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Old October 29, 2007   #1
tessa
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Default help! what is this????

this just showed up today on one of my dwarf project plants.

any ideas?????





help????
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Old October 29, 2007   #2
bcday
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If that showed up in my garden, I would suspect late blight (Phytophthora infestans), but I don't know how much of a problem late blight is in your area.

Here's a link to a factsheet about late blight from the Western Australia Department of Agriculture. Maybe they have someone in your area who can confirm if your plant has late blight. http://www.agric.wa.gov.au/content/p...401_review.pdf

Late blight spreads very fast and there isn't much hope of controlling it unless you start right away and keep at it. But I've had it show up here and while one or two plants might be goners, for the rest of the plants it can be managed if you catch it soon and treat it aggressively.

Here's what I did for late blight, maybe others have managed it in other ways:
If the plant is in a pot, isolate it as much as possible from your other tomatoes. Remove any leaf or stem that has even a tiny dark spot, because even a small spot is large enough to spread spores everywhere. Check the underside of the leaf even if the top side looks OK, because any leaf that has dark collapsed veins on the underside is infected even if no dark areas show on top yet. Try not to touch healthy leaves while removing diseased ones to keep from spreading the spores yourself. Seal diseased plant parts in a plastic bag and dispose of it in the trash as far away from your plants as possible. Then if Daconil or something comparable is available, spray all of your plants thoroughly, upper and lower leaf surfaces and stems, every five days until you don't see any more disease spots. I had to do daily inspections but eventually I found no more new spots and only lost a couple of plants.
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Old October 29, 2007   #3
tessa
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oh thankyou, bcday! of course...i'm going away for a few weeks right at this critical time!!!
i will do as you say and see if there is any saving this plant...as well as all the others that have been living with it in the greenhouse.
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Old October 29, 2007   #4
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What a bummer Tessa! Did you see the comment at the bottom of bc's link? Good luck!

PP

Samples of leaves and tubers can be sent for testing to AGWEST Plant laboratories and clearly marked as “suspect Late blight” and the appropriate HortGuard box ticked.



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Old October 29, 2007   #5
bcday
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I also found a web page by the Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia at http://www.agric.wa.gov.au/pls/porta...aDIS_INDEX.HTM

It offers free advice and specimen identification via toll-free phone: 1 800 084 881 or email: info@agric.wa.gov.au

Since you have such good pics, maybe you could email them instead of having to snail-mail samples.
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Old October 30, 2007   #6
tessa
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oh patrina...it's one of my stumpy dwarves!!!!!
so far...it is only this one plant affected.
the leaves are crispy brown today, but the plant has not wilted. there appears to be no disease on the stem.
so far.

i'm planting out my tommies today, and when i'm finished handling everyone...i'll nip the affected leaves off of this one and see what happens.

i'll also try emailing AGWEST and see if they can identify the problem for me.

thanks for your help, pp and bcd.






Last edited by tessa; October 30, 2007 at 12:33 AM. Reason: forgot to add the pics!!!
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Old October 30, 2007   #7
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I feel your pain Tessa - poor little Stumpy dwarf
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Old October 30, 2007   #8
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it's a poor little stumpy stump now, patrina.
fitting, kinda.
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Old October 30, 2007   #9
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Daconil (chlorothalonil) is a preventative, not a cure. If Stumpy has late blight, you need to spray the other plants now, before they show symptoms, especially if you are going to be away for a few weeks.

If they are still small plants, you could ensure full coverage by mixing the Daconil in a bucket instead of a sprayer and dunking the plants upside down in the mix before you plant them out. That way you won't miss any parts where the fungus might take hold. I do that every year now and it really makes a difference. Late blight is a really nasty beast to deal with.
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Old October 30, 2007   #10
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dang.
they're all out planted now.

i'm not sure we've got daconil down here...i'll have to google around...and get those babies sprayed before i leave.
i'll bet that's not an organic fix...or is it?
really trying to be organic here.
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Old October 30, 2007   #11
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Daconil is not as toxic as many "organic" fixes, which contain copper. Copper is toxic to beneficial organisms in the soil and it does not break down over time. Once you apply copper, you've got it forever, and it accumulates every time you reapply. Daconil breaks down comparatively quickly and does not accumulate in the soil.

I'm not anti-organic, just anti-copper, LOL. If there's an organic fix that is effective and does not contain copper or any other long-lasting toxic ingredient, I say go for it.
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Old October 30, 2007   #12
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thanks so much for all your help.
i'll be picking something up tomorrow and making sure everyone gets a spray.
when i know what i've got...i'll show you! doesn't seem there's daconil available to the public here. i'll go google that other name you left.

cheers
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Old October 30, 2007   #13
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Out of curiosity, what have the temperatures been in your area? This looks alot like the cold damage I got on my seedlings this last spring when I put them out too early and the temperature fell into the lower 40's (Farenheit) with some stiff wind gusts. It never reached freezing temperatures but the seedlings were still fragile and took alot of vascular damage from the cold. The portions of their leaves that were damaged would be soft and look like they were waterlogged inside the leaf (see the 2nd picture in your original post). When I touched the damaged portion the leaf surface would just slough off leaving a green stain on my fingers. At the time I didn't know what was going on and doused my plants with daconil and then copper when plants continued being damaged.

When I brought the seedlings back inside they recovered but the damaged leaf sections dried out then turned brown, just like in your second set of photos. I don't know if thats what is going on and the fact that it is only your Stumpy seedling makes it seem less likely. But it is a possibility if your seedlings have been exposed to any cold.

Good luck, whatever the final diagnosis!
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Old October 30, 2007   #14
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i had never even thought of that, jc, but yes...we had a terrible cold snap. so cold, in fact, that we had to light the fire in the house. the overnight temps went to the low 40s.

i would be so pleased if it turned out to be a touch of frostbite (tho there was never any frost here).
the plant in question was located at the back...on the left edge in this picture:



the 'door' to the greenhouse had been removed as the temps were into the 80's the two days before the cold snap and everything was falling over from the heat.
the pic was taken from the door...and the wind would have blown to the back wall where this plant was, sitting in the red pot in the back row on the left...taking the brunt of it.

makes sense.
gosh...i really hope that's what's happened.
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Old October 31, 2007   #15
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The only way to get Daconil (chlorothalonil) down here is to buy a 5 litre of Cheers or similar from an agricultural place. I wish you were closer as I have 5 litres and will never use it all. I would be putting that plant in the bin quick smart
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