[marion]

Blight is on its way pulled a 2  leafs off my potatoes that had blight on it, otherwise potatoes looking healthy, the 2 leaves came offf separate plants, how long does it take from one spot on leaf to killing poatoe plant.


Marion

[gobs]

In warm, humid conditions it spreads rapidly. Can only be a matter of a couple of weeks to a rotten mess of foliage.

Taking some bottom leaves off and earthing up well can help to protect the tubers longer.

If and when it is starting to take hold you can kill off the foliage with vinegar spray.

[diggerjoe]

gobs could you explain about vinegar spray - I am paranoid this year about blight as I've told the family that we shall have loads of spuds and for once they've agree to eat them without them being made into chips  :shock: so want to be prepared.

[gobs]

gobs could you explain about vinegar spray - I am paranoid this year about blight as I've told the family that we shall have loads of spuds and for once they've agree to eat them without them being made into chips  :shock: so want to be prepared.

It is a way to kill the foliage I'm afraid, nothing in the way of against blight, which needs destroying once diseased.

[DD.]

gobs could you explain about vinegar spray - I am paranoid this year about blight as I've told the family that we shall have loads of spuds and for once they've agree to eat them without them being made into chips  :shock: so want to be prepared.

There's a suspected case at Leamington Spa, dj.

Keep an eye on this page...

Blight Outbreaks

[john.t]

Outbreaks of blight seems to be getting earlier each year.
Apparantly last year was the worst blight year on record.

The amateur grower has very little defence against this dreaded disease.
The best solutions are to remove all rogue potatoes ie. ones left in from a previous crop and all foliage from harvested plants.
This should be taken away from the site to your local council waste centre or bagged up and securely tied.
On no account leave tubers or potato haulms lying about the plot as these will help to spead the disease.
If blight accours on your crop cut off and dispose of the diseased foliage as soon as you see it.
The only spray available that will offer you some protection is Dithane 945.  Time to start a spray programme is now early/mid June through to end of August.
Use as directed on the package it will not cure or kill the blight but will offer some protection against it.
One other suggestion given to me my an NVS member is to cover your crops with fleece.
The other alternative for next year is to grow one of the SARPO varieties.
These are the only potatoes to offer true blight resistance.
Currently they are only available from either Thompson and Morgan or at one of Alan Romans potato days.
Opinions differ on their taste, I think they have a rather bland flavour wheras I prefer varityies like Sharpes express, Golden wonder, Edzell blue, Kestrel which all have a Stronger Potato flavour.
But if you loose your crop through blight then try either SARPO Mira or Axona ( not much to chose between these) and they will give you probably around 80/90% blight control  and you will harvest a crop.

John

[agapanthus]

Try spraying the haulms with a diluted mixture of teatree oil (bout 8 drops per litre) together with water and a little squirt of washin-up liquid (this helps the mixture to stay on the leaves. It did'nt cure my problem last year but it certainly helped no end!!!!

[DD.]

Currently they are only available from either Thompson and Morgan or at one of Alan Romans potato days.

John

Not quite so, my local nursery has been selling them for the last couple of years.

[diggerjoe]

I have bought Dithane in readyness but really want to use it as a last resort  - I shall try the tea tree oil suggestion Agapanthus thanks. I have loads of fleece would I need to get it on the plants now if I used it?

[DD.]

The Leamington Spa report has been confirmed as an outbreak.

It is on an 'outgrade pile' - which I think is last year's dumped spuds that weren't good enough - in a 1 sq metre patch.

So unfortunately it's in the CV postcode area.

[chat1]

Blight is on its way pulled a 2  leafs off my potatoes that had blight on it, otherwise potatoes looking healthy, the 2 leaves came offf separate plants, how long does it take from one spot on leaf to killing poatoe plant.


Marion

As a newbie, I have early maris baird spuds, growing in bags, they look well, lots of vigoruos groth and plenty of flowers, but have been worried about all this talk of blight, can anyone help me identify it.
Chat1

[DD.]

This should help...

http://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profiles0701/potato_blight.asp

[chat1]

This should help...

http://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profiles0701/potato_blight.asp

Many thanks, I have so far not seen these signs, so will keep my fingers crossed
chat1

[PinkTequila]

This is the only area where I am not completely organic, as soon as cases of blight are heard of in my area I spray the crop with bordeaux mixture every ten days. This means I get potatoes when everyone near me doesn't apart from the farmers which follow the same spraying cycle.

[gobs]

This is the only area where I am not completely organic, as soon as cases of blight are heard of in my area I spray the crop with bordeaux mixture every ten days. This means I get potatoes when everyone near me doesn't apart from the farmers which follow the same spraying cycle.

You could just buy them then, would be much cheaper and less hassle of course.