How to stop the spread of tomato blight?
When you have a vegetable garden, mildew is one of the most dreaded diseases in gardening but even more so when you practice permaculture! However, we reveal you all the techniques and the tricks which will help you to come to end from it!
Mildew, the scourge of all gardeners
To preserve a garden, it is imperative to fight against pests and diseases that are linked to each vegetable and fruit. Tomatoes are one of the favourite targets of mildew. This disease is typical of tomatoes. However, there are several forms of late blight. It is often called "tomato blight". This form of blight is "phytophthora infestans". Caused by a fungus, it develops in contact with a humid atmosphere and in hot weather.
Some French regions are more affected than others by this terrible plague. If you live in a region where the climate has a humidity level of more than 85% with a temperature of around 20°C, there is a good chance that you will not be able to escape this devastating disease. If you do not intervene quickly, the whole crop may suffer the consequences. However to be avoided in permaculture, the Bordeaux mixture is very often the answer to an important infestation of the disease.
How to fight against the mildew in your vegetable garden?
The tomatoes of your garden are contaminated by the mildew? Don't panic, because even if there is no real miracle treatment to fight this disease, there are solutions to eradicate it! First of all, it is important to know that the weather is a good indicator to prevent the appearance of mildew. You can then proceed with a preventive treatment for your tomatoes. If you are new to gardening, you should know that mildew generally appears after episodic storms. Certain periods of the year are favourable. You can therefore anticipate the appearance of mildew and adopt barrier measures that will prevent the disease from appearing in your crop. On our site, we provide you with additional advice to have beautiful and healthy tomatoes.
Techniques to get rid of late blight that has reached your tomato crop
Late blight can be recognized by the brownish spots that develop on the front side and turn into a white powdery appearance on the back side of the leaf. At an advanced stage, the fruit will also be affected by the effects of late blight. They will also show brown spots. You will no longer be able to eat your tomatoes because they will no longer be edible.
Although radical when your plants are affected by mildew, in permaculture, the Bordeaux mixture remains a very heavy treatment which it is better to avoid as long as possible! Here some wise techniques which will contribute to eliminate the mildew of your tomatoes:
- Choose a variety of tomatoes that is naturally resistant to mildew such as the Fantasio variety or the Maestria variety;
- Use a solution of baking soda with liquid black soap added as a spray. This is a natural ingredient to stop the development of the fungus that causes mildew;
- Place a copper wire in the stem of your tomato plant. This is a technique that some gardeners use to prevent the disease from spreading;
- Plant Chinese chives or basil near your plants. These pretty aromatic plants are known for their active properties against mildew;
- Plant your plants in a greenhouse. This is certainly the most effective way to protect your plants from mildew. The less the leaves are wet, the less chance the mildew has to spread!
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