Potato Blight

My King Edwards have got Potato Blight :( :( It started off as a couple of blotches, went out all day Saturday and came back yesterday to slimy,decimated foliage.
So, I dig 'em all up I suppose :( but can I put the cadavers on the compost heap????
Some of my Toms aren't looking too good either....when are we gonna get some sunshine?????????? :confused: :(

 

We are getting potato blight because of all the rain we are having and the humid conditions,The spores can be spread from plant to plant if the foliage is moved when harvesting,that is why they always reccommend using fresh Scottish bred seed potatoes each year.

If you put the invected haulms on the compost heap then the spores won't be killed.Either burn the haulms or put them in your recycling or dustbin.

Crops will be very small if the spores from the blight have already dropped down to the ground.

Some people spray the haulms with Copper Sulphate? at the start of June but once the blight has took hold it is usually too late.We never spray so don't know if this method works.

If tomatoes are palnted within the same arear then they will become infected as well because they are of the same family as the potatoes.

A photo of the toms would be ideal for identyfying any problems

 

The toms that are affected are down the other end of the garden Kandy....but with the wind here I suppose the spores can travel???? They have black, large blotches on a few of the leaves...just like the spuds did :(
The seed potatoes were Scottish ones...but it's rained every day for weeks now...so I don't suppose they stand much chance :rolleyes:
When I've dug them up, can I replant something else in their place???? What kind of thing do you recommend???

 

I hate to say this but didn't you have some spare seed potatoes sent to you by one of the members on here?Those spuds could have been ones saved from infected stock,though saying that I think the majority of spuds all over the country apart from Scotland will be infected in rainy years.We dug our first early potato plant on Saturday and only got four spuds from the plant though that might just be because we were too early in harvesting them...

I will check what you can plant but things like cabbages carrots etc should be ok.Just make sure you destroy all the foliage from both the tomatoes and the spuds and don't replace with anything like them.Make sure you wash your hands after handling all infected plants

I am sure someone else will be along soon who can advise on what to plant next..Good Luck

 

Sorry to disagree Kandy, but Potato blight is not spread from stored tubers, it is a wind borne fungus infection.
King Edwards are incredibly Blight prone, Defra wanted to ban them altogether they are so bad, but gardeners complained so much. Next year go for a more blight resistant varriety.
Blight only affects members of the Solanum family so you can grow any other veg you choose where they affected plants have been.
If you remove all the foliage before it really begins to rot, then the tubers already formed will not be affected. You can use them. they may not store though. Obviously cropping is reduced.

 

Hi Kandy,
I sent Windy some first and second earlies, which were both fine and cropped really well, (see Windy's earlier posts ), which has nothing to do with it anyway. I planted King Edwards ( see my blog ) but didn't send any of them to windy. Incidentally, my King Edwards are fine!

As Palustris rightly says, Blight is a wind borne infection.

Sadly windy, you must dispose of infected plants carefully, and definitely not in your compost bin. Bag the affected plants / tubers and put in your rubbish bin / take to the local tip.

I'm with you all on "When do we get some sunshine" , but you have also to remember to prepare the ground well before planting. Drainage is the key in all that we grow.

We've had bucketloads of rain down here too, but my raised beds remain free draining.

I hope you can salvage something windy, and remember - Keep Smiling !

 

Thanks guys!!

Oktarine...the ones you sent me have been great..just about to harvest the last for tea!!

palustris ...thanks for the great info...I wasn't aware about King Eddies being prone to blight. I just knew they make lovely roasties!!! Could blight be whats wrong with my Solanum laciniatums too?? The tops are sort of black and shrivelled...if so, it would explain why the tomatoes nearby have got it too.

Anyway, I'm still smiling :D :D You can't keep a good girl down for long!!!!!

 

Hi Windy

For any more information on Potato blight try Googling and put in Potato Blight.You should come up with Gardening advice from the RHS which will give information about not using tubers that have been affected with blight,and how to prevent it in future years

Good Luck with your harvesting

 

Thanks Kandy Just pulled up all my King Edwards :( I would have had a good crop, judging by the amount of marble sized ones that were there. Oh well, these things were sent to try us!!! Going to use the space for some Broccoli and Leeks....will check out the advice on the RHS thoroughly before I begin this time!!!! :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

 

Hi Windy,we grow King Edwards every year because they are an all round spud.We have been growing them ever since we took on allotments 27 years ago.

It is a good idea we don't depend on spuds like Ireland did when they had the potato famine or else we would all be dead by now :D

Even after all these years there is still plenty to learn

 

The saddest thing about the Irish potato disaster is that if they had known that cutting off the tops prevents the blight getting into the tubers themselves, then they could have rescued enough to tide them over.

 

Kandy, there's a plethora of links on my blog, including the RHS.

Why not just bookmark my page ?

 

Palustris, thanks for the information about potato blight- my new fact for today. I didn't know that cutting the tops off would save the developed tubers.
I haven't ever had potato blight but now know what to do if I get it!

 

Oktraine,I haven't a clue about how to bookmark things.I asked Mr Kandy the computer whizz kid in the house and he doesn't know either :rolleyes:

We tried that trick years ago about cutting off the tops,but it never worked because when we went along the rows and disturbed the foliage the spores headed for the tubers and we lost 16 rows of spuds.We have never tried that trick since :eek:

 

We've had potato blight this year and have just cut the tops off and burned them; the tubers are still in the ground and are being dug up as we need them. Lots of big tatties amongst them too. Did the same last year too though we planted fewer tatties then.