tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7960667416014167649.post6433023310266549160..comments2023-10-24T00:47:09.102-07:00Comments on The Holdfast Seeker: Late blight hits my organic tomato patch!katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07177977094835269643noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7960667416014167649.post-33119918660808427312009-09-19T05:08:47.479-07:002009-09-19T05:08:47.479-07:00Squirrel: Sorry about your deer! That's one th...Squirrel: Sorry about your deer! That's one thing I don't have to worry about. we live in a tight neighborhood in a town of mostly open space, farms and State parks. We do have a skunk that eats the squash blossoms though! He keeps the grubs down so I don't mind :) <br /><br />Abigail: I did some research and you're right: bag up the plants and throw them away. So sad. I will do that once my crazy husband returns from his overnight road race to watch Lizzie or I'll have a baby covered in late blight! <br /><br />Lisa: I've come across a few organic approved treatments. Once involves copper hydroxide. Looks scary. We use copper at work to kill invertebrate ectoparasites on fish and it's nasty stuff but the fish seem OK after. who knows. Best advice is to stay on top of the blight and remove dead leaves and stems to stop the spread. <br /><br />SQ: It seems to be a big problem out east, and in the mid west a bit too. I bet your dry weather helps. we had SO much rain this year I'm sure some fungus would have prevailed if not late blight. I'll post a garden tally and a recipe for the farmers market challenge next weekend, all was not lost! <br /><br />thanks for reading everyone! lots of lessons learned from my first year with a garden bigger than a square foot. -katekatehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07177977094835269643noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7960667416014167649.post-19577937555463256712009-09-18T23:08:36.045-07:002009-09-18T23:08:36.045-07:00Kate, that is just awful. I have been hearing abou...Kate, that is just awful. I have been hearing about the blight elsewhere but so far none of the farmers here have mentioned it. Maybe our dry summer climate has spared us this year.<br /><br />I hope you can come up with some solutions.<br /><br />JudySquirrelQueenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00634513897599275287noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7960667416014167649.post-48197580995742812942009-09-18T06:59:22.512-07:002009-09-18T06:59:22.512-07:00Awwww - sorry to hear you returned to this. Those...Awwww - sorry to hear you returned to this. Those poor plants look just awful in the picture. I had no idea blight was carried so easily. We've never experienced blight (that I know of) around here. Even if you are organic isn't there a natural/organic treatment for blight?Lisahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01177123397341454032noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7960667416014167649.post-6783285414986087022009-09-17T19:49:45.717-07:002009-09-17T19:49:45.717-07:00The blight got us too, and I was so sad. I still n...The blight got us too, and I was so sad. I still need to bag up my plants, though. (I heard you're supposed to put them in plastic and avoid composting or else it'll spread. Do you know?) But I don't think shoes had anything to do with mine -- it's a raised garden. I'm not sure you should be too hard on yourself about the flip-flops.<br /><br />For the record, even a good New England tomato can't compare with Midwestern corn!AMVhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07736223964392618913noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7960667416014167649.post-6285920062172916142009-09-17T10:16:20.727-07:002009-09-17T10:16:20.727-07:00Too bad about the blight. Maybe you will have bett...Too bad about the blight. Maybe you will have better luck next year. The deer ate all of mine before I got a chance. Such is life.squirrelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12297406366801045392noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7960667416014167649.post-38098569866421202502009-09-16T17:14:44.219-07:002009-09-16T17:14:44.219-07:00Rae: If I get better tomatoes next year I will sen...Rae: If I get better tomatoes next year I will send you some! If you send me some REAL mid-west corn, nothing is quite like it out east. :)<br /><br />Beej: I hear Green Meadows is literally one of the only organic farms that was spared. They're building tomato greenhouses like crazy since they say blight and wet springs are going to be ubiquitous from now on. sucks. <br /><br />DJan: organic tomatoes aren't usually that hard to come by here in northern MA since we have so many independent farms. But this year it's a bit different. everyone seems to have been wiped out! <br /><br />Lulu: sorry you seem to have been the demise of someone's tomatoes. can you blame a cat or a garden troll or something? ;) you do have gnomes in the UK right? <br /><br />Small: blight is a fungus, and it can be wind borne or carried in by your shoes. Word is a large box store retailer with a garden center brought it in to Massachusetts (I still haven't found out who but I have my suspicions). Experts say it's here to stay, only thing us organic gardeners can do is try to literally nip it in the bud if we see it. The only up side is I might be able to squeeze in a fall planting of some kind. <br /><br />Thanks for reading everyone! I'm still playing catch-up with everyone's blogs...making progress though. -katekatehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07177977094835269643noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7960667416014167649.post-25771874172086006922009-09-16T16:45:55.009-07:002009-09-16T16:45:55.009-07:00What causes blight? Is it from the moisture? I d...What causes blight? Is it from the moisture? I don't know a thing about it but ... I'm awfully sorry that it got your garden. I hate losing plants!<br /><br />Small Footprints<br />http://reducefootprints.blogspot.comAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18323775808390175925noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7960667416014167649.post-57233841584295733852009-09-16T14:39:04.634-07:002009-09-16T14:39:04.634-07:00It's horrid isn't it? I've been taking...It's horrid isn't it? I've been taking care of my neighbour's allotment while she was away and somehow felt responsible for the death toll of tomatoes.Lulu LaBonnehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05546286547273386382noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7960667416014167649.post-8227580883661954152009-09-16T14:07:20.271-07:002009-09-16T14:07:20.271-07:00Well, not being a gardener means I haven't had...Well, not being a gardener means I haven't had to deal with this directly, but organic tomatoes must be hard to come by in some parts of the country. I'm sorry this happened to you. But like Rae says, we all hope next year is much better.DJanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07152183871573797791noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7960667416014167649.post-17408544868504720672009-09-16T13:38:47.417-07:002009-09-16T13:38:47.417-07:00Blight got 2 of the greenhouses at our CSA in the ...Blight got 2 of the greenhouses at our CSA in the past two weeks also. We got to enjoy a few weeks of tomatoes, though, so it's not a total loss.Beejhttp://www.juddmansee.com/blognoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7960667416014167649.post-36965109553557888402009-09-16T13:21:36.576-07:002009-09-16T13:21:36.576-07:00It has been a difficult summer for a lot of backya...It has been a difficult summer for a lot of backyard gardeners. The abundance of rain promoted a fungus growth here and the cool temps gave us a late start. I did not have one fresh garden tomato this year. I hope next year it is much better.Raehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04858158707328118375noreply@blogger.com