Topic: is it possible to save tomatoes from first signs of blight?

[antipodes]

Yesterday I realised that my outdoor toms were showing first signs of blight.  :'(  :'(
I pulled out the ones that looked quite affected and for the others removed all affected foliage and sprayed with Bordeaux mixture. As they have quite a lot of fruit set but none is ripe yet, is there any chance that I can ward it off just to get a few fruit?
I am gutted, they are my main crop each year and this is the second year running where they have been blighted. Not too sure how to protect them better than this?

[Ellen K]

I am no expert but if it's late blight, you may already be on the downward slope  :( sorry.

The sprays really only work as prevention.  So next year spray early - say, end June then mid August.  Everything I've read seems to indicate that the timing is what is important and what you use (copper or mancozeb) less so.

If it is any consolation, we are in trouble here in the UK - the whole of June was a Smith period on my plot.

ETA: the first year I had my plot, the whole site got blighted in August and we all lost our tomatoes very quickly.  Then, no blight for the next few years and we got complacent.  But with some versions of early blight, the plants seem to grow through it and go on to produce a crop as normal.  That has been my experience.  Hope yours are OK.

[antipodes]

Sorry I should have mentioned that they were already given bordeaux mixture, twice, but as it has rained so much, most has washed off pretty quickly.

[Ellen K]

Sounds as if you are doing everything you can.  This year, I have planted far apart so the plants dont touch each other, removed lowest leaves so they are not on the ground, removed damaged leaves etc.  But it's the rain - the Marmande tomato plants are tiny and have all grown blind in to a truss but the Sungold and Orkado are vigorous so I'm still hoping.  I haven't sprayed because we have hardly had a day when it hasn't rained heavily.

Woe is me  :'( mea miserum.

[Melbourne12]

We've been lucky in the past by cutting out the blighted bits, and re-spraying.  But this year is so wet, both in England and France, that I'm not confident.

But hey, it's worth a try!

[BarriedaleNick]

Much the same here - Normally later in the year I get a touch of blight and spraying with Copper Sulphate both preventatively and as a way to slow down its progression does help.
I have lived for a month or so with blight on a plant and got a crop.

This year got two plants affected in June and ripped both out - no way they would last the season and produce fruit.

[antipodes]

Oh well, perhaps there is a little hope. I did really remove a lot of foliage but it has been so wet, yet at the same time not too cold, which I think is just a bad combination. I am so upset as they were all "fancy" varieties and I wanted to save seed  :'(   :'(