[Rampant_Weasel]

just came across this in the new catalogue

http://www.thompson-morgan.com/sundries1/product/zww2411/1.html

is there  a cheaper alternative and does it work?
looks good to me cos i really suffer with scabby potatoes limiting my seed choice.


Edit: changed fulphur to sulphur in title

[Iain@JBA]

It would help as long as it gets dissolved by rain at the right time.
We use sulphur in all of our fertilizers and it does help but only if you have moisture otherwise it just sits there and does nothing.

[waddecar]

is there  a cheaper alternative

check out sulphur chips:

http://www.gardendirect.co.uk/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=5_228&products_id=747

I haven't done the maths but chips seem to go a lot further

[Rampant_Weasel]

thanks for the info,
what is the right time iain? when the haulms first appear or later?

[Iain@JBA]

We always like rain a month after we plant so that the stuff has a chance to dissolve and rain about every other week which is common here seems to help combat the problem.
I wonder if this stuff could be dissolved in a watering can and applied that way every other week?
It will be different for us as we only ridge up once where as you will ridge up 2/3 times so you might need to apply more to the new ridged up soil?

[DD.]

I don't know the math, either, apart from here:

http://www.progreen.co.uk/index.php?c=61&p=132

it costs £11.16, compared to £14.44 from T & M, when you include VAT & postage.

It's ironic really that cleaning up our atmosphere appears to have had a detrimental effect on spuds!

[JayG]

It's ironic really that cleaning up our atmosphere appears to have had a detrimental effect on spuds!

Not just spuds; apparently fungal diseases like black spot on roses was far less of a problem in the days when you could actually taste the pollution in the air!

I remember walking to school as a kid in London in smog so thick you had to feel your way along the walls to avoid getting lost, and sometimes it lasted for days! Yuk!

[Salmo]

The prices quoted by DD quite rightly include postage which is always the killer for heavy products bought on line.

You will probably find Sulphur Rapide and sulphur chips in a garden centre. Sulphur rapide is prilled which makes it easy to apply. It is used widely by golf greens to lower pH and deter worms.  Sulphur chips are probably as easy to apply.

Vitax sulphur powder is common in garden centres and is about £2.50 for 225g. I cannot see why powder should not do the job just as well if you can apply it. It is sold for dusting plants against powdery mildew and dusting bulbs to stop them rotting.

Sulphur does not dissolve but if the powder is kept stirred it should remain suspended long enough to apply with a watering can. I imagine that if you just add it to a can of water it would not mix easily and stick in clumps round the sides. My approach would be to mix 100g with a small amount of water so it is like thin custard in a small container and then add it to a can of water. A few drops of washing up liquid may help. Then water this on to 7 metres of row.

[Rampant_Weasel]

salmo ur my hero

thx i shall be down to the garden centre on my next day off now i know what im looking for.