if the potatoes or the tomatoes had blight can you reuse the soil ?

selinasally · September 2021

I am sure I have read that you should not reuse the soil if the potatoes or tomatoes had blight . most of mine did not , but some did ... so not sure what to do with the soil

Fairygirl · September 2021

Hi @selinasally - did you grow in the ground or in containers?

didyw · September 2021

Did you have blight on both your potatoes and tomatoes? Were the toms. and potatoes in pots, a growbag or in the ground? If they were in the ground I would not plant anything there for a while - let the air and sunlight get to it. If in pots/bags I think I would get rid of the compost. Alternatively, if you have a spare bit of ground, spread it out on top and let the air and sunlight get to that too. But get rid of every bit of organic matter - the leaves, roots and stems and take them to the tip! The blight spores will be on those.

selinasally · September 2021

Thanks - the toms were in grow bags and the potatoes in potato bags ….I was hoping to use the soil for my tulips

daylilier · September 2021

I prefer to grow my potatoes in grow bags. At the end of the season, I just empty the bags somewhere in my woods. I then wash the bags with a 10% bleach and water solution.
Lisa
USA
zone 5

Fairygirl · September 2021

You might be ok using it for the bulbs, because all their food is already in the bulb, but as @didyw says, the spores do remain in soil, which is why it's always risky using it again for food crops.

StephenSouthwest · October 2021

What's the range of crops the blight could effect? (I'm thinking of using blighted compost for salad crops this winter)

Fairygirl · October 2021

I personally wouldn't use it for any food crop. Others may have a different view.

Never had blight on anything though, so it's hard for me to advise.

Dovefromabove · October 2021

I grow tomatoes and potatoes in the ground. I lost all my tomatoes to blight this year … I will still be growing my veg in that bed … I can’t change the soil in my veg garden and there’s no need. Blight only affects plants in the solanum family (potatoes, tomatoes, peppers, aubergines etc).

I probably won’t grow tomatoes or potatoes in that area next year and following that will use blight resistant varieties for a couple of years, but I will continue to grow other veg in the soil. They will not be affected.

If I grew tomatoes and potatoes in containers and they got blighted I would get rid of all the compost out of the garden in order to help rid the garden of blight spores and then happily grow them in new compost the following year. However if I wasn’t going to grow any plants in the solanum family for the next few years I would happily reuse the compost for salad veg etc. but it’ll need some nutrition added.

Hope that makes sense.

😊

Fairygirl · October 2021

That's good to know @Dovefromabove. Although I'm aware of blight only affecting plants in the same family, it's something I have no experience of at all, as I've never had blight in all the years I've grown toms.

We can't grow our toms outdoor anyway here, so it's less likely to happen, and it's a long time since I've grown tatties.
Most of my salad crops are grown in containers too, so again, it's difficult to advise. I certainly didn't want to give incorrect advice

StephenSouthwest · October 2021

Thanks all, that's really helpful, much appreciated.

if the potatoes or the tomatoes had blight can you reuse the soil ?

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