Daconil for tomato leaf diseases...Arguments?
ladon
12 years ago
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Comments (16)
digdirt2
12 years agoerin_nc
12 years agoRelated Discussions
Eating tomatoes - Daconil
Comments (7)Since your question was about eating tomatoes, do what Mulio said, but know also that Daconil can be sprayed up to the day of harvest, so if you're one who prefers vine ripened fruits, as I do since I have no crietters where I am that bother the tomatoes, then just wash the tomatoes gently and eat fresh or use for whatever purpose(s) you want to. Carolyn, where the person who gardens for me now that I can't was just out there spraying Daconil on the tomatoes for Late BLight and fungal foliage pathogens such as Early Blight and Septoria Leaf spot, and the few potatoes I have, as well as the cukes and squash for mildew, but severe T storms are predicted yet again for today and the next many days, so it's one step forward and then several steps backwards trying to help prevent LB here and folks to my N, E, W and S have confirmed LB. Sigh....See Moreleaf spot fungus on tomatoes
Comments (2)You can spray the plants with a fungicide. There are many available, including Chlorothalonil (synthetic in origin and found in Daconil, Ortho Disease Control, etc.), Copper (organic in origin and the one I see most often is the Bonide brand), Serenade (also organic, but not as widely available), neem oil and a whole host of newer organic fungicides that may include clove oil and other ingredients. None of these fungicides will kill the existing fungal infection on the leaves. What they do is coat the leaves which prevents fungal spores from attaching to the leaves. If you miss a spot on a leaf, the fungal spore can attach on the spot you missed. Regular spraying would need to be done on the schedule recommended on the label of whatever product you use, and it is recommended to alternate two different fungicides in order to prevent the fungal infection from building up a tolerance to whichever single fungicide you would use. Once the weather is as hot as it is now, spraying should be done in the evening hours as some of these sprays, when applied at temperatures of 90 degrees or higher, can damage the tomato foliage. If it is at all possible, I'd get someone to remove all those diseased leaves from the plants if you intend to try to keep those plants alive all summer. As long as the fungal infection is present on the leaves, it will shed spores that will travel to other leaves and you'll just have to watch helplessly as the fungus climbs right up to the top of your plant, leaf by leaf. Spraying a fungicide is more effective if the diseased leaves are removed first so that the source of the infection is not present at that point. Maybe you could pay a neighborhood child to remove the leaves (under your watchful supervision). On the other hand, if you are going to replace these plants with fresh fall tomato plants in early to mid-July, I wouldn't put too much time or effort into them because they won't be around too much longer anyway. Even with mulching all over my garden, including all the pathways, I tend to see these types of fungal infections too, especially if May and/or June is rainy. I don't see them nearly as much in hot, drought years that are low in moisture. Mulching helps, but it doesn't totally prevent these diseases because the fungal spores aren't just in the soil---they are in the air and can float right in from plants outside the garden, for example. I know it is frustrating to be one-armed this year, so just do the best you can and don't let it get to you. Your arm will heal and you'll be back to your usual routine before you know it. The worst thing you can do is overuse your arm before it has healed, so please take good care of yourself. My husband is the world's worst about using an injured arm or leg instead of letting it heal, and then he ends up in physical therapy because he made the injury worse. Don't be like him! It took about 3 months of physical therapy to fix the injury to his shoulder that he had made worse by pretending his shoulder was fine and using it before it healed....See MoreDaconil vs. Serenade
Comments (12)Dave, good comment. I recognize that my proposed comparison would not be a truly scientific experiment. A university etc. would plant two entire fields of the same variety, etc. At any rate, I ordered a bottle of Serenade and a sprayer from Amazon so will start the anecdotal experiment this weekend. Daconil is toxic to fish, and may make bees more vulnerable to parasites. That's what worries me. I live fairly distant from any estuaries, so I am more worried about bees than fish. I have a pollinator garden, lots of native flowering plants in raised beds, and I love my bumblebees and other native bees and don't want to hurt them. At the same time, I love home grown tomatoes, and was heart broken last year when I had to rip out every plant because they all died from blight. So far, this year hasn't provided a lot of bees, perhaps because it was so cold for so long. I didn't remove any dead vegetation until fairly late in the spring but maybe it was still too soon. I am assuming that hot, dry Arizona doesn't cause much blight. Fungi and mold are big issues here. We can't grow apples without spraying for fire blight, for example. My Hewes crab apple has never brought a crop to term....See MoreDaconil
Comments (6)Fungal disease usually live in the soil and it can live there for years until it is starved or burnt out by the sun so spraying plants with anything won't work. The best solution is to prevent the fungal diseases but diligent gardening. Understanding how they spread is half the battle. Rain or watering hits the soil and splashes up on to a leaf carrying the fungal spores with it and that leaf is infected and water splashing on that leaf can effect other leafs the same way until the whole plant is infected. Never, never water a plant instead water the soil. I build a moat around each plant and put the water in it. Mulch or put down plastic and cut an x in to to plant then fold the x back around the plant. Remove most of the bottom leaves and if a leaf becomes infected remove it. Put all debris in the garbage not the compost and do the same with infected plants and any fallen leaves so they can't reinfect the soil. When you pull the plants if it is still warm weather cover the area with black plastic. It may take years to get rid of fungal diseases but with diligence you should at least get tomatoes. If you still want to spray use baking soda and warm water but don't spray the soil or you will be a fungal enabler...See Moremiesenbacher
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