How does it stop blight if you build a frame with a roof on? As it is an air borne virus surely it would just get in the sides, or am I missing something.......................................that wouldn't surprise me if I am ;D ;D ;D
Blight spreads best in wet conditions, a dry plant is less susceptible.
Yes, but they'd still get wet from the sides, that's the bit I can't figure out ;D ;D
It won't totally stop it in a bad season but can be enough to prevent infection in a normal year... :-X
I might be wrong but may i assume you are commenting on my experiment :). as said by earlier posters as the plants are kept relatively dry it reduces the risk or at the very least slows down the disease considerably as the environment is not permanently damp from continuous showers. what i also did last year was to remove lower leaves fairly early on or as soon as they started to droop to stop them sitting on the wet soil. I also once the blight did hit remove any infected foliage immediately cleaning the shears between each cut (i was fastidious about this, as i am at home i was able to inspect the plants as much as 3 times per day).
my neighbour also grew some outside toms last year blight hit him first and didn't show on my plants for at least another ten days by then his plants were well infected this was in September. i was picking fruit right up to the end of Oct early November.
i got the idea off of GW a few years ago and after a spectacular loss to blight in wet 2007 i decided to try this method last year not realising it was going to be another wet summer. i was very pleased with the results so i am doing it again.
funnily last month while reading some of my old kitchen garden magazines i came across this story of an Italian man who always grows his massive tomato crop at his allotment this way and has been doing so for years apparently with success, so it looks like i might be onto a winner ;D.
(http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk187/thifasmom/img221.jpg)
Many thanks for the replies. And, yes thifasmom I was interested in your experiment.
Will have to give it a go this year.
Following your advice, thifasmom, I'm putting "lids" on my bush tomatoes which are outside. I've done one, with hoops, canes and polythene and am waiting for the wind to drop enough to do the other bed. Will post a pic when done.
Thank you for the advice, I remembered from your post last year :) :) :)
glad to be of service :D,
i look forward to the piccies asbean.
On its way, thifasmom - I just need to do a bit of tidying up - took this on my phone this evening:
[attachment=1]
Cor, isn't a bluetooth phone useful!!!
My toms were wiped out on the lottie two years ago, so last year I decided to do them in black buckits in the back garden under the summer house canopy and escaped the blight, this year I'm hoping for more of the same. ;D ;D ;D
that looks really good asbean :).
cornykev its nice to beat the blight isn't it ;D
That's a mighty lot of tomato for outdors, Mom? Never seen them that tall.
But have read trials of covering with success.
No gales, we trust??
Quote from: tim on May 23, 2009, 07:09:47
That's a mighty lot of tomato for outdors, Mom? Never seen them that tall.
But have read trials of covering with success.
No gales, we trust??
Oh my goodness Tim the ones in the picture i posted aren't mine :o :), those are the ones that belong to the Italian gentleman i read about in the old kitchen garden magazine :D.
but concerning gale force winds my lowly structure stood up well to some of those last year and they were strong enough to break my neighbours 6 yr apple tree at the grafting point but i still waited for the current winds we had last week to die down before erecting my structure this year, as they say better safe than sorry ;D.
I like the look of your structures Asbean. More uses for my 50 metres of screwfix piping.
I lost every tomato plant last year. No even one tomato.
Was not going to bother with toms this year. But my seedoholic tendencies got the better of me.
How tall are your covers? Growing Sungold. They are very happy to grow two or three metres.
i grow my toms to six or seven feet so my structure roof is seven feet, when the plants get to withen a few inches of the top i nip out the growing tip.
heres mine last year
(http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk187/thifasmom/copy.jpg)
and this one is this year
(http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk187/thifasmom/IMG_3209.jpg)
I tried Legend and ferline last year and found them very good! (they are blight resistant verieties). I grow other kinds at home in pots which seem to escape blight until later in the season.
Louise
It is due to rain tomorrow to I will have to get building tomorrow morning. Looks like you have some very sturdy eight foot canes.
My site is extremely windy. Well protected from North, South and East, but West and North West very exposed. Bit of a wind tunnel. It will be a challenge to construct something which will not take off.
Tried to build a large cloche the cover stayed on all of 15 seconds.
Quote from: Digeroo on May 24, 2009, 11:28:14
It is due to rain tomorrow to I will have to get building tomorrow morning. Looks like you have some very sturdy eight foot canes.
My site is extremely windy. Well protected from North, South and East, but West and North West very exposed. Bit of a wind tunnel. It will be a challenge to construct something which will not take off.
Tried to build a large cloche the cover stayed on all of 15 seconds.
my structure is only held down with garden twine and on a very exposed site it would certainly fly :o :)
i wish you luck constructing yours