Aspirin

[gunrunner]

Hello All

Was wondering how many of you spray your young plants with aspirin before planting and do you thinks it helps?

Thanks
Mike

[Worth1]

Originally Posted by gunrunner

Hello All

Was wondering how many of you spray your young plants with aspirin before planting and do you thinks it helps?

Thanks
Mike

Speaking of aspirin after last night's 4 drinks on an empty stomach I need some.

As for the plants I have never elected to indulge in any of these remedies.
What's it suppose to do?
Worth

[gunrunner]

I read on another site its supposed to jump start the immune system for the plant

Mike

[Worth1]

I have read about it many years ago and wrote it off as another wives tale.
As long as I have been here I have never seen it brought up.
Now is as good a time as any to bring it up and get to the truth of the mater.
Worth

[creister]

Actually, there are some discussions over on the disease forum or gardening in the green

[Misfit]

If I recall correctly, I read (and it may have been here) that aspirin can help a plant recover from certain diseases. Something about similar properties in willow trees, in which can be boiled down to produce the same results.

I'm not a fan of spraying the foliage, unless trying to fix something that has gone wrong.

But, everyone's mileage varies.

-Jimmy

[carolyn137]

Google search for use of aspirin and tomato immune system;

https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q...system+aspirin

Check out the link to Tville.

I've read about it for many years but no one has yet defined, at least for me, what the immune system of a tomato is. A system is a system, meaning many factors involved, not just one substance.

Carolyn

[ChrisK]

This has been discussed here a number of times. Aspirin is chemically closely related to salicylic acid, a known plant defense hormone. Low doses prime the defense pathways known as systemic acquired resistance.

I am sure I have posted articles on this in the winter reading thread (which is now quite long and should provide reading for many winters to come!)

[Worth1]

Okay I have the memory of an elephant I must have missed everything that was ever said about aspirin.

Worth

[ChrisK]

Who needs memory when there is Google!?

https://www.google.com/search?q=aspi...omatoville.com

Originally Posted by Worth1

Okay I have the memory of an elephant I must have missed everything that was ever said about aspirin.

Worth

[FLRedHeart]

Is there a link to the winter reading thread? I am skeptical after discussing this somewhere else, but would like to see what was written, and have an open mind. I recall the term immune system in this context was much too much of a stretch and the mentioned "SAR", systemic acquired resistance, was along the lines of getting whacked with a hammer and forming platelets or some such poor comparison.

An elephant certainly has a better memory than I do ... my respects ;-). Since aspirin is not salicylic acid, I'd like to see if it is demonstrated as substituting for it or used to form it, as well as the proof it is doing anything. Probably there is something to it, but what that means for the practice of adding it to plants for a grower's benefit, should be reproducible under reasonable conditions if it is to be of any practical use. There may very well be great science, but understanding under what circumstances it will provide a benefit, how best applied, etc.

[ChrisK]

Via that handy search button at the top:

http://www.tomatoville.com/showthrea...winter+reading

Google scholar search for even more late night reading:

http://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=...lic+acid+plant

Note that I am skeptical on the actual field level efficacy of spraying aspirin.

edit: added paper and link to others in winter reading thread

[FLRedHeart]

Thanks ChrisK, I just went through the first 100 posts in that thread to find your comment in the 90's or so:

"I am sure google will return lots of results, mostly anecdotal, on tests of aspirin in the garden!",

so that's where I'm at...

After I get my starts all in order and sown in a couple of weeks I'll spend some time in that research-heavy thread (Now I know why you didn't put simple links to that thread, it isn't exactly organized or short!)

[ChrisK]

lol. seriously. that thread is a gamish of stuff, some good, some, well, not.

i stay away from google for science. google scholar or ncbi for the primary literature is my stomping grounds! still have to be careful...lots of woo picked up by google scholar.

[saltmarsh]

Ok, I'm game. When I transplant this Spring, I'll spray the first two rows of my tomatoes with aspirin water. I label my plants so it's a simple matter to note the asprin spray on the label and plant out sheets.

Each row has 44 plants so I won't spray plants 1, 5, 9, 13, 17, 21, 25, 29, 33, 37, 41 on both rows.

I'll spray a 8 aspirin (1600mg) per gallon solution on plants 2, 6, 10, 14, 18, 22, 26, 30, 34, 38, and 42.

I'll spray a 16 aspirin (3200mg) per gallon solution on plants 3, 7, 11, 15, 19, 23, 27, 31, 35, 39, and 43.

I'll spray a 24 aspirin (4800mg) per gallon solution on plants 4, 8, 12, 16, 20, 24, 28, 32, 36, 40, and 44.

Then I'll use my untrained eyes to see if there is any noticable difference in the performance of the plants.

Any suggestions? Claud