Leggi, the problem isn't your patch. Unless you have spuds infected with LB lying around the place! The spores travel on the breeze, they can come from anywhere, and revel in mild to warm, damp conditions. In a hot, dry summer you rarely see LB. In fact, you don't see many fungal problems in hot, dry conditions. I don't see many here.
All you can do is plant, do your utmost in terms of plant housekeeping, and cross your fingers. You can also spray preventively against many of the fungal problems, but the traditional fungicides - the copper based ones - are much less effective against LB.
Yep, I know - I'm off work with a slipped disc so getting down anywhere near enough to use macro isn't possible - but I agree - it looks like blight, it must be blight, but it's the slowest blight I've ever come across. I'm going to just keep snipping the leaves/leaflets off (or getting my OH to do it for me) and keep my fingers crossed.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Trying to get a better pic - new strategy - fingers crossed
There you are one leaf from one plant, one from another - with the leaf I took off this morning that's all the suspect leaves for today from 3 marmandes. Neither of those leaves showed any signs of anything this morning.
I've been clipping off about this quantity of leaves/leaflets most days for more than a week now. What do you think?
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Leggi, the problem isn't your patch. Unless you have spuds infected with LB lying around the place! The spores travel on the breeze, they can come from anywhere, and revel in mild to warm, damp conditions. In a hot, dry summer you rarely see LB. In fact, you don't see many fungal problems in hot, dry conditions. I don't see many here.
All you can do is plant, do your utmost in terms of plant housekeeping, and cross your fingers. You can also spray preventively against many of the fungal problems, but the traditional fungicides - the copper based ones - are much less effective against LB.
Thanks, it's good to know all is not lost and I can try again next year.
I will grow a healthy tomato crop if it's the last thing I do!
See the similarity? The only difference is that yours hasn't developed quite as much as in the photo because it's off the plant. Gradually, a white fuzz develops on the patch before the whole thing turns black and gooey and ... pretty bleah, basically.
Yes, I think so too, but it is slower than any Late Blight I've ever seen - I've counted up and it was 12 days ago that I first noticed patches on leaves, and the plants still look really healthy - this is the worse affected plant.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
I'd rather be famous for something else - but we are just a stone's throw from the John Innes Centre at Colney
I think I'll continue as I am at the moment removing every spoiled leaf as soon as it's spotted - they're as far away from the others as I can physically get them - but if it gets even slightly more rampant they'll be bagged and binned quick as a wink - but that way I may get a tomato or three off them yet - and given the size of Marmandes that's not to be sneezed at!
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
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Leggi, the problem isn't your patch. Unless you have spuds infected with LB lying around the place! The spores travel on the breeze, they can come from anywhere, and revel in mild to warm, damp conditions. In a hot, dry summer you rarely see LB. In fact, you don't see many fungal problems in hot, dry conditions. I don't see many here.
All you can do is plant, do your utmost in terms of plant housekeeping, and cross your fingers. You can also spray preventively against many of the fungal problems, but the traditional fungicides - the copper based ones - are much less effective against LB.
Dove, even madly out of focus, that leaf looks very very suspicious.
Yep, I know - I'm off work with a slipped disc so getting down anywhere near enough to use macro isn't possible - but I agree - it looks like blight, it must be blight, but it's the slowest blight I've ever come across. I'm going to just keep snipping the leaves/leaflets off (or getting my OH to do it for me) and keep my fingers crossed.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Trying to get a better pic - new strategy - fingers crossed
There you are one leaf from one plant, one from another - with the leaf I took off this morning that's all the suspect leaves for today from 3 marmandes. Neither of those leaves showed any signs of anything this morning.
I've been clipping off about this quantity of leaves/leaflets most days for more than a week now. What do you think?
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Thanks, it's good to know all is not lost and I can try again next year.
I will grow a healthy tomato crop if it's the last thing I do!
Good stuff, Leggi. Indomitable is the way to go!
Dove, that's Late Blight. Like this is:
See the similarity? The only difference is that yours hasn't developed quite as much as in the photo because it's off the plant. Gradually, a white fuzz develops on the patch before the whole thing turns black and gooey and ... pretty bleah, basically.
I'd call it quits.
Yes, I think so too, but it is slower than any Late Blight I've ever seen - I've counted up and it was 12 days ago that I first noticed patches on leaves, and the plants still look really healthy - this is the worse affected plant.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Maybe you've developed your own strain of LB. Dove Late Blight. DLB. You could be famous.
I think you're minimising things to an extent by removing foliage the second the symptom appears.
I'd rather be famous for something else - but we are just a stone's throw from the John Innes Centre at Colney
I think I'll continue as I am at the moment removing every spoiled leaf as soon as it's spotted
- they're as far away from the others as I can physically get them - but if it gets even slightly more rampant they'll be bagged and binned quick as a wink - but that way I may get a tomato or three off them yet - and given the size of Marmandes that's not to be sneezed at!
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.