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Blight Warning

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shelser
Posted 04/06/2008

There is a blight warning in effect from tonight and I am totally unprepared. I don't remember it being an issue so early in the year before. In spite of all the rain last year my potatoes didn't succumb to blight but this year I would like to have organic preventative sprays available. Does anybody have any idea where I might get organic sprays.

HeadGardener
Posted 18/06/2008

Hi Shelser,

Saw this a little late as it's been 2 weeks since you posted it. One organic treatment for blight is 'Copper Fungicide' available in garden centres for about €5 for 6 sachets which dependant on how many potatoes you have should give six treatments. They say to spray every 14 days but if new foliage is growing strong and was not sprayed you may need to do it sooner.

I however am not organic and have decide to use ditane to be safer, I just want success this year and did'nt want to risk going fully organic. I also planted 1st earlies as they are less suseptable to blight that 2nd earlies or maincrop. I also spray my tomatoes as they too are suseptable to blight.

Murphys Copper Fungacide can also treat fruit diseases, peach leaf curl, canker and prevent seedlings damping off so it's always useful to have anyway. Ditane cost €9 and would treat blight for my potatoes (about 40 plants) for this year and maybe next year too. When I visited Helegan Garden's in cornwall 5 years ago they said the only non organic thing they did was spray for blight as the had at that stage not found any organic treatment that worked.

Regards

Bill

shelser
Posted 02/07/2008

Thankyou for your advice. I'm living on the edge because I haven't been near a garden centre. I wonder does the wind reduce blight problems because I have never sprayed but haven't suffered yet.

Tomatoes are also prone to blight as you say, but if you water the ground and keep the leaves dry you shouldn't have an issue with blight. Obviously I am assuming you grow tomatoes in the greenhouse for this to be effective.

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