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Tomatoes or tomatoes are grown by all vegetable growers. This vegetable is appreciated for its taste and health benefits. They are grown in open ground and greenhouses. Unfortunately, the hopes of gardeners for a rich harvest of tomatoes are not always justified. This is due to plant diseases. One of the most insidious is tomato late blight. If you do not start fighting the disease in a timely manner, you can forget about the harvest. Not only beginners, but also experienced gardeners are interested in how to properly carry out tomato processing from late blight and by what means.
Gardeners about late blight
Before talking about the treatment of tomatoes from late blight, you must first find out what kind of disease it is, by what signs to distinguish it.
What is late blight
Phytophthora (late blight) Is a fungal disease, most often seen on nightshade crops such as potatoes and tomatoes. There are a huge number of varieties of the disease. Phytophthora fully corresponds to its Greek translation, destroys and destroys plants. It is not necessary that the soil of your garden can be infected with late blight: it can fly from a neighboring area.
Is developing disease swiftly, if it is not prevented, then it is capable of destroying the entire crop of tomatoes. It manifests itself in all parts of the plant. Brown spots appear on green leaves, stems, and subsequently on fruits, similar to burn.
Causes of occurrence
Why late blight develops on tomatoes and other nightshade crops:
- Summer residents deacidify the soil by adding lime to them. The phytophthora fungus loves to settle and multiply on calcareous soils.
- The reason for the development is the thickening of plantings. Air circulation in this case is difficult, moisture accumulates in large quantities. Phytophthora spores are lovers of high air humidity.
- Another reason is temperature drops. As a rule, the peak of phytophthora development occurs at the end of summer. Tomatoes growing outdoors are especially affected. The sun burns them during the day, and cold dew falls at night.
- Plants that have good immunity rarely get sick. But weakened plants rarely manage to avoid late blight.
Signs of the disease
Even a novice gardener is able to determine the presence of the disease, because the symptoms are pronounced. The main thing is to appreciate your work and inspect the planting of tomatoes from time to time.
How to diagnose phytophthora:
- Whitish or brownish spots appear on the leaves below. The leaves turn brown very quickly and begin to dry out.
- The stems are also covered with dark spots. Blackened shoots are not able to feed the plant, it becomes weak.
- If you do not declare a fight against phytophthora, the fungus will transfer to the fruits and continue to multiply.
Preventive measures
It is necessary to prevent the appearance of late blight at the stage of growing seedlings when processing soil, containers and seeds. Unfortunately, it is not always possible to completely eliminate the fungus.
The soil must be treated with Fitosporin-M.The best option is to completely replace the substrate. The remaining seedlings, even if there are no spots on it, are treated with the same Fitosporin or other means.
The second time, as a preventive measure, tomato seedlings are treated from late blight after planting in the ground. It is necessary to monitor the condition of the plants constantly.
Even if the plants do not get sick, preventive measures will not hurt.
How tomatoes are processed
Today the market is represented by a large number of drugs to combat late blight. The range of chemicals is expanding every year. Unfortunately, coping with adversity is not so easy. Phytophthora quickly becomes accustomed to treatment products if used constantly. At the slightest sign of illness, it is necessary to urgently start processing tomatoes from late blight.
Chemicals
Treatment of tomatoes from late blight is carried out with chemicals, since they are the most effective.
What means can you use:
- Previkur and Fundazol;
- Fitosporin and Quadris;
- Ridomylos and Switchm;
- Quickly and Topaz;
- Horus and Fundazim;
- Tiovit Jet and Hom;
- Bordeaux liquid and copper sulfate;
- Copper chloride, Trichopolum and other means.
As you can see, the list is quite long. Before choosing a remedy for late blight, you need to carefully read the instructions. In addition, the processing must be carried out with the use of protective equipment. We will not discuss chemicals. And let's talk about those that are safe for humans.
Trichopolum for processing
Many gardeners use drugs that can be purchased at the pharmacy. One of the pharmacy antimicrobial agents Trichopolus (Metronidazole). They began to use it not so long ago, but found its place in the arsenal of the fight against late blight. Why be surprised, since it helps a person, it means that it will help the plant, because it is also a living being.
What are the advantages of the drug:
- Trichopolis is inexpensive, but its effectiveness in processing tomatoes against late blight has been tested by experienced gardeners: the drug was highly appreciated.
- This is not a chemical preparation, therefore, destroying phytophthora spores, it does not remain in the fruit, it is safe for humans.
- Tomatoes can be processed before harvesting. Vegetables are washed with running water and can be eaten.
Now let's figure out how to use Trichopolum. A package of tablets (20 pieces) must be crushed and dissolved in 10 liters of water. Pour into a sprayer and process the tomatoes well, from all sides, without missing a single centimeter. This treatment of plants must be repeated after ten days.
Iodine is a faithful helper
No matter how good Trichopol is for treating tomatoes from late blight, but, as already noted, one remedy is not so effective due to the addiction of the fungus. What other medicines can I use?
Many vegetable growers do not forget about iodine when growing tomatoes. For beginners, this may seem strange, but iodine is an excellent antiseptic, tested by many summer residents. Any putrefactive processes stop after iodine treatment. In addition, it stimulates fruit setting if tomatoes are sprayed with this composition: 7 drops of solution are added to a ten-liter bucket.
There are many recipes using this substance for the treatment of tomatoes from late blight:
- For prophylaxis: dilute two liters of serum with water to 10 liters. Add 25 drops of iodine.
- At the first signs of fungus, you need to prepare the following composition: add 40 drops of iodine and a tablespoon of peroxide to one liter of serum. Such a strong antiseptic will cope with tomato disease.
- Spraying tomatoes with a solution containing milk and iodine, helps to cope not only with late blight, but also with many harmful insects and diseases. Phytophthora spores cannot get to the plant through the formed thin milky film.
Take a liter of skim milk, 4 liters of water and 15 drops of iodine. It is difficult to find natural milk in the city, you can use sterilized milk. Milk-iodine processing of tomatoes can be alternated with whey.
The older the composition, the better the fight against late blight.
Tips for processing tomatoes from late blight on video:
Green or brilliant green
Brilliant greens are used to treat wounds. She found her application among gardeners to combat late blight of tomatoes. After all, this is also an infection, only in plants.
Forty drops are enough for a ten-liter bucket of water. You can spray tomatoes from late blight several times per season. This safe remedy works effectively. It can be used not only during the period of fungus rampage, but also as a prophylaxis. You can also add whey, kefir, reverse to the solution.
Potassium permanganate
Through potassium permanganate the fight against late blight of tomatoes can be started at the stage of preparing seeds for sowing. Seeds, soil, tools, boxes are treated with a pink solution of potassium permanganate.
The greatest effect is obtained if boric acid is added.
To treat tomatoes from late blight, a pink solution of potassium permanganate is prepared. They are sprayed with plants from top to bottom.
Treat tomatoes against late blight with pharmaceutical preparations, you can calmly, without worrying about the quality of the fruits. Iodine solutions, brilliant green, potassium permanganate and boric acid for greater effect, you need to alternate. Processing tomatoes from late blight can be carried out in a week or ten days. In addition to destroying fungal spores, such processing increases the taste of tomatoes and their keeping quality.
Soil processing and greenhouses
Spraying only tomatoes from phytophthora, will not give the desired effect, since the spores of a fungal disease calmly overwinter in the open field, in a greenhouse. To be sure that late blight will not cause the death of the tomato crop, a global attack on the fungus is needed.
What should be done to get rid of late blight? First of all, before planting tomato seedlings, cultivate the soil in prepared beds in the garden or in a greenhouse. For this purpose, you can use copper sulfate, Fitosporin-M or Arilin. If there are no such funds, you can spill the soil with hot water with potassium permanganate and close the greenhouse.
Secondly, you will need to rinse the greenhouse surface with any detergent.
Some gardeners fumigate the greenhouse with pieces of natural wool: they put it on the coals and close the room for a day. You can use smoke bombs. They also kill fungal spores. They are afraid of phytophthora spores and the smell of iodine. Dots can be set at a distance of 50 cm throughout the greenhouse. You can spray with Baikal EM or Fitosporin preparations.
After work, wash the exposed parts of the body with warm water and soap.
Tomato processing rules
Tomatoes growing in a greenhouse and open field are subject to treatment from late blight with the selected means. The rules are almost the same:
- Processing is carried out early in the morning before sunset.
- Plants are sprayed from all sides.
- The solution must be diluted exactly according to the instructions.
But there is also a difference in air humidity: in a greenhouse it is much higher, and this is a favorable environment for phytophthora, therefore, processing in a greenhouse is carried out more often.
You need to choose calm weather so that the drops of the product do not scatter around the sides, but fall on the tomatoes.
Features of processing tomatoes from late blight in greenhouses:
Useful Tips
- Do not plant tomatoes where potatoes or other nightshades were grown last year. And it is not recommended to plant tomatoes next to potatoes.
- If there is a lot of lime in the soil, add peat, compost, sand.
- Sow green manures in the fall or early spring for future tomato plantings.
- Observe agrotechnical standards when planting and growing vegetables.
- Do not neglect the rules of crop rotation.
- Water the plants in the morning, then most of the water will have time to go into the soil, evaporation will be less.
- If the tomatoes are grown indoors, remember to ventilate the greenhouse.
- The lower leaves on tomatoes must be cut off so that there is no thickening, the air can circulate freely.
- If the weather is cloudy, keep watering to a minimum. In this case, carry out "dry" watering - loosening. The drip irrigation system has shown itself well in the fight against late blight of tomatoes.
- Spraying with preparations, as well as feeding, should be regular.
- Buy tomato seeds that practically do not suffer from late blight.
- Do not strive to immediately use chemical preparations for processing vegetables, first try folk remedies.
Let's summarize
It is simple and difficult for beginners to grow a good harvest of tomatoes at the same time. You need to know a lot of secrets in caring for your culture. Do not hesitate to ask for advice from people with rich experience. At one time, they also faced diseases of tomatoes, including late blight.
If you follow our recommendations and carefully monitor the plantings, we can assure you that you will get healthy and tasty tomatoes. You should not despair if you have not completely managed to defeat phytophthora. You can try other methods next year. The main thing is to influence the disease from the first minutes of its onset. Perhaps you yourself will be able to invent your own methods of dealing with late blight spores. Don't forget to report them.
