And it begins....
The Struggle.
I don't know if I posted about my plight last year with this awful early blight on my tomatoes or not, but it's beginning already this year. *Sigh*
I lost over 6 plants and I'd venture to guess almost 2/3 of my total harvest because I just couldn't keep up with it. Honestly I didn't try very hard either... I wasn't sure if it was truly blight or not so I kept hoping that it would just "come out of it" on it's own. All my hoping did NOTHING. LOL
So this year, I have already found it attacking my poor tomato plants. Mind you, I have my tomatoes in bottom watering planters this year, because I was hoping that not having water laying on the leaves would keep the blight at bay. Nope.
So I started researching what exactly early blight is, and how to treat it so that I don't lose my harvest this year.
Tomato blight, in its different forms, is a disease that attacks a plant’s foliage, stems, and even fruit.
Early blight (one form of tomato blight) is caused by a fungus,Alternaria solani, which over-winters in the soil and infected plants. Affected plants underproduce. Leaves may drop, leaving fruit open to sunscald.
Early blight’s Latin name is sometimes confused with a form of tomato rot, alternaria, a different tomato problem altogether. To muddle matters further, early blight is occasionally mistaken for Septoria leaf spot because the two diseases infect tomatoes at the same time.
Dark, concentric spots (brown to black), ¼ - ½” in diameter, form on lower leaves and stems. Early blight is marked by tell-tale rings.
Fruit can also be affected; spots often begin near stem of fruit
Lower leaves turn yellow and drop
Rotate crops. Early blight remains active for a year. Spores can be dormant in the soil for several years.
Plant disease-resistant hybrids to strengthen your plant’s chances of being blight-free.
Plant tomatoes in a raised bed to improve drainage and prevent diseases from spreading.
Give tomato plants extra space (more than 24 inches) to let air to move among leaves and keep them dry.
Water the soil – not the plants – to prevent splashing. Avoid overhead watering.
Mulch with black plastic or landscape fabric to prevent fungus from spreading up onto leaves.
Stake tomato plants for better circulation.
Remove and destroy affected plants at the end of the season.
I chose to use planters in order to change the watering method and avoid water laying on the leaves. They are staked/caged properly within these planters so that they can grow properly.
What I'm concluding here is that either my dirt or my water (damn city processed & treated stuff that I have to deal with) is highly susceptible to fungus. I kinda already knew that since I get random mushrooms and toadstools growing in the dumbest spots in my yard.
Since I don't use chemicals in ANY form in my garden- not even Miracle Grow, I chose to treat the early blight like I do the dusty mildew that attacks my squash and zucchini plants. Vinegar and water. Yep. Vinegar is an antifungal, so I just mix 4 tbsp. with a gallon of water (boiled, distilled or store bought- I REALLY think the water has something to do with this issue) and spray on the plants, making sure to get both the tops and the underside of the leaves thoroughly. This is AFTER trimming off all of the spotted, affected leaves on the plant.
Only one of my planters was infected horribly, so it's all trimmed back and treated, and most of the other planters looked fine so far, but I treated with the vinegar mixture as a prevention method. (You can't be too careful here.)
Do you have early blight already or any fungal issues effecting your garden??
I will keep you updated as to how this protocol works for me. In the meantime, make sure you comment and let me know what you do to deal with blight or other garden issues.
