Is it starting early for you?

[Pyrrho]

The last week or so, I've started removing diseased leaves on the lower portions of some of my plants. Nothing serious, but still necessary despite a regular spraying regimen with Daconil.

It seemed earlier in the year for this, and by checking last year's garden log, I confirmed that I'm about a month ahead as far as seeing the usual signs of foliar disease. This, despite my implementation of a modest pruning method (four growing tips) to give the plants more air.

The weather here has been rather favorable: warm, but not too hot or humid, and we've had a few big rains rather than the traditional string of thunderstorms we normally get in the spring. The plants have therefore been able to stay dry most of the time. Based on fruit set, production looks to be better than average (even with the pruning).

Is anyone else seeing things go downhill early? I wonder if the mild winter might be behind it.

[zabby17]

I've seen not foliage diseases but bug action earlier than usual. My plants are healthy and growing, deep green, with the earliest varieties starting to blossom, all slightly ahead of schedule for my zone. But the lowermost leaves of many plants are riddled with little holes in a way that I usually don't see till the plants are much bigger. Or don't see at all because yellowing of foliage at the bottom has happened first.

In my situation, I've never found the need for Daconil or pre-emptive pruning---I just remove any branch that starts to look pretty bad, and the rest of the plant carries on merrily.

So that's what I've been doing---pinching off branches that are badly chewed. There's enough plant left in all cases so far that I am not worried for the overall plant's health, but I have definitely never pinched off branches at such an early stage before.

I, too, suspect the mild winter and early spring are the reason---the bugs presumably got an early start, even earlier than the plants.

Fortunately, the weather's been really good lately---sunny most days, just enough rain, pretty warm without scorching. So I'm hopeful that my usual pest- and disease-fighting strategy of "have healthy enough plants to stand some pest and disease damage" will be successful this year again nonetheless.

But I bet I'll see foliar disease early too, this year. I hadn't thought of that---thanks for the head's up!

Z

[z_willus_d]

I've been pulling out diseased plants every couple days here in the Sacramento valley. We've had very good weather for tomato growing this season, and everything was off to an early start. Unfortunately, I believe so too were the baddie critters. I've had loads of leaf-hoppers, thrips, and other nastiness, like locusts. The thrips are the worst, as they both render the blossoms useless (they live and eat in there), and more importantly, they transmit diseases. The leaf-hoppers suck on the leaves and turn them sickly both in looks and reality. It's tough trying to combat all this organically, and I'm not seeing the beneficials to support a meaningful counter measure.

Anyway, best of luck in your garden.
-naysen

[b54red]

Spider mites started way early this year along with a host of caterpillars but no hornworms. Gray Mold has also been a problem along with the ever present fusarium wilt. I have had an abundance of lady bugs and some are still hanging around so aphids have not been a concern.