Choice of mulch and disease prevention

[LMinAL]

Last year I had septoria and bacterial speck something awful. This year I am really trying to prevent these diseases (or greatly delay - leaf issues seem inevitable in the south). So far, I have sprayed Daconil since the day of plant out (twice now). I'll be alternating with copper along the way for bacterial diseases. I have spaced out the tomatoes more, made galvanized metal cages for better support and circulation and trimmed off the lower branches to prevent splashback.

Now the soil has warmed up, it's time to mulch! In the past I have used grass clippings and leaves so they could be turned under in the Fall. Since I had disease problems last year, is it wise to continue this approach? Or am I potentially reintroducing over wintered spores? Better options?

Sorry if this is a silly question. Last year was just miserable and I am trying hard not to repeat any mistakes!

[mdvpc]

LMinAl-there are no silly questions. I don't know the answer to your questions, but someone here will and will post.

[b54red]

I recommend cypress mulch. It is more expensive than grass clippings but it is a far better insulator of the soil from our heat and it retains moisture much better cutting out the need for watering as frequently. Just the plain cypress mulch costs around 2 bucks per bag and it takes quite a bit of it to mulch as many summer veggies as I usually grow but it saves me so much water and time weeding it is worth it. I have raised beds and on all my summer vegetables except beans I use it as a mulch. I save the bags so at the end of the year I can rake most of it back up and use it again next year. That is probably the worst part of using cypress mulch besides the initial cost.

There are other benefits I have found to using the cypress mulch besides water retention and week suppression. Most important is it keeps the soil cooler than any other mulch I have tried. Its light color reflects light on the underside of the leaves a bit. It totally gets rid of splash back when it rains or when watering with the hose. The earthworms love it. It keeps fruit like cucumbers and squash from touching the soil reducing losses from rot and bugs.

I spread a layer about 3 to 5 inches thick under most of my plants. If you put it out too thinly you lose most of the benefits of using cypress mulch.

I too have been alternating copper and Daconil spraying. I don't want all that speck and spot stuff like last year during July when I got over 2 ft of rain. I don't think any fungicide can stop the diseases when it rains hard every day for weeks. If there is one I haven't found it yet.

Bill

[LMinAL]

Thanks for the responses Michael and Bill!

Bill, I am currently using cypress mulch in my flower beds. I considered using that for my veg beds but it would get pricey to cover all my beds 3-4 inches deep. If I bag it back up at the end of the season to reuse for next year it could make for a worthwhile investment, but that brings me back to my initial question - could disease spores overwinter in the mulch?

[b54red]

I'm sure some may but disease spores are ever present here. Since first using cypress mulch I have seen no increase in diseases or pests but rather a slight decrease. The decrease is probably attributable to the more consistent soil moisture keeping the plants more healthy. There are pros and cons to every mulch that I have ever used and I have used most that are readily available. The cost of the cypress mulch is the biggest drawback especially when first starting to use it. Why not just try it on some of your plants and see if you think it is worth the cost. For me it is the best option I have tried so as long as I can afford it and it is available I will continue to use it.

Bill

[LMinAL]

I may do that - try different mulch in different beds. I have 3 beds dedicated to tomatoes this year, so I think I will try a different mulch in each and see what happens. Thanks Bill!

[luigiwu]

Has anyone ever tried to use shredded newspaper or cardboard before? I was thinking about trying it this year.

[b54red]

Originally Posted by luigiwu

Has anyone ever tried to use shredded newspaper or cardboard before? I was thinking about trying it this year.

Don't use shredded newspaper. I made that mistake one time and one time only. About a week after a hard rain I had basically a solid mat of impenetrable paper that had dried to a rock like substance. I ended up having to remove it in chunks. It ended up in the compost pile.

I have also used sheets of cardboard and they work okay for a while unless it stays rainy and it breaks down. The glue in the cardboard also seems to attract and unusual amount of insects that gather under it.

Light rainfall would not penetrate either of these two mulches so the ground would sometimes become too dry under them.

Bill

[luigiwu]

Bill, I'm super glad I asked. Wont do it now.

[bughunter99]

I like to plant through landscaping fabric to prevent soil splash. I leave it fabric until the soil warms up and then I top with a think cover of mulch to keep the soil cool.

My space is of a more manageable size than yours though to do this.


Stacy

[Sodak]

I use red plastic mulch and it works well. Some evidence that red helps tomatoes, too. Clemson University research, iirc.

[Jaysan]

I am trying landscape fabric this year for the first time in my 4x8 raised bed with 6 Big Beefs. We had a lot of rain last year and the disease was hard to deal with.

[chalstonsc]

I've suffered from everything in the past. This year's approach is weed block covered by pine straw which I soaked briefly in a 20% solution of bleach and dried before mulching. I grow in containers and have used the weed block in the past, but this is the first year for the pine straw.
I've had no leaf diseases at all, and usually have had some by now. Don't know if it is just the cooler than normal spring weather that delayed my plant-out until April 1st, or whether I'm on to something. The rains and heat have started, so it will not be long before I know

[Chapinz8]

i've been using grass clippings for the past several years. Last year was very wet and I had very little disease, which was probably just a coincidence. I also spray with the Daconil. I'm using raised beds and do very little if any turning of the soil. I use the cypress mulch in the paths.

[parah]

Originally Posted by chalstonsc

I've suffered from everything in the past.

I remember you started a discussion about REALLY disease resistant tomatoes

Have you read the posts where b54red shares his favorites for tolerating heat and humidity and foliage disease? His post is halfway down the first page.

http://www.tomatoville.com/showthrea...130#post401130