How to tell botrytis from blight?

  • 10 Replies
  • 3483 Views
*

oldcow

  • Experienced Member
  • ***
  • Location: Surrey
  • 260
How to tell botrytis from blight?
« on: August 25, 2011, 08:57 »
There's something very wrong with my tomatoes, but looking at the pictures on the net I still cannot tell if it's blight or botrytis. I have dark blotches on leaves and stems, and a couple of tomatoes seem affected too. It's started on the lower part of one plant, and it's now spreading up and to the nearby plants. At the beginning, the leaves have several patches, usually central but sometimes at the border; then they get black and shrivel. I looked on the underside of some affected leaves, and on some of them there is some sort of powder/mould.
I'll try to take some pictures, but if you guys have any advice it would be great. Also, if it's likely to be blight, should I report it to somebody?
I'm gutted, this year I've just managed to make a couple of tomato salads, and the plants are laden with green tomatoes..

*

DD.

  • Global Moderator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Location: Loughborough. a/k/a Digger Dave. Prettiest Pumpkin prizewinner 2011
  • 30465
  • Pea God & Founder Member of The NFGG
Re: How to tell botrytis from blight?
« Reply #1 on: August 25, 2011, 09:02 »
A photo will help, but if you have a very close up look, you'll see that if it's botrytris, being a mold, that it's fuzzy & furry.
Did it really tell you to do THAT on the packet?

*

simonwatson

  • Senior Member
  • ****
  • Location: Newcastle Upon Tyne
  • 589
Re: How to tell botrytis from blight?
« Reply #2 on: August 25, 2011, 11:23 »
If the green tomatoes are unaffected, take them off and use them to make green tomato chutney, very nice.

*

oldcow

  • Experienced Member
  • ***
  • Location: Surrey
  • 260
Re: How to tell botrytis from blight?
« Reply #3 on: August 26, 2011, 00:38 »
I took another good look, and it's not fuzzy/furry, so it's blight. Goodbye lovely tomatoes... I'm off to look up green tomato chutney recipes.

*

Benandbill

  • Senior Member
  • ****
  • Location: Pontypridd, South Wales
  • 519
Re: How to tell botrytis from blight?
« Reply #4 on: August 26, 2011, 05:10 »
Is it safe to eat blighted tomatoes then?

I think we have the same problem, are you just going to chop off the brown bits and make your chutney?

I think I can see a slight orangey hue coming to some of our fruits so have been hanging in there for a while in the hope they'll eventually go red, but the brown bits seem to be getting to them quicker than they're changing from green to red..

We need to take action soon I guess.  I wonder if there are many more recipes with green tomatoes??  :(

*

JayG

  • Global Moderator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Location: South West Sheffield
  • 16723
Re: How to tell botrytis from blight?
« Reply #5 on: August 26, 2011, 09:01 »
Once the blight has reached the fruit itself they are well on the way to rotting, which is not something you will enjoy eating.

Get the toms off the plants now, sort them into hopefully unaffected, maybe unaffected, and definitely affected (chuck those in the landfill bin) and put in separate trays.

Opinions seem to differ as to how to ripen tomatoes indoors; I seem to break most of the rules by putting them in trays on the kitchen windowsill (not in single layers or in the dark) and they usually ripen very well.

Whatever technique you use, keep a close eye open for any which start going brown and remove them immediately!  :wacko:
Sow your seeds, plant your plants. What's the difference? A couple of weeks or more when answering possible queries!

One of the best things about being an orang-utan is the fact that you don't lose your good looks as you get older

*

Ian_A

  • Experienced Member
  • ***
  • Location: nr Chichester
  • 189
Re: How to tell botrytis from blight?
« Reply #6 on: August 27, 2011, 18:14 »
We had blight on the allotment - despite there being no reported outbreaks in the area on "blightwatch" and luckily we managed to salvage many kg of unaffected green fruit and just put them en masse on sunny windowsills till they riped, turning them every few days or so; though we lost some of the ones but it was not as devastating as originally thought.

But I do feel for the chap on the neighbouring plot who ignored the "warnings" several of us gave at the time about blight, esp after local work colleagues mentioned blight had hit them some time earlier. But no, the neighbour maintained that if it says nothing on blightwatch then nothing it will be....such a shame that all his once impressive and inspiring tomato plants with their multitude of stunning green fruit have all been decimated.


*

mumofstig

  • Global Moderator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Location: Kent
  • 58044
Re: How to tell botrytis from blight?
« Reply #7 on: August 27, 2011, 18:18 »
well I hope you or someone else on your site reported it, or there will still be no reported outbreaks in your area, leaving others with a false sense of security....it's the least you can do.

*

Ian_A

  • Experienced Member
  • ***
  • Location: nr Chichester
  • 189
Re: How to tell botrytis from blight?
« Reply #8 on: August 27, 2011, 18:23 »
of course we did!

Annoying that others locally failed to.  I casually spoke to over a dozen people on the allotment and only 3 of them knew about the website. Hardly inspires confidence. But then I can hardly blame them and I wonder precisely how many people who get blight know about the website and know what to do - or even attach much importance to it. After all, it is not perceived as life-threatening: merely an irritant for the average gardener ie) joe public.

*

mumofstig

  • Global Moderator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Location: Kent
  • 58044
Re: How to tell botrytis from blight?
« Reply #9 on: August 27, 2011, 18:27 »
Quote
of course we did!



well that's alright then  ;)

*

Salmo

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Location: Peterborough
  • 3787
Re: How to tell botrytis from blight?
« Reply #10 on: August 27, 2011, 18:53 »
Did the blight affect potatoes as well as tomatoes on your site?



xx
Botrytis

Started by BacktoBasics on Grow Your Own

8 Replies
3523 Views
Last post December 06, 2012, 13:09
by DD.
xx
Botrytis on plum trees?

Started by InofftheRed on Grow Your Own

1 Replies
1185 Views
Last post August 17, 2009, 18:06
by 8doubles
xx
Treatment for Raspberry beetle/botrytis

Started by Nobbie on Grow Your Own

2 Replies
1402 Views
Last post May 11, 2009, 17:02
by mumofstig
xx
Would Cucumber "carmen" be affected by Botrytis (Grey Mould) ?

Started by garddwr on Grow Your Own

1 Replies
1957 Views
Last post July 19, 2009, 19:09
by SG6
 

Page created in 0.402 seconds with 40 queries.

Powered by SMFPacks Social Login Mod
Powered by SMFPacks SEO Pro Mod |