few ornamentals hanging around and I'm wondering if I should destroy them as well. I have a few pots of begonias that I could empty without a tear. I also have some plants for starting a native bee/hummingbird bed, mainly salvias and lantanas. I've also got a large pot of french thyme that does have some whiteflies hanging around.

I've looked around for info on alternate hosts and I've seen a few plants listed here and there but nothing that I have planted as an ornamental in my yard. However, that doesn't mean they can't be carriers of the virus. I'm hoping for a hard freeze this winter to kill any buggies that may be lurking. I can handle the weeds myself. But what about the ornamentals? Anyone who has dealt with this issue, what have you done?

I'll be putting in some resistant/tolerant plants in the spring, putting out sticky traps and I'm thinking about making a mesh cover over a PVC frame for a few dwarf plants. I have lots of PVC! I maybe grasping at straws here, but I don't want to give up!

Christy

[ginger2778]

Originally Posted by checkerkitty

Hey everyone! This has been a learning year if ever there was one! I nursed a tomato plant in a container through the summer (since the poor thing made it through the compost of death by sheer luck) and had some nursery purchased transplants that I potted up but never planted in the the ground. I noticed some whiteflies hanging around and knew what would happen if they were infected. I let the transplants die and the container plant looks exactly like the pictures of TYLCV infected plants.

I know the virus can host in alternate plants. I'll admit, I've got a little weed issue in the yard right now that I can manage with a pair of leather gloves and some time. However, we have a few ornamentals hanging around and I'm wondering if I should destroy them as well. I have a few pots of begonias that I could empty without a tear. I also have some plants for starting a native bee/hummingbird bed, mainly salvias and lantanas. I've also got a large pot of french thyme that does have some whiteflies hanging around.

I've looked around for info on alternate hosts and I've seen a few plants listed here and there but nothing that I have planted as an ornamental in my yard. However, that doesn't mean they can't be carriers of the virus. I'm hoping for a hard freeze this winter to kill any buggies that may be lurking. I can handle the weeds myself. But what about the ornamentals? Anyone who has dealt with this issue, what have you done?

I'll be putting in some resistant/tolerant plants in the spring, putting out sticky traps and I'm thinking about making a mesh cover over a PVC frame for a few dwarf plants. I have lots of PVC! I maybe grasping at straws here, but I don't want to give up!

Christy

The best thing I have found in my whitefly infested neighborhood, is those yellow sticky traps. So much better than neeming everything 2 times/ week. I put them out at plant level and move them up every so often as the plants grow. I put them about every 5 feet. They work perfectly, and so easy.
I just found they make blue sticky traps to attract thrips, which seems to be working great.
It is pretty interesting to get the sticky stuff out of my hair though.

Good luck Christy, TYLCV is a heartbreaker.

Marsha

[horses4jess]

My heavy silverleaf whitefly infestation and resulting TYLCV drove me nuts for several seasons. Sprays, neem, traps...none managed to even limit my problem, let alone provide a solution. Predator insects were a fail, as transmission of the virus takes a very short feeding time (think 15 minutes), and it only takes a few infected whiteflies to take the whole plant down. By the time I actually see the first whiteflies, my plants have already been infected with TYLCV, anyway, it just takes a few weeks for symptoms to manifest. Insect netting is the only thing that has allowed me to have a tomato crop.

I'm not sure if your garden is small enough for it to be viable, but for my container garden it works fine. I buy the net that EB sells (though I'm sure there are more cost effective options for those who aren't as sewing-impaired as I am) and don't take it off at all except for when harvesting. The mesh size must be under a certain size (I want to say I read 50 mesh or smaller when I was researching a few years back). I don't use insect sprays or neem at all. The only TYLCV I've had over the last 2 years was when I inadvertently forgot to tighten a net after opening it for pruning.

I've found the net does slightly increase the incidence of fungal disease since it limits the air flow marginally, but I've had great luck with preventative Daconil spraying. I spray through the net, which works fine.

That's basically it: insect net + weekly Daconil = great tomato crop for me in a heavily silverleaf whitefly-infested area. As an added bonus, I don't have to worry about stink bugs, leaf-footed bugs, hornworms, etc.

[checkerkitty]

Thank you to both of you for the advice! I think that both of those are reasonable suggestions. We have already had several freezes in my neck of the woods. I'm hoping that a nice cold winter will help my issue even more. Time will tell.