Who sprays fungicide til the end of the season?

[jhouse]

I'm curious as to how you more experienced growers continue spraying with Daconil or other fungicide as the tomatoes ripen and are harvested.

I've got a lot cherry tomatoes, I love giving them away, but have to rinse the Daconil residue off before doing so and boy is that a chore. I've had some blight -- pruned it out, and held off on spraying the last few weeks, so I'm tempted to just prune out diseased foliage at this point or use Bill's bleach spray if needed to avoid the residue.

I'm a bit concerned about the consequences though of not spraying, both for the remainder of the season and having more spores for next year.

I find many diseased trees leaves that blow into the garden, it could be I've got lots of spores in any case and it wouldn't matter -- (read that lots of trees get EB also) -- I remove pruned foliage but to get all the tree leaves & plant matter I'd have to take a vacuum cleaner down to the garden.

[b54red]

I spray right up til the end of the season. I use copper more in the late summer than Daconil because of spot and speck diseases along with gray mold which always hits my black tomatoes hard in the fall. I use the bleach spray when I see too much gray mold showing up or if it is raining too often for other fungicides to stay on the plants since it can be used much more often.

Bill

[clkeiper]

We spray til the end, also. I am growing to sell and if I don't have tomatoes a lot of people don't even stop to look whether at the farmers market or the roadside stand.

[joseph]

No sprays for me, ever, for any crop. Except once or twice a week sprinkle irrigation. I consider that one of the nicest benefits of being a subsistence-level farmer.

[Chosemerveille]

I'm with b54red and clkeiper and spray right up until the end. I did that no spray thing three years ago and ended up with one tomato out of 7 plants. My plants were demolished by disease. The only way I would have had a worse outcome was if I doused them kerosene and set the lot alight.

So I use daconil, copper, bleach spray, and a few others as needed. I have to spray anyway-I have two neighbors whose gardens routinely get ripped to shreds by septoria, late blight, grey mold, you name it. Neither does anything but water, and the breeze blows across their yards into mine 90% of the time all season. So by this time of the summer their tomato plants look like they took a flamethrower to them, and the spores float right up the way towards my yard.

[Cole_Robbie]

Originally Posted by joseph

No sprays for me, ever, for any crop.

I'm wondering if your short growing season is a factor in the success of that idea? I tried it this year and last, not spraying at all, and I get one decent crop...and then everything dies of disease. But if my season were only brief enough to get that one crop, it wouldn't matter.

[Scooty]

Originally Posted by Cole_Robbie

I'm wondering if your short growing season is a factor in the success of that idea? I tried it this year and last, not spraying at all, and I get one decent crop...and then everything dies of disease. But if my season were only brief enough to get that one crop, it wouldn't matter.

I think climate, location and weather are also going to be big factors on how much little intervention you can squeeze by - dictating either huge yield, reasonable yield, or no yield.

For example, there's no way you could get by in some of the southern states with the humidity without fungicide (organic or conventional) short of resorting to a climate controlled greenhouse.

[loulac]

There are so many variables in that field of thought that no general rule can be given. Climates and people are different. Gardening can just be a pleasant pastime, when professionals must make a living and can’t afford losing their production before the first frosts.
I must say I’m surprised to notice a widespread use of Daconil. Reading the directions for use written by the different companies selling it makes me shudder ! I would never spray that stuff in my garden. Besides as I’m not a professional farmer no store would accept to sell it to me.

Copper of course is different, but when I know it will still be there in 50 years I try to use it reasonably.
Bleach has a short period of activity but doesn’t pollute the soil at all. My preferred fungicide.

Of course reading all b54red’s posts is a must. I particularly insist on the importance of post 164 on thread http://www.tomatoville.com/showthrea...090#post586090
It made me understand that hitting Late Blight is not a fight, it’s a war !

[clkeiper]

If we hadn't sprayed in July I would have no tomatoes left out there already. Everything that we sprayed already has dropped the dead leaves and is starting to now ripen... 300 plants. I can't afford to not spray.

[ginger2778]

Interesting thread. As most of you know, I garden from October transplants to about late May, or June. That is the only time it is cool enough here in S. FL. For the tomatoes to set fruit. In this environment, I use a weekly preventive copper spray, it works really well. I use at 1/2 of the weakest recommended dilution for tomatoes, and I have good fungal management. And we get lots of fungal pressure here in the humid sub tropics.
I garden in containers so my fungal spray is mostly contained to them, not the native soil.
Oh, and we really dont get late blight here, but lots of early blight , septoria, grey mold, and all sorts of bacterials. Copper, and also Neem handle those well. Neem is a good insecticidal spray for soft bodied bugs too.

[TigrikT]

This year was fairly good, not much disease pressure in Central NJ, zone 6b. I have only a few tomato plants and so far sprayed only once with Daconil before 3-days rain. I also used copper dust on couple of occasions mixed with Bt dust. Not much clipping either except the early infestation of pinworms (or maybe leafminers).
I usually spray Daconil before rain if it is prolonged rain or PM or evening - if plants cannot dry quickly. I haven't used liquid copper yet.
I stop spraying around mid September. Usually keep tomatoes till first frost.

[joseph]

Originally Posted by Cole_Robbie

I'm wondering if your short growing season is a factor in the success of that idea? I tried it this year and last, not spraying at all, and I get one decent crop...and then everything dies of disease. But if my season were only brief enough to get that one crop, it wouldn't matter.

No sprays for me, ever, for any crop is my way of living... It only works, because I save seed only from the survivors. I plant plenty of foreign seeds (not from my garden) that croak. Things that have grown in my garden for many generations do just fine...

[loulac]

Originally Posted by joseph

No sprays for me, ever, for any crop is my way of living... It only works, because I save seed only from the survivors. I plant plenty of foreign seeds (not from my garden) that croak. Things that have grown in my garden for many generations do just fine...

I agree natural selection should be taken into account, helped by the different crossings you are working on. Experts should watch closely your techniques and try to create resistant plants (no diseases at all) or tolerant plants (lightly attacked with no effect on production) – my personal interpretation of the words.

I hope that on your stand in Logan everyone can read your products are pesticide and fungicide free, written in better words with a personal touch of course.

[jhouse]

I came across this article about disease resistant tomatoes. I happen to be growing Mountain Magic this year,(mentioned in the article) and they are the least bothered by early blight.

https://www.growveg.com/guides/bligh...worth-growing/

I have sprayed up until a few weeks ago, the hot hot humid weather has worn me down spraying wise. All my varieties are listed as disease resistant, but even with spraying I've got some blight and am pruning it out. My options are spray again or see a lot more blight most likely. I may try Bill's bleach spray, but it's not a preventative. None of my plants are affected enough look like dying and are producing a lot.

I'll take some blame for my blight, I didn't prune properly to start with, and the foliage midway up the plants got very crowded and couldn't ventilate properly. Lesson learned for next year.

[javafxnoob]

I spray only with baking soda, sometimes with milk added. About every 10 days and after rainy days. So far satisfied with results. I do get some yellow stuff on lower leaves sometimes, but that was my fault. Plants are too close, not good ventilation. For me good way to prevent blight, and control it if appear with pruning affected leaves.

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