Naturally I'm pleased but non plussed too after such a cool wet spring and early summer my outdoor tomatoes are very behind and not good plants and no blight !!
They have survived and the first fruit is ripening now in this recent blast of sun.....I should get few, you just never can tell.
you're very lucky, been to my lottie today,lost all my toms and a complete bed of potatoes , ah well , always next year
It does seem to strike very randomly I've had it three times out of the last six years I have grown tomatoes, so much so I don't invest so much effort in them now.
I positively neglected my plants this year feeling they were doomed, I'm sure they could have been better if I had nurtured them more.
We are so dependent on the whims of nature weather and disease...
I have Mira Axona potatoes - no blight, although my neighbours all have blight on their potatoes. And I have tomatoes - out in the open - no blight. And this is the first time ever in nine years! So maybe "the age of miracles" and all that. But OK. I am in Denmark, and although the first part of the summer was cold and wet, the weather changed for the better mid July. I'll never understand gardening - I just do it and hope!
Denmark ? now that is optimistic you must be made of stern stuff. ;D
Though I have had some blight on potatoes, except Axona and Mira still OK, my tomatoes outside are still OK. I sprayed them along with my potatoes several weeks ago. First time that I have tried them outside.
Uh-oh....me and my big mouth, got it now, not on every plant yet just two or three, but I expect the others will get it soon enough. :'(
Do you ever have it and it not affect every plant ?
Quote from: martin godliman on September 11, 2012, 14:29:58
Uh-oh....me and my big mouth, got it now, not on every plant yet just two or three, but I expect the others will get it soon enough. :'(
Do you ever have it and it not affect every plant ?
It can happen - some plants go down very fast with it and others seem to be able to cope. For example some plants get it on their stems (which is the end of the plant) whilst others only have a few leaves affected. If the weather changes to a dry spell, leaves can just dry and get crispy where blighty spots were - however this is a bonus and not common. At this time of year with mists, fogs and heavy morning dews starting, in addition to rain, we are unlikely to see recovery in lightly blighted leaves.
I don't worry over a couple of blighted leaves, but the first sight of any stem blight at all, I strip all tomatoes and take them indoors on trays to ripen on the window sill. Wait another day or two and tomatoes will still get blighted even indoors. When potato stems are affected, the whole foliage gets cut off and composted (some won't compost and will burn or give to the 'council green bin'), then the potatoes get dug up a couple of weeks later when hopefully the blight spores will have dispersed.
Time to get these green tomato fruits in pronto and hope things haven't gone too far.
I think I agree Galina about the stem thing those with a few brown crispy lower leaves are OK so far but as soon as the stem goes black it's curtains. Also I notice even when there is minimal visual evidence if you slightly shake the plant or truss and the green fruits just drop off easily it's bad sign.