Cure for early blight.

[Salsacharley]

Doesn't Bill's bleach spray kill powdery mildew?

[Salsacharley]

Doesn't Bill's bleach spray kill powdery mildew?
http://www.tomatoville.com/showthrea...t=bleach+spray

[bower]

I haven't tried milk or bleach spray... I admit it, I hate to spray anything. Drippy mess and you know, to spray the leaves properly on top and bottom I would get it all over me as well. (also known by the name "butterfingers" )

[brownrexx]

I have used a spray of baking soda and water for powdery mildew on squash. It works by changing the pH and making it unattractive to the organisms that cause the powdery mildew. It does not kill it, just prevents it from growing.

[Tracydr]

Originally Posted by Labradors2

Aqua cones: http://www.amazon.com/Gardeners-Supp.../dp/B007ROW0P0

I don't know why Gardeners Supply don't sell them any more. My first ones came from them, then I found some knock-off ones at Amazon. I don't do soda, but raid my neighbours blue boxes for 1L soda bottles.

Linda

I just noticed that Harbor Freight has some cheap knock offs of Aqua Cones.
I wonder also if a kefir,yogurt or buttermilk spray would be beneficial, maybe to alternate with the aspirin and compost tea?
Years ago,I read a very well done journal paper about adding an aspirin or two to each planting hole and that it had a significant effect on growth and vigor of the plant,too. I haven’t tried it but I think I might start doing this.

[b54red]

I have only rarely had mildew on my tomatoes but it is a frequently a problem for squash and sometimes cucumbers. Besides using the bleach spray to kill it you can use a copper spray to help prevent it and even stop mild cases.

I had a big stand of English peas this year and they were constantly having problems with mildew and I used the bleach spray on them with success. I was afraid it might kill them but it had no affect on the healthy leaves but the mildewed ones did turn brown after spraying. Next year I am going to start spraying my peas with copper before the mildew begins and see if it will work to prevent it as it does on squash.

My problem right now with something a good bit more virulent is gray mold on my black tomatoes. I have used the bleach spray once and copper once and it is under control for now but all it will take is a day or two of rain for that stuff to start again. If it does the bleach will be used at the first sign of it. The trick with all these types of things is to get it under control early and keep a close eye out for any signs of it returning and treat quickly if it does. Waiting too long with any of these types of problems only makes it much worse and less likely to have a good outcome as the spores spread fairly fast if the weather conditions are right for it.

Bill

[bower]

Too true about nipping the diseases before they spread. There is a daily cycle apparently and iirc common to release spores in the evening when temperature drops, but it may be different depending on the organism yup I have forgotten whatever I read, I know I was doing the rounds to remove and bag every bit of mildew before sundown at one point. But I think late blight was different and spored in the early afternoon... suffice to say they have a built in plan for getting the spores out there.

One thing about grey mold, which we also get here with a vengeance, is that the spent blossoms or flowers that drop are patient zero for the mold. I have found a few varieties less prone to that but in general the floral parts of tomato produce substances which are the ideal substrate for the mold. As soon as they drop unseen onto a leaf or worse yet, a stem, there it spreads and grows.
So a key part of sanitation routine for us is to shake off or pick off and dispose those petal or flower drops whenever doing the pruning and tying. If that is done on a regular basis, mold is much less of a risk. The year I looked after the tomatoes at my friend's farm, I found that once a week was just right for those pruning jobs, and kept them pretty much mold free.
Some varieties are extra susceptible to mold or other diseases though - I honestly have culled quite a few from my 'want to grow again' list if I find they are high maintenance.

[Labradors2]

Originally Posted by Tracydr

I just noticed that Harbor Freight has some cheap knock offs of Aqua Cones.
I wonder also if a kefir,yogurt or buttermilk spray would be beneficial, maybe to alternate with the aspirin and compost tea?
Years ago,I read a very well done journal paper about adding an aspirin or two to each planting hole and that it had a significant effect on growth and vigor of the plant,too. I haven’t tried it but I think I might start doing this.

Good to know about Harbor Freight knock offs . I managed to plug up a lot of mine putting dehydrated chicken manure in them and making it a real pain to clean out!

I always used to rinse out my kefir jar and glasses and keep the rinse water for my tomato plants. They didn't mind at all .

I bought some Alka Seltzer aspirins for my tomato plants and will use them tomorrow. I hope they will appreciate it .

Linda

[bower]

Whey from yoghurt or kefir is basically lactobacillus afaik... and that is for sure a healthy friend for plants.

[slugworth]

I had brandywine plants in containers that had to be transplanted.
The plants were getting sun but the containers were sheltered by grass and weeds.
I transplanted into bigger containers that had sun exposure for the plants and
containers,in 1 week the plants had EB.
I will try to salvage with the salicylic acid and a white cloth mulch.

[slugworth]

Soil temp was 88 degrees F which is way too high.
Trying to knock it down to see if I can recover.