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Probably everyone who grew tomatoes on their site has ever encountered a disease called late blight. You may not even know the name, but black and brown spots on leaves and fruits, appearing at the end of summer and leading to the death of tomato bushes, are familiar to many. If you are not a supporter of the use of chemical methods of processing plants, then you may have already come to terms with the fact that most of the tomato crop every year is lost from this scourge, and do not know how to protect your tomatoes.
Maybe you are trying to grow super early ripening varieties of tomatoes that have time to harvest before the outbreak of late blight, or you pick tomatoes still green in early August so that they do not have time to be struck by the ill-fated disease.
But in any case, nothing can stop you from trying folk remedies for phytophthora on tomatoes... Oddly enough, they sometimes turn out to be more effective than chemical fungicides. Perhaps the secret is that there are many recipes for folk remedies, and if you alternate them, then the insidious fungus simply does not have time to get used to the variety of means used. Well, and most importantly, they are absolutely harmless both for the fruits themselves and for the environment, which is a great advantage in the modern world.
Late blight - what is it
Late blight or late blight is a disease that is caused by the fungus Phytophthora infestans. The name of the mushroom itself speaks for itself, because in translation it means “destroying plant”. And most of all, plants of the nightshade family, primarily tomatoes, suffer from it.
You need to know the enemy by sight, so it is important to determine the main signs that appear on tomato bushes when infected with late blight. At first, on the leaves of tomatoes, you can see small brown spots on the back. Then the spots increase in size, the leaves begin to dry out and fall off. The shoots also gradually acquire a dark shade, and gray-dark areas form on the tomatoes themselves, which turn black over time.
This happens because it is by this time that the most suitable conditions for the development of the disease are formed.
The difference in daytime and nighttime temperatures leads to the formation of abundant dew on tomato bushes. The average air temperature does not exceed + 15 ° + 20 ° С, there is no heat. And if, in addition, the summer is rather rainy and cool, then the fungus can begin to rage much earlier.
And late blight also feels comfortable on limed soils and with thickened plantings, in which fresh air does not circulate well.
But in hot and dry weather, the development of late blight slows down greatly and at high temperatures the colonies of the fungus even die. Of course, when the first signs of late blight appear on tomatoes, the question is "how to deal with it?" arises one of the first. But it is necessary to think about the fight against this disease much earlier.
Indeed, in accordance with the laws of nature, the disease affects, first of all, weakened tomato plants with poor immunity. Therefore, tomatoes need good care and complete feeding that will resist the onslaught of fungal infection.
Agrotechnics against phytophthora
In accordance with the well-known dictum that preventing a disease is much easier than treating it, it is imperative to scrupulously observe all the basic agrotechnical techniques when growing tomatoes. This will serve as a good prevention of late blight on tomatoes.
- Since the fungus remains well in the soil for several years, it is imperative to observe the crop rotation: do not return the tomatoes to last year's place for 3-4 years and do not plant them after potatoes, peppers and eggplants.
- If you have gone too far with liming, then it is necessary to restore the acid balance of the soil by introducing peat. And when planting tomato seedlings, cover them on top with some sand.
- In order for the fight against late blight on tomatoes to be successful, try not to thicken the plantings - you need to follow the scheme that was developed for a particular variety of tomatoes.
- Since tomatoes do not like high air humidity in general, and because of late blight, in particular, try to prevent water from getting on the leaves when watering. Watering is best done early in the morning so that all the moisture has time to dry out by the night when the temperature drops. Better yet, use drip irrigation.
- If the weather is cloudy and rainy, you do not need to water the tomatoes at all, but the procedure for regularly loosening the row spacings becomes very important.
- To support the immunity of plants, do not forget about regular feeding of tomatoes with basic nutrients, you can also use spraying with immunomodulators, such as Epin-Extra, Zircon, Immunocytophyte and others.
- If cool and rainy summers are the norm in your area, then choose only fungal-resistant tomato hybrids and varieties for growing.
- To protect tomato bushes from fungus, it is recommended to cover tomato bushes in the evenings and in rainy weather with non-woven material or film in the second half of summer. In the morning, the plants are not affected by dew and infection does not occur.
Folk remedies for late blight
When choosing what to spray tomatoes from late blight, you must first try all the tools and then use what you like the most. Indeed, in different varieties of tomatoes, susceptibility to various substances may be different. In addition, it often depends on specific weather conditions. Phytophthora is a very insidious disease, and to cope with it, you need creativity and a willingness to experiment. Moreover, what worked well this year may not work next year.
Iodine, boron and dairy products
Possessing antimicrobial properties, iodine can serve as a good remedy for the treatment of late blight on tomatoes. There are many recipes for using iodine - choose any of the following:
- To 9 liters of water, add 1 liter of milk, preferably low-fat milk and 20 drops of iodine;
- To 8 liters of water, add two liters of whey, half a glass of sugar and 15 drops of iodine tincture;
- 10 liters of water is mixed with one liter of whey, 40 drops of iodine alcohol tincture and 1 tablespoon are added hydrogen peroxide.
The resulting solutions thoroughly process all the leaves and stems of tomatoes, especially from the bottom side.
You can also use solutions of fermented kefir and whey (1 liter per 10 liters of water) both in pure form and with the addition of a small amount of sugar for prophylactic spraying against late blight. Water the tomato bushes with such solutions regularly every week, starting from the moment the buds form.
To use it, you need 10 g boric acid dilute in 10 liters of hot water, cool to room temperature and spray the tomatoes. For the best effect, it is advisable to add 30 drops of iodine to the solution before processing.
Finally, a remedy that effectively fought against already visible manifestations phytophthora on tomatoes, the following recipe is considered:
Eight liters of water is heated to a temperature of + 100 ° C and combined with two liters of sifted wood ash. When the temperature of the solution drops to + 20 ° C, 10 g of boric acid and 10 ml of iodine are added to it. The mixture is infused for half a day. Then they are diluted with water in a ratio of 1:10 and all parts of the tomato plants are thoroughly sprayed. All affected plant parts must be removed prior to treatment.
Ash solution
When fighting late blight on tomatoes with folk remedies, the action of ash is considered especially effective. After all, it contains a very large number of various microelements, each of which can favorably interact with the tissues of tomatoes. To prepare a mixture for spraying, 5 liters of ash are dissolved in 10 liters of water, insisted for 3 days with occasional stirring. Then the solution is brought to a volume of 30 liters, any soap is added for better adhesion to the leaves, and used to spray tomatoes.
Yeast
At the first signs of phytophthora, or better in advance, when the first buds appear, dilute 100 grams of fresh yeast in a 10-liter container with water and water or spray the tomatoes with the resulting solution.
Garlic tincture
Phytophthora spores on tomatoes can die from garlic treatment. To prepare the infusion, 1.5 cups of crushed shoots and heads of garlic are mixed with water in a volume of 10 liters and infused for about a day. After the solution is filtered, and 2 g of potassium permanganate is added to it. It is necessary to spray tomato bushes regularly, every 12-15 days, starting from the moment the ovaries form. For each tomato bush, it is advisable to use about 0.5 liters of the resulting infusion.
Copper
The method of supplying tomatoes with microparticles of copper, which has the ability to treat phytophthora, scaring it away from plants, is quite interesting in application. Have to take copper thin wire, cut into small pieces, up to 4 cm long. Anneal each piece or peel it and pierce the tomato stem in the lower part with it. It is advisable to bend the ends down, but in no case wrap around the stem.
Tinder fungus
Spraying with tinder fungus infusion increases the immunity of tomatoes and, as a result, has a protective effect. The mushroom must be dried and finely chopped with a knife or using a meat grinder. Then take 100 grams of the mushroom, fill it with one liter of boiling water and let it brew for a while until it cools. Strain the solution through cheesecloth and pour over the tomato bushes, starting at the top.
The first processing can be carried out at the time of the formation of ovaries, and processed several more times if the first signs of phytophthora appear on the tomatoes.
Horsetail
Also, from natural remedies, horsetail decoction is good for raising immunity in tomatoes. To obtain it, 150 grams of fresh or 100 grams of dry horsetail is placed in one liter of water and boiled for 40 minutes over low heat. After cooling, the broth is diluted in 5 liters of water and thoroughly sprayed with tomato plants.
Saline solution
This treatment will help, after the solution has dried, create a thin protective film on the tomato leaves, which will keep fungal spores from entering through the stomata. In a 10-liter watering can with water, dilute 250 g of salt and treat all parts of the tomato with the resulting solution.
It can be carried out during the appearance of ovaries. If you carry it out when signs of late blight appear, then you must first remove all affected parts of tomato plants.
Straw and herbs
A good preventive measure against late blight on tomatoes is the preparation of herbal or hay infusion. For its production, you can use both fresh herbs and rotten straw. Pour about 1 kg of organic matter with 10-12 liters of water, add a handful of urea and let it brew for 4-5 days. After straining, the infusion is ready for processing. They can both water and spray tomatoes.
Other drugs
There are several more drugs that are actively used by the people to combat late blight on tomatoes.
- Dissolve 10 Trichopolum tablets in a 10-liter bucket of water and add 15 ml of brilliant green. The resulting solution can be used to treat tomato bushes both during flowering and when the first symptoms of late blight appear.
- In 10 liters of water, mix one teaspoon of copper sulfate, boric acid, magnesia. Add potassium permanganate on the tip of a knife and a little laundry soap (can be replaced with 3 tablespoons of liquid soap).
Let's summarize
When a question arises, what exactly is the best way to process tomatoes from late blight, the use of which folk remedies is most optimal, it is difficult to find an unequivocal answer to it. The best option is probably the alternation of the above means, and even the use of some of them in one complex solution, so that they enhance the action of each other.
Of course, it is very difficult to fight late blight on tomatoes, but with reasonable use in various combinations of many of the above folk remedies, it will be possible to defeat any disease and enjoy ripe, tasty and healthy fruits.
