{"id":14230,"date":"2019-06-05T07:41:32","date_gmt":"2019-06-05T11:41:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/greatbiggreenhouse.com\/?p=14230"},"modified":"2019-06-05T07:41:32","modified_gmt":"2019-06-05T11:41:32","slug":"vegetable-garden-diseases","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.meadowsfarms.com\/great-big-greenhouse-gardening-blog\/vegetable-garden-diseases\/","title":{"rendered":"BONNIE’S GARDEN – Vegetable Garden Diseases: What To Do, How To Prevent"},"content":{"rendered":"
I\u2019ve already had several questions about how to avoid problems in vegetable gardens, so thought it seemed timely to repost this blog on preventing and\/or treating problems.<\/p>\n
Our garden vegetables are prone to certain diseases.\u00a0 Our best defense is knowledge and good cultural practices.<\/p>\n
Despite our best efforts, sometimes we still have problems.\u00a0 So what can we do?\u00a0 If we are fairly certain it\u2019s a fungal disease then garden sulfur may help.\u00a0 A fungus is common early in the season, particularly when we\u2019ve had a cool, damp start.\u00a0 It\u2019s also common in later summer when the humidity has been off the scale.\u00a0 Since so many diseases start with brown and\/or yellow spots, however, try to go online and look-up tomato diseases to see if your particular problem looks more like blight, Septoria, Verticillium or Fusarium.<\/p>\n
One more thought\u2014even a fungicide can kill a honeybee or butterfly if sprayed directly on them.\u00a0 Spray just before dark for best results\u2014this gives pollinators a change to go home first.\u00a0 Even though copper sulfate is listed as an organic fungicide, there is evidence that it is more toxic to bees than is sulfur.<\/p>\n
For most diseases, the only thing we can do is to remove the infected plant as soon as possible and dispose of it.\u00a0 DO NOT compost it.\u00a0 Put it in a plastic bag, tie it up and toss it before it has a chance to spread.\u00a0 And don\u2019t plant another member of that same vegetable family there again for several years.<\/p>\n
Here is a brief description of some of the more common garden diseases\u2014for a better diagnosis, check online for a picture of your problem.<\/p>\n
Blight (Early or Late): <\/strong>Circular or irregularly shaped dark spots surrounded by yellow on older leaves first.\u00a0 Stressed plants are most at risk.\u00a0 Do not allow plants to wilt.\u00a0 Water thoroughly without over-watering.\u00a0 Do not fertilize until the first flowers appear.\u00a0 Use a lower nitrogen fertilizer (like Tomato-tone).\u00a0 Blight can be easily transmitted when foliage is wet so avoid handling plant.\u00a0 Pick off the affected foliage and treat the plant with a mild organic fungicide.<\/p>\n Fusarium Wilt: <\/strong>Yellowing and wilting of leaves tend to occur on one side of the plant.\u00a0 In early stages, top growth may wilt in sun and recover in the evening, regardless of whether or not soil is moist.\u00a0 Planting in a well-draining spot is essential.\u00a0 Remove and destroy the infected plant.<\/p>\n Verticillium: <\/strong>Yellowing and wilting of leaves will occur all over-usually starting at the bottom.\u00a0 Top growth may wilt in sun, early on, and recover in the evening.\u00a0 Plant in well-draining soil only and remove and destroy infected plants.<\/p>\n Septoria leaf spot: <\/strong>Small spots with darker brown margins appear.\u00a0 Heavily infected leaves will turn brown and fall off.\u00a0 Wet foliage and prolonged spells of wet cooler weather can affect.\u00a0 Do not use overhead watering.\u00a0 Remove and destroy infected plants.<\/p>\n Tobacco Mosaic: <\/strong>Yellowish green and dark green patches. New leaves may be \u201cferny\u201d and distorted in appearance.\u00a0 Infection of a garden plant can be caused by smoking near tomato family members.\u00a0 Do not smoke or handle tobacco products near tomato or related plants.\u00a0 Mosaic can also show up in cucumber family members.<\/p>\n Powdery Mildew: <\/strong>A\u00a0grayish white film appears on foliage.\u00a0 Our high humidity is the culprit.\u00a0 Avoid getting water on the plant foliage.\u00a0 When it first shows up, remove the worst of the affected foliage and apply an organic sulfur-based fungicide\u2014spray very early in the morning or just before dark to avoid sunburn.\u00a0 Keep weeds and debris out of the garden to avoid spores wintering over.<\/p>\n Blossom End Rot: <\/strong>Ever gone to pick that beautiful ripe tomato only to find the bottom is black?\u00a0 That\u2019s a disease called Blossom End Rot.\u00a0 Tomato family members are prone to it.\u00a0 It is caused by calcium deficiency.\u00a0 This is why I use Tomato-tone\u2014it has added calcium.\u00a0 Eggshells crushed and added to the soil will help\u2014in several years once they have composted down.<\/p>\n Next week, I\u2019ll talk about common vegetable garden insect pests.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I\u2019ve already had several questions about how to avoid problems in vegetable gardens, so thought it seemed timely to repost this blog on preventing and\/or treating problems. Our garden vegetables are prone to certain diseases.\u00a0 Our best defense is knowledge and good cultural practices. Diseases are opportunistic\u2014tending to attack stressed plants.\u00a0 Starting with healthy organic-rich … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":14231,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n