Hi Italophile, I've been getting ocasional leaves as in your first pic (well the plants have, not me!) and now two of them have patches on the stem as in your second pic. Late Blight, n'est-ce pas?
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Si, è Ruggine Tardiva purtroppo, Dove. I'll stick to Italian. The leaves get that ugly water-soaked appearance and the disease spreads to the stems very quickly. It will wipe out an entire plant inside a week. It's very easy to tell apart from the non-fatal diseases like Early Blight, Septoria Leaf Spot, etc.
It's called Late Blight because, traditionally, it turns up later in the season. It can and will turn up earlier if conditions are right - cool and damp - and particularly if there's been an infestation in the area.
Yes, I - or rather my tomatoes - suffered badly over the last couple of years in our last garden - small, enclosed and north-east facing. I had hoped that in this garden, airy and south-east facing, we might do better, but I'd reckoned without the shocking weather this season - and for the first time in ages I grew some potatoes - the last two plants of which keeled over within 24 hours about 12 days ago!
I'll do what I can to prevent this spreading - I know Marmande is more susceptible than some to blight - but they are a wonderful tomato. The Red Alert are showing no signs of anything untoward yet - do you know if they're known for being a little bit more resistant?
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Well, spuds are one of the major sources of the LB pathogen. It was the cause of the Irish potato famine, after all. The pathogen can also live on in diseased spuds, whereas, for whatever strange reason, it dies off with the host plant in tomatoes.
Toms are all equally susceptible to fungal problems of all kinds. There are claims being made of fungal-resistance in some hybrids these days but I don't believe it.
It's really only LB - of the fungal and bacterial problems - that requires yanking and destroying a tom plant. I fear that some growers in this forum could be yanking plants unnecessarily. Plants will cope pretty well with the likes of Early Blight, Septoria Leaf Spot, and the like. The leaves won't look very nice, but, with basic housekeeping practices, it will take a dang long time for the disease to affect the fruit and/or kill the plant. In fact, the plant usually dies a natural death from end-of-season cold weather before disease kills it.
Hm, the yellowing doesn't look like blight to me, although the blackening of the stems does.
I've moved my Marmandes with black patches on the stems to the other side of the garden and am crossing my fingers - they look really healthy otherwise - or they did this morning - I've not looked recently as we've been out to a picnic
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
I think the yellowing is from a magnesium deficiency, I was about to feed them just before I noticed the stem (that blackened part happened over the course of two days), I haven't needed to water them at all really so didn't get round to feeding.
I've just been to have a look at the 3 Marmandes with the black patches on the stem - they don't look any worse than they did this morning. As I said I've moved them over to the other side of the garden and the foliage looks really healthy at the moment and the fruits look good. I'm thinking that I might just reprieve them for a bit and not bag and bin them just yet - what do you think?
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Italophile will know for sure, but if they're well away from your other plants I don't think it would matter too much. I have my fingers crossed for you as well now
Posts
Leggi, is this what your problems have looked like?
Hi Italophile, I've been getting ocasional leaves as in your first pic (well the plants have, not me!) and now two of them have patches on the stem as in your second pic. Late Blight, n'est-ce pas?
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Si, è Ruggine Tardiva purtroppo, Dove. I'll stick to Italian.
The leaves get that ugly water-soaked appearance and the disease spreads to the stems very quickly. It will wipe out an entire plant inside a week. It's very easy to tell apart from the non-fatal diseases like Early Blight, Septoria Leaf Spot, etc.
It's called Late Blight because, traditionally, it turns up later in the season. It can and will turn up earlier if conditions are right - cool and damp - and particularly if there's been an infestation in the area.
Yes, I - or rather my tomatoes - suffered badly over the last couple of years in our last garden - small, enclosed and north-east facing. I had hoped that in this garden, airy and south-east facing, we might do better, but I'd reckoned without the shocking weather this season - and for the first time in ages I grew some potatoes - the last two plants of which keeled over within 24 hours about 12 days ago!
I'll do what I can to prevent this spreading - I know Marmande is more susceptible than some to blight - but they are a wonderful tomato. The Red Alert are showing no signs of anything untoward yet - do you know if they're known for being a little bit more resistant?
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Well, spuds are one of the major sources of the LB pathogen. It was the cause of the Irish potato famine, after all. The pathogen can also live on in diseased spuds, whereas, for whatever strange reason, it dies off with the host plant in tomatoes.
Toms are all equally susceptible to fungal problems of all kinds. There are claims being made of fungal-resistance in some hybrids these days but I don't believe it.
It's really only LB - of the fungal and bacterial problems - that requires yanking and destroying a tom plant. I fear that some growers in this forum could be yanking plants unnecessarily. Plants will cope pretty well with the likes of Early Blight, Septoria Leaf Spot, and the like. The leaves won't look very nice, but, with basic housekeeping practices, it will take a dang long time for the disease to affect the fruit and/or kill the plant. In fact, the plant usually dies a natural death from end-of-season cold weather before disease kills it.
Very much like the last two photos on the plant that is now in tommie heaven. I have a photo I'll see if I can upload it.
I hope that worked...
Hm, the yellowing doesn't look like blight to me, although the blackening of the stems does.
I've moved my Marmandes with black patches on the stems to the other side of the garden and am crossing my fingers - they look really healthy otherwise - or they did this morning - I've not looked recently as we've been out to a picnic
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
I think the yellowing is from a magnesium deficiency, I was about to feed them just before I noticed the stem (that blackened part happened over the course of two days), I haven't needed to water them at all really so didn't get round to feeding.
I've just been to have a look at the 3 Marmandes with the black patches on the stem - they don't look any worse than they did this morning. As I said I've moved them over to the other side of the garden and the foliage looks really healthy at the moment and the fruits look good. I'm thinking that I might just reprieve them for a bit and not bag and bin them just yet - what do you think?
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Italophile will know for sure, but if they're well away from your other plants I don't think it would matter too much. I have my fingers crossed for you as well now