What is Daconil?

[amideutch]

From the posts I have read it seems that "Daconil" is the preferred fungicide for T'villians.

Do you know what it is besides a fungicide? Here are a couple links you can read that tell you what you are spraying on your mater crop.

http://www.scorecard.org/chemical-pr...=1897%2d45%2d6
http://www.pesticideinfo.org/Detail_...DIST_NR=050534
http://extoxnet.orst.edu/ghindex.html

[bcday]

One "organically approved" alternative to Daconil is copper, which
a) doesn't work very well,
b) builds up in the soil instead of breaking down as Daconil does, and
c) unlike Daconil, is toxic to earthworms and other beneficial invertebrates that inhabit your garden. Also if the spray drift or runoff reaches a stream or pond, copper is toxic to the aquatic life there.

I used copper one year for bacterial speck, but that was before I found out how toxic it is.

Of course, many people elect to spray nothing. Some of my neighbors do that and accept a very reduced yield because of plants succumbing to early blight or septoria. If I had to give up Daconil, I'd do the same before I would use copper again.

[feldon30]

The question anyone wanting to discuss daconil needs to ask themselves is, is do they want to have a rational discussion about this chemical, with a realistic look at the evidence or do they want to have an alarmist, sensational, irrational argument, that quotes spurious medical evidence? Because the second is exactly what happened at GardenWeb and it led to people being banned.

If you are suggesting that people read all the facts about Daconil before using it, then that's admirable. But TomatoVille is not the place to put forth an agenda.

Carolyn posted in your other thread here about EXTOXNET which has unbiased information about Daconil:
http://www.tomatoville.com/showthrea...3906#post45428

For most growers except in hot, dry climates, if you choose not to use effective anti-fungal preventatives, you are making a choice to get no or few tomatoes or diseased tomatoes on weak, diseased plants.

[nctomatoman]

Interesting - I've grown tomatoes for many years without spraying anything on them. Here is the key question for me - does Daconil help with Bacterial Wilt, Fusarium Wilt, or Tomato Spotted Wilt? Those seem to be my major issues. However, I've done pretty well without chemicals to this point.....

What are people's experiences with Daconil delaying onset of any of the above?

[feldon30]

Originally Posted by nctomatoman

Interesting - I've grown tomatoes for many years without spraying anything on them.

Ah, but you are in a fantastic climate for growing tomatoes.

Originally Posted by nctomatoman

Bacterial Wilt, Fusarium Wilt, or Tomato Spotted Wilt?

• Bacterial Wilt - Bacteria
• Fusarium Wilt - soilborne virus
• Tomato Spotted Wilt Virus - thrip-transmitted virus

Nope, a topical preventative anti-fungal is not going to work on any of those.


Daconil is effective on these foliage-attacking funguses which are all encouraged by soil splashback and torrential rains:

• Anthracnose (sunken fruiting fungal bodies visible on ripe fruit )
• Alternaria Canker
• Early Blight
• Grey Leaf Spot
• Late Blight
• Leaf Mold
• Septoria Leaf Spot

Note that the tops and bottoms of leaves should be sprayed every 7 days from the day you set them out. Do not let funguses take hold first as Daconil is a preventative and not a treatment.

[carolyn137]

What are people's experiences with Daconil delaying onset of any of the above?

*****

Daconil, aka chlorothalonil, blocks specific attachment sites on the foliage so that various genera and species of fungi that are involved with foliage infections are prevented from attaching, penetrating and causing infection, and doing it quite well actually. It is best used as a preventive spray, not as a cure after the fungal foliage infections get going in full force.

It's the most widely used anti-fungal in the world and has been for many many years so there's lots and lots of documented data on its usage.

Craig, it has no effect on the systemic diseases that you mention , and can't b/c of its mode of action.

[amideutch]

The intent of my question is to stir interest in people as to what they are putting on their crops, what problems if any can these products cause, and are there safer products out there that can do the same job without harming the environment or themselves.
I've seen several referances to daconil and after checking different websites and the warning labels, maybe people should also do a little more research on the product. And alot of Tvillians, especially the one's new to growing tomatoes will take for gospel what they are told or read here at the forum.

[landarc]

I can see where someone who prefers to grow organic, or is concerned about the chemicals they put into their body, would prefer to avoid chemicals like Daconil. I do understand the science and have seen various studies as i wanted to know what I was gonna spray before I did. However, I do take these things advisedly, as a person who grew up being told that many of the chemicals we used on our nursery were perfectly safe, only to find out years dow the road that they were incredibly unsafe, and as a cancer survivor, I do so advisedly. Understanding that these things do change. BTW, I do use daconil at times, and tend to stop when fruit starts to set. I also advise all of my friends that I use it, as some are organic and deserve the choice.

[Mantis]

No attacks from me. I used it this year and thought it held off the blights really well. Used copper before this with lessor results. If more evidence comes to light about any adverse effects, I want to here about them eh.
I read up extensivley on the web on everything I could find about chlorothalonil and came to the conclusion that the sites canning it were general alarmist sites. But keep us posted for sure.

[Mantis]

Oh yeah, and as for it having harmful effects on insects, well , it did nothing to diminish my whitefly population.

[amideutch]

nctomatoman, This product might interest you concerning Bacteria wilt, Fusarium Wilt or Tomato Spotted Wilt. Ami
http://www.naturalindustries.com/200...sheet-MSDS.pdf

[feldon30]

This topic concerns me. Not because it is an opportunity to educate people on the use of chemicals in the garden. If that was all it was, I would support it. But it raises my suspicions when this is the fourth topic in recent history pointing people to websites warning about the use of ANY chemical in the garden. People may not be aware of organic_nut, an individual who was eventually banned from GardenWeb for outright harassing people for using daconil with statements like "Do you know you are putting poison on your food?" I'm sorry, but that is not the way to change people's minds.

I really hope that I am misconstruing intentions and that I am wrong about all this, because TomatoVille is not a place for anyone who is on a "mission" to try to convince us that there is a right way to grow tomatoes. If there were only one right way to grow tomatoes, there wouldn't be a need for a forum. We would all just buy a book and be done with it.

I choose not to use any chemicals in my garden except daconil. I am intelligent enough to read over the research and come to my own conclusions. Daconil actually has a lower toxicity than Serenade, a "certified organic alternative" to daconil which has much lower effectiveness.

I am glad that people are able to grow organically in zone 5-6 microclimates which do not have widespread fungal problems, but their solutions do not translate well to Houston and other parts of the country.

[spyfferoni]

I garden in an area that gets very little rain fall in the summer and has hard freezes in the winter, so I have never had to use anything on my tomatoes. If I moved to Puerto Rico where my husband is from I would probably have to investigate my options and use something. I have tried to garden without pesticides, ect for the last two years and my worst problem has been squash bugs, earwigs, snails, and something that loved my beans---not sure what. I think this year I will use some dust early in the season so I can actually harvest some winter squash this year. I figure that using a little bit of dust beats buying squash that I have no clue as to what has been used on it, and how frequently. That goes for all other vegetables and fruits. It is far better for someone to garden and use a little something here and there, than use nothing and give up gardening.

I think that as long as an individual reads labels and does their best to be educated on the subject that is what is important.

Just my 2 cents.

Tyffanie

[feldon30]

BT (Dipel Dust) for caterpillars is considered an organic solution. As is Surround, a claylike product which can be sprayed onto the stems and vines of plants that are vulnerable to attack, like squash. I am always looking for organic solutions which have been proven effective in my climate.

[landarc]

Feldon, I don't see Ami as being anywhere near O-nut in what she has posted in the past. As for agenda, I suppose many of us have a way, that we prefer to grow. I can see that Ami is posting something that she believes in, and that she sincerely beleives will help people learn. I hope so. Again, I use daconil and have little concern in the manner I use it, but, I do not fully trust science in how they view chemicals. By the way, I would agree to the idea that copper is not the way to go.