Late blight of tomatoes - plant treatment and prevention

Late blight of tomatoes is the most dangerous and common attack for tomatoes, killing half of the entire crop annually. In this article, you will learn how to protect yourself from late blight with folk remedies.

What is late blight and how to identify it

Phytophthora (Phytophthora infestans) is a fungal disease caused by mushroom-like protists. Despite the fact that the main victims of late blight are tomatoes and potatoes, this disease also does not spare many other crops, including garden and garden plants, house flowering plants and even trees.

Phytophthora is propagated by zoospores that exist everywhere: in the soil, on plants or garden tools; and are carried by the wind, through the water, as well as through the clothes or shoes of the summer residents and gardeners themselves. In addition, the spores of this fungus survive the cold winter without any problems and begin a new cycle of reproduction and infection of plants in the new season. Plant infection with phytophthora spores occurs in just a couple of days.

However, outbreaks of the disease do not occur every year, but only under the conditions most favorable for the reproduction of late blight - this is rainy and cool weather. And also with a number of mistakes made by the gardener, such as: too dense planting of plants, close proximity of a tomato with potatoes, excessive watering and an excess of feeding, lack of potassium, copper and iodine in the plant, liming of the soil.

In dry and hot weather, the reproduction of late blight slows down.

Signs of late blight on tomatoes

Late blight of tomatoes - the first signs appear on the leaf plates of tomatoes: they are covered with brown spots, and a white bloom appears on the inside of the leaf - fungal spores. Then the spots increase, the leaves turn yellow completely, wither and fall off. Further, the disease spreads to the main stems. Last of all, late blight affects the fruits: they begin to turn black and smell unpleasant.

Late blight of tomatoes treatment

The means that are more effective against late blight are chemical preparations, but unfortunately, they are not always harmless to our health. In addition to chemicals, there are also ecological preparations containing biologically active substances that stop the development of phytophthora. And, of course, there are a lot of folk remedies that can also effectively cure late blight of tomatoes.

Chemical preparations for late blight of tomatoes

Fungicides are plant protection chemicals used to combat fungal diseases.

HOM

For the preventive purpose of fighting tomato against late blight, a copper peroxide-based drug such as HOM is suitable for you. This drug is applied directly to the leaves and stems of the plant. It does not penetrate inside, therefore, for an already deeply infected plant, it will be practically useless. Prevention is carried out every two weeks. The last time is twenty days before the actual harvest.

ORDAN

For an already infected plant, such a complex preparation as ORDAN is suitable. This drug penetrates into the plant, killing the fungus, envelops the leaves with a protective surface, protecting them from re-penetration. Processing must be done in a protective suit! Tomatoes can be eaten after 5 days.

TATTU

Another fairly effective chemical agent against late blight is TATTU. It is also used on an already infected plant. The product kills the fungus in the infected leaves, stems and fruits of the plant, protects against re-penetration and improves shoot growth. It is also necessary to apply the drug in a special suit. Tomatoes can be eaten in ten days.

Bordeaux Blend

If we talk about the most proven and reliable remedy against late blight, then it will undoubtedly be the Bordeaux mixture. This drug has a very broad spectrum of action and effectively fights against many fungal plant diseases. You need to dilute it according to the recipe indicated on the package.

If the chemical method of treatment is not suitable for you and you are looking for a less aggressive agent against late blight, you should pay attention to the antifungal drugs that can be purchased at the pharmacy.

Furacilin

The most effective and widely available drug is furacilin. Used in a proportion of ten tablets per bucket of warm water. The first treatment of the plant with furacilin solution must be done during the appearance of the first flowers. The next time you set the fruit. And the very last third time during fruiting.

Boric acid

Boric acid also deserves the attention of gardeners. Add one teaspoon of this product to ten liters of hot water. Stir and then leave the solution to cool to 35 degrees. When processing bushes, pay attention to the bottom of the leaves. A boric acid solution will serve you not only as an effective remedy against fungi, but also as a plant nutrition.

Hydrogen peroxide, sodium chloride, and potassium permanganate will help you process tomatoes.

Biologicals

Many gardeners and gardeners abandon chemical remedies for the sake of an environmentally friendly harvest. In this case, you will need safe biological products that have almost the same effectiveness in the prevention and control of fungus in the event of an infection that has already occurred as chemical remedies.

Fitosporin

It is a natural bio-fungicide containing live spores and soil bacteria cells that fight against pathogenic spores and microbes. Two teaspoons of the drug are diluted in 10 liters of warm, but not hot, water and left for four hours. It is not recommended to use a metal or aluminum container for mixing the solution. It is necessary to process the drug no more than once every ten days. The first prophylaxis is done two weeks after the seedling.

Folk remedies for late blight of tomatoes

Garlic

Grind 0.5 kg of garlic and pour the resulting gruel with 3 liters of warm water and leave to infuse for 5 days. Then add half a glass of the resulting solution in ten liters of water. Add 50g of laundry soap. Spray the plants through a spray bottle.

Second recipe with garlic

Grind half a glass of garlic until gruel, pour one liter of hot water, throw in 1.5 g of potassium permanganate. Pour the resulting liquid with 10 liters of warm water.

Iodine and milk

Stir 10 liters of water with a liter of milk and twenty-five drops of iodine, then treat the bushes with the resulting solution. The effect will be stronger if you alternate this method with a yeast feed.

Yeast

Stir 100 g of live yeast with 0.5 l of warm, preferably skim milk, add a tablespoon of sugar, close the resulting solution with a lid and let it brew for 3-4 days.

Soda and salt solution

This prophylaxis method is well suited for greenhouse plants. Add 1kg of salt and 0.5kg of soda to a bucket of water and stir. The resulting solution, after spraying the plant, creates a protective film on the leaves and fruits that will not allow fungal spores to infect the plants.

Toothpaste

Dissolve a tube of toothpaste in a bucket of warm water and process the tomatoes with the resulting solution.

Prevention, tomatoes resistant to late blight

To reduce the risks of crop disease with late blight, you should adhere to a number of rules:

- do not plant tomatoes too close to potatoes or eggplant.
- try to plant tomatoes in the sunniest place in the garden, since shade and dampness are a favorable factor for the reproduction of phytophthora.
- give preference to early harvest varieties or hybrids. For example, such varieties as:White filling, blizzard, oak, oak grove, sunny, kostroma, budenovka, de barao, lyana, berry, lark F1, coupero F1, chimgan F1, zhenaros F1, etc.).
- to perform soil mulching and weeding.
- do regular spraying of plants with preventive protective agents.
- burn infected bushes to prevent further crop contamination.

Late blight of tomatoes photo