Is it safe to eat tomatoes and potatoes with late blight? How to deal with late blight on tomatoes, treatment of tomatoes at their summer cottage You can eat tomatoes affected by late blight

22.07.2021 Information

The second half of summer is characterized by a change in weather conditions, fogs appear, it becomes damp, which contributes to the development of late blight on tomatoes, as well as other vegetables and strawberries. Gardeners take various measures to protect vegetables, but if late blight has damaged tomatoes, you need to know how to deal with it correctly and how to treat diseased plants. There are various chemical preparations for fighting late blight on nightshade crops, including tomatoes, and folk remedies, so timely measures taken will prevent the appearance of the disease and preserve the harvest of vegetables.

How to deal with late blight on tomatoes

Late blight is a dangerous fungal disease that affects the stems and fruits of tomatoes. It is advisable to plant tomatoes away from the potatoes, since it is the latter that gets sick first, and then the spores spread to the tomatoes.

Signs of plant disease with late blight

The first signs of late blight appear on the lower leaves of tomatoes. Dark spots take on a bizarre shape, and a white coating appears on them. The disease in vegetables quickly spreads and after a couple of days all the foliage and stems of tomatoes turn black. It enters the fruits of late blight through the stalk. Initially, the fruits do not change their color, but over time, brownish spots appear on them, which darken and turn black.

The disease is dangerous because in a few days it can spread to all plantings and destroy the entire crop. Moreover, late blight affects both tomatoes growing in the open field and tomatoes grown in a greenhouse.

Conditions conducive to disease

1. At high air humidity and large temperature differences: it is hot during the day and cold at night, late blight develops.

2. Excessive watering and heavy rains. To reduce soil moisture, it is necessary to regularly loosen the soil in tomato plantings.

3. Dense planting. Do not plant vegetables close to each other. It is also necessary not to let them grow. To do this, you need to pick off the stepsons and excess foliage.

4. Lowered temperatures. At this time, you need to sound the alarm and process the plants in order to prevent the onset of the disease.

How to protect tomatoes from late blight

  • When choosing tomato seeds, it is recommended to give preference to early varieties and hybrids. The early ones will have time to mature ahead of time before the spread of the disease, and hybrid varieties are more resistant to late blight.
  • If the first signs of the disease are noticed, it is necessary to remove all affected foliage and burn it.
  • For the purpose of prevention, during the ripening of fruits in vegetables, phosphorus and potassium fertilizers must be applied. This will raise immunity and increase resistance to late blight.
  • Mulching of the land is carried out near the plantings.
  • With the onset of cold nights, even in the evening, tomatoes should be covered with spunbond or non-woven fabric. But they need to be thrown only from above to the middle of the bushes. That is, the covering material should not touch the ground. This technique protects plants from cold dew.
  • After harvesting, all bushes are harvested and burned.
  • For the purpose of additional processing, vegetables are sprayed with the preparations "Barrier", "Oksikhom", "Zaslon".
  • You can plant curly beans, corn or peas near the tomatoes. Plants will serve as a kind of curtain and protect the tomatoes.

Folk remedies to combat late blight

Many summer residents - vegetable growers do not want to stuff their tomatoes with chemicals, therefore, folk remedies are used to combat late blight.

Whey or milk infusion

Milk, whey and kefir contain lactic acid bacteria that prevent the spread of the disease. These products can be used to spray plantings all summer long, as they are harmless.

To prepare an infusion with milk, 100 ml is diluted in 1 liter of water. product and sprayed with nightshade crops. A drop of iodine can be added to the solution, this will not only increase the plant's resistance to diseases, but also serve as a fertilizer. If there is no milk, you can dilute kefir in the same proportion.

Spraying with serum is carried out as follows: it must be diluted with water in a 1: 1 ratio and sprayed on the planting. You should not wait for the appearance of the disease, you can process folk remedies for the entire growing season with an interval of 2 weeks.

Infusion of garlic or onion

For 10 liters of water, 200 g is taken. chopped garlic or onions. After a day, the infusion is filtered and the diseased tomatoes are treated. The interval between treatments is 2 weeks.

Saline solution

Gardeners are very creative, and they came up with available means for protecting vegetables. Which is table salt. Dissolve 250 grams of salt in one bucket of water and spray the tomatoes. This solution, which protects not only against phytophthora, prevents the development of other diseases. After spraying, a protective film appears on the fruits and on the leaves, which does not allow spores to penetrate into the plant. Of course, this film is washed off by rains, so after rainy weather the tomatoes must be processed again.

Feeding tomatoes with copper ions is a proven way to protect vegetables from late blight

Initially, this method for late blight involved wrapping the roots of tomatoes with copper wire before planting. But the gardeners finalized it and began to wind the wire not only on the root system, but also to pierce the stalks of vegetables with it, and stick it into the ground between plantings.

Operating principle. A thin copper wire is taken, calcined and cut into pieces from 3 to 4 cm. After that, a through puncture is made on the stems of growing plants at a distance of 10 cm from the ground. The ends of the wire are not wrapped around the stem, but bent downward.

For your information!

When performing such an operation, it should be remembered that punctures are made only after the stem gets stronger.

Copper deficiency leads to a decrease in chlorophyll, vegetables are stunted, some specimens die. Copper deficiency also affects disease resistance.

How to put the method into practice

It is necessary to prepare a copper wire with a diameter of up to 1 mm, clean it from insulation with a knife, remove the varnish coating with sandpaper. The wire is washed and cut into small pieces. Then you need to pierce the stem through, and bend the ends of the wire down. Do not twist the remnants of the wire near the stem, as this will prevent the plants from developing correctly.

The procedure should be carried out before or after transplanting, when the vegetables are fully rooted. You cannot pierce tomatoes during transplantation, only after 2 weeks. In the process of acupuncture, the plants are severely stressed and need time to adapt.

On the stem of the seedlings, a puncture is made under the first real leaf. In matured tomatoes planted in the ground, punctures are made at a height of 10 cm from the hilled mound. In a rainy summer, the wire is installed at a distance of 80 - 90 cm from the ground. Saturation of tomatoes with copper ions is a highly ecological method, harmless to the plant and humans. Copper is absorbed into vegetative parts and cannot be washed away by rains.

Fighting late blight on tomatoes by chemical methods

Not every owner decides to spray vegetables with chemicals, but sometimes only they help protect and cure crops.

To prepare a solution for spraying tomatoes, you need to take potassium permanganate (aka potassium permanganate), copper sulfate and boric acid. All positions - 1 teaspoon each.

At the beginning, all the components should be steamed separately with boiling water, then put together, mix and spray the planting. We recommend spraying three times at intervals of 7 weeks.

Every gardener uses available drugs for foliar treatment to prevent the appearance of late blight, for example, HOM, which can be purchased in special stores. But it is important to know that chemistry accumulates in the fruits of vegetables and during processing you cannot overdo it with a dose. It is required to carefully read the instructions with the instructions and follow them exactly.

How to save tomatoes damaged by late blight

Part of the crop affected by late blight can still be preserved. For this, there is a method of heat treatment of fruits. Pour water heated to 60 degrees into the basin and place tomatoes in it. The fruits should be warm, but not boiled! As it cools, add warm water until the tomatoes warm up. Then the fruits are removed, dried and sent to ripening in a dark place or put on a windowsill.

Can fruits damaged by late blight be eaten?

Late blight spores die during heating, and such tomatoes can be eaten. If the disease has strongly affected the fruits, they will turn black and heat treatment will not help them. But the damaged green fruits of vegetables are used for canning.

Selection of late blight-resistant tomato varieties

There is an opinion that there are allegedly no varieties of tomatoes that would withstand phytophthora. However, breeders are doing tremendous work to develop new varieties, including those resistant to late blight. And their achievements are pleasing. There is always a mark about the resistance of the variety on the seed bag. When purchasing vegetable seeds, be sure to pay attention to the description and do not be lazy to read the features of the selected variety, so as not to be disappointed later.

Hybrid tomato varieties resistant to late blight include: Dragonfly, Parterre, Kaspar, Blagovest, Gnome, Blizzard, Dubok. The list can be supplemented with varieties: Solerosso, Lark, Gina, Kostroma.

Late blight is easier to prevent than to fight with it, therefore, timely preventive measures taken will prevent the onset of the disease. And the fight should be started not at the time when the leaves of the vegetables turn black, but during the growing of tomato seedlings. Foliar processing is carried out several times per season. This is the only way to protect the plants and preserve the harvest.

The second half of summer is characterized by a change in weather conditions, fogs appear, it becomes damp, which contributes to the development of late blight on tomatoes, as well as other vegetables, etc. Gardeners take various measures to protect vegetables, but if late blight has damaged tomatoes, you need to know how to deal with it correctly. There are various chemical preparations for fighting late blight on nightshade crops, including tomatoes, and folk remedies, so timely measures taken will prevent the appearance of the disease and preserve the harvest of vegetables.


There is an opinion that there are allegedly no varieties of tomatoes that would withstand phytophthora. However, breeders are doing tremendous work to develop new varieties, including those resistant to late blight. And their achievements are pleasing. There is always a mark about the resistance of the variety on the seed bag. When purchasing vegetable seeds, be sure to pay attention to the description and do not be lazy to read the features of the selected variety, so as not to be disappointed later.

Hybrid tomato varieties resistant to late blight include: Dragonfly, Parterre, Caspar, Blagovest, Dwarf, Snowstorm, Oak... You can supplement the list with varieties: Solerosso, Lark, Gina, Kostroma.

Late blight is easier to prevent than to fight with it, therefore, timely preventive measures taken will prevent the onset of the disease. And the fight should be started not at the time when the leaves of the vegetables turn black, but during the growing of tomato seedlings. Foliar processing is carried out several times per season. This is the only way to protect the plants and preserve the harvest.


How to deal with late blight on tomatoes

Late blight is a dangerous fungal disease that affects the stems and fruits of tomatoes. It is advisable to plant tomatoes away from the potatoes, since it is the latter that gets sick first, and then the spores spread to the tomatoes.

Prevention of disease

  • When choosing tomato seeds, it is recommended to give preference to early varieties and hybrids. The early ones will have time to mature ahead of time before the spread of the disease, and hybrid varieties are more resistant to late blight.
  • If the first signs of the disease are noticed, it is necessary to remove all affected foliage and burn it.
  • For the purpose of prevention, during the ripening of fruits in vegetables, phosphorus and potassium fertilizers must be applied. This will raise immunity and increase resistance to late blight.
  • Mulching of the land is carried out near the plantings.
  • With the onset of cold nights, even in the evening, tomatoes should be covered with spunbond or non-woven fabric. But they need to be thrown only from above to the middle of the bushes. That is, the covering material should not touch the ground. This technique protects plants from cold dew.
  • After harvesting, all bushes are harvested and burned.
  • For the purpose of additional processing, vegetables are sprayed with preparations " Barrier", "Oxyhom", "HOM", "Screen".
  • You can plant curly beans, corn or peas near the tomatoes. Plants will serve as a kind of curtain and protect the tomatoes.

Signs of plant disease

The first signs of late blight appear on the lower leaves of tomatoes. Dark spots take on a bizarre shape, and a white coating appears on them. The disease in vegetables quickly spreads and after a couple of days all the foliage and stems of tomatoes turn black. It enters the fruits of late blight through the stalk. Initially, the fruits do not change their color, but over time, brownish spots appear on them, which darken and turn black.

The disease is dangerous because in a few days it can spread to all plantings and destroy the entire crop. Moreover, late blight affects both tomatoes growing in the open field and tomatoes grown in a greenhouse.

Conditions conducive to disease

1. At high air humidity and large temperature differences: it is hot during the day and cold at night, late blight develops.

2. Excessive watering and heavy rains. To reduce soil moisture, it is necessary to regularly loosen the soil in tomato plantings.

3. Dense planting. Do not plant vegetables close to each other. It is also necessary not to let them grow. To do this, you need to pick off the stepsons and excess foliage.

4. Lowered temperatures. At this time, you need to sound the alarm and process the plants in order to prevent the onset of the disease.


Folk remedies for combating late blight of tomatoes

Many gardeners-vegetable growers do not want to stuff their tomatoes with chemicals, therefore, folk remedies are used to combat late blight.

Whey or milk infusion

Milk, whey and kefir contain lactic acid bacteria that prevent the spread of the disease. These products can be used to spray tomato plantings all summer long, as they are harmless.

To prepare an infusion with milk, 100 ml is diluted in 1 liter of water. product and sprayed with nightshade crops. A drop of iodine can be added to the solution, this will not only increase the plant's resistance to diseases, but also serve as a fertilizer. If there is no milk, you can dilute kefir in the same proportion.

Spraying with serum is carried out as follows: it must be diluted with water in a 1: 1 ratio and sprayed on the planting. You should not wait for the appearance of the disease, you can process folk remedies for the entire growing season with an interval of 2 weeks.

Infusion of garlic or onion

For 10 liters of water, 200 g is taken. chopped garlic or onions. After a day, the infusion is filtered and the diseased tomatoes are treated. The interval between treatments is 2 weeks.

Saline solution

Gardeners are very creative, and they came up with available means for protecting vegetables. Which is table salt. Dissolve 250 grams of salt in one bucket of water and spray the tomatoes. This solution, which protects not only against phytophthora, prevents the development of other diseases. After spraying, a protective film appears on the fruits and on the leaves, which does not allow spores to penetrate into the plant. Of course, this film is washed off by rains, so after rainy weather the tomatoes must be processed again.

Replenishment of tomatoes with copper ions from phytophthora

It's an old proven way to protect vegetables from disease.

What is the principle of using copper wire

Initially, this method for late blight involved wrapping the roots of tomatoes with copper wire before planting. But the gardeners finalized it and began to wind the wire not only on the root system, but also to pierce the stalks of vegetables with it, and stick it into the ground between plantings.

Operating principle. A thin copper wire is taken, calcined and cut into pieces from 3 to 4 cm. After that, a through puncture is made on the stems of growing plants at a distance of 10 cm from the ground. The ends of the wire are not wrapped around the stem, but bent downward.

For your information!

When performing such an operation, it should be remembered that punctures are made only after the stem gets stronger.

Copper deficiency leads to a decrease in chlorophyll, vegetables are stunted, some tomatoes die. Copper deficiency also affects disease resistance.

How to put the method into practice

It is necessary to prepare a copper wire with a diameter of up to 1 mm, clean it from insulation with a knife, remove the varnish coating with sandpaper. The wire is washed and cut into small pieces. Then you need to pierce the stem through, and bend the ends of the wire down. Do not twist the remnants of the wire near the stem, as this will prevent the plants from developing correctly.

The procedure should be carried out before or after transplanting, when the vegetables are fully rooted. You cannot pierce tomatoes during transplantation, only after 2 weeks. In the process of acupuncture, the plants are severely stressed and need time to adapt.

On the stem of the seedlings, a puncture is made under the first real leaf. In matured tomatoes planted in the ground, punctures are made at a height of 10 cm from the hilled mound. In a rainy summer, the wire is installed at a distance of 80-90 cm from the ground. Saturation of tomatoes with copper ions is a highly ecological method, harmless to the plant and humans. Copper is absorbed into vegetative parts and cannot be washed away by rains.


Fighting late blight on tomatoes by chemical methods

Not every owner decides to spray vegetables with chemicals, but sometimes only they help protect and cure crops.

To prepare a solution for spraying tomatoes, you need to take potassium permanganate (aka potassium permanganate), copper sulfate and boric acid. All positions - 1 teaspoon each.

At the beginning, all the components should be steamed separately with boiling water, then put together, mix and spray the planting. We recommend spraying three times at intervals of 7 weeks.

Every gardener uses available drugs for foliar treatment to prevent the appearance of late blight, for example, HOM, which can be purchased in special stores. But it is important to know that chemistry accumulates in the fruits of vegetables and during processing you cannot overdo it with a dose. It is required to carefully read the instructions with the instructions and follow them exactly.

What to do with damaged vegetables

How to save tomatoes

Part of the crop affected by late blight can still be preserved. For this, there is a method of heat treatment of fruits. Pour water heated to 60 degrees into the basin and place tomatoes in it. The fruits should be warm, but not boiled! As it cools, add warm water until the tomatoes are warmed up. Then the fruits are removed, dried and sent to ripening in a dark place or put on a windowsill.

Is it possible to eat fruits

Late blight spores die during heating, and such tomatoes can be eaten. If the disease has strongly affected the fruits, they will turn black and heat treatment will not help them. But the damaged green fruits of vegetables are used for canning.

Photo: at the request of Yandex and Google

Most often, it is tomatoes that are affected by late blight, so every gardener should be armed with good advice on how to protect their tomatoes in late July and early August. But even if the prevention has not brought results, and the tomatoes are still infected, we will tell you how you can save the diseased bush. We will use both modern drugs and invariably topical folk methods.

What contributes to the development of phytophthora?

Late blight Is a common fungal disease. This disease multiplies simply and quickly. In winter, the spores of the fungus "sleep" in the soil, mainly in potato tubers, in which they survive the cold period. And during spring plantings, spores wake up.

As it was noted, potatoes are the first to suffer from this disease, and only then the spores of the fungus fall on the tomatoes. Phytophthora begins with the appearance of brown dark spots on the leaves, which gradually pass to the fruits and stems of the tomato. It is possible to determine that the disease has affected the bush at an early stage, when only the lower leaves are affected. Note that spots can be very different, both in size and shape. As a rule, the very first alarming news is the appearance of a white bloom.


As for the fruits, they become infected through the stalk. The most interesting thing is that at first the tomatoes may not give out anything that they are infected, and they will be covered with brown spots only during storage. Late blight should be taken very seriously, because literally, a disease can kill the entire crop in just a couple of days.

Can tomato seeds with late blight be used?

  • on tomatoes late blight appears in August, sometimes at the end of July. This usually occurs after damp and foggy sunrises and cold nights. The most favorable weather for the development of this disease is high humidity and temperatures below plus fifteen degrees.
  • another reason for the appearance of late blight is a dense planting. In this case, you need to take care of good ventilation of the bushes and regular breaking off of excess leaves.
  • frequent watering contributes to the appearance of phytophthora. Not surprisingly, in the open field, the disease can appear after the rainy season has passed.
  • Another reason to take care of tomatoes in the garden is low air temperature. Indeed, on sunny and dry days, the spores simply die.

How to prevent late blight?

Tomatoes like dry and sunny weather, not wet and cool weather. We advise you to constantly check the bottom leaves: if you see the slightest darkening, remove it immediately. If the leaves turn yellow and dry, they also need to be carefully torn off.

Take care to create good ventilation for the bushes. From above, they can be covered with a film so that it hangs along the edges without reaching the soil. So the tomatoes will be protected from morning dew, but at the same time they will be ventilated. Also, never plant tomatoes near potatoes. As we said above, late blight is most often transmitted from it.


How to cultivate the land after phytophthora?

If you are interested in precisely prevention, then it is best to water the soil with trichodermine or phytosporin. If the disease was massive, then each diseased bush should be burned, and the earth should be watered with fungicide.

Prevention of late blight on tomatoes in a greenhouse

In greenhouses, tomatoes are generally well protected against this disease. The main thing is that they are protected from damp and cold weather, which can last for a long time outside. Moreover, the climate in the greenhouse can be successfully regulated.

Methods for the prevention of phytophthora on tomatoes in a greenhouse:

  • Trim excess leaves and stepchildren regularly.
  • Don't thicken the fit.
  • Tie up tomato bushes.
  • Mulch the soil.
  • Do not plant tomatoes near potatoes.

If you do not know how to process tomatoes in a greenhouse to keep tomatoes from phytophthora, feel free to use phytosporin. They need to spray the bushes in the last days of June. Do not forget to regularly treat the soil under the tomatoes with the preparation.


Methods of dealing with late blight on tomatoes in a greenhouse

First of all, remember that it is not advisable to use preparations with copper, because there is a crop in the greenhouse that constantly ripens. In this case, it is best to use traditional methods of dealing with late blight on tomatoes (we will talk about them a little below).

Tomatoes can be sprayed with plain iodine water. The proportion is as follows: for one bucket of water, you need to take ten milliliters of usually five percent iodine. Before using this remedy, remove all diseased and yellowed leaves from the bushes. You need to spray not only the bushes, but also the fruits. The procedure is repeated in three days.


Folk remedies for late blight on tomatoes

  • infusion of garlic. In order to prepare a garlic infusion, you need to take two hundred grams of garlic or onions, and insist in one bucket of water for a day. Then strain thoroughly and sprinkle the fruits and the diseased bush. Repeat this spraying every 10-14 days.
  • whey or solution. Cow's milk must be diluted in plain water: one hundred grams per liter. Spray tomatoes with the resulting mixture. Milk can be replaced with kefir. The fact is that late blight cannot develop when interacting with lactic acid bacteria. You can also safely add a couple of drops of five percent iodine to the solution. We repeat every fourteen days. You can also spray tomatoes with whey. (diluted with water in a ratio of one to one). The effectiveness is the same as when using milk water.
  • tinder spraying. The tool turns out to be quite effective, you can use it in calm and calm weather once every ten days. For one liter of water, we need one hundred grams of mushroom. Dried mushrooms are chopped with a knife or passed through a meat grinder. Then pour boiling water, wait until the mixture cools down, and filter.
  • saline solution. Another effective folk remedy to protect against late blight. One glass of plain table salt is mixed in a bucket of water. Such a solution will protect tomatoes not only from late blight, but also from many other diseases. Such spraying is especially relevant after the rainy season.
  • ash spraying. They are done only three times a season. You need to mix half a bucket of ash and ten liters of plain water. We mix everything thoroughly and insist for three days, do not forget to stir sometimes. As soon as the mixture is infused, add thirty grams of liquid or laundry soap.

On a note! All of the above methods are ideal precisely for the prevention of this fungal disease. If late blight is already clearly visible on the bushes, then chemicals sold in garden stores will be used.


Phytophthora on tomatoes in the open field: how to treat?

If you do not know what drugs to use for late blight, feel free to choose those that contain copper. For example: Polykhom, Hom or Oxykhom. They are divorced immediately in a watering can in cold water (first read the instructions).

However, it is not necessary to buy the drug, because you can make the solution yourself. Pour a bag of copper sulfate into a bucket of water and throw in a bar of laundry soap. An infusion of wood ash is also suitable for treating bushes.

And if no folk remedy has saved your tomatoes, there is only one option - to use chemistry. The most working means in this case are fungicides. But it should be borne in mind that fungal spores are quite successfully able to adapt to various kinds of drugs, so they need to be changed periodically so that the composition is different. Use the products with great care, and only until the fruits begin to ripen.


Is it possible to eat tomatoes infected with late blight?

If the disease has attacked after you have planted tomatoes, warm them well in hot water (water should be at least sixty degrees). It is important that they just warm up, and not cook, so it is better to arm yourself with a thermometer. When cooling down, the water should be topped up. This processing kills the spores, and they are quite usable. As for diseased fruits, you yourself are unlikely to want to try them: the appearance of such tomatoes is terrible. But now you are armed, and you know that the main guarantee of a good harvest is prevention!

Have a good harvest!

Do you know anything useful about phytophthora prevention? If so, share with our readers in the comments below the article!


Green tomatoes boost immunity

I don't grow tomatoes myself, but I constantly buy them on the market. I try to take homework. However, I noticed that some fruits have yellow spots. Can these tomatoes be eaten? And also tell me if the tomatoes that are affected by late blight are harmful? And what do they look like?

Irina, Minsk.

The yellowish spots can be of various origins. Most often, they are formed when the sun's rays are concentrated in water droplets on the fruit and thereby cause sunburn. The second reason: there may be a lack of phosphorus in plants. And also yellowish spots (on immature fruits they are dark green in color) are near the stalk itself. But it is these tomatoes that have a brighter taste. This suggests that they are grown at home, and not in a greenhouse, where tomatoes with keeping genes are more often grown (fruits are stored for a long time, their presentation does not deteriorate). Such a phenomenon is a varietal trait. But tomatoes, which ripen evenly, taste bland.

In addition, yellow spots on fruits can be the result of a plant being damaged by a virus that is harmless to humans.

The sign of late blight is completely different: there will be wet spots on the tomato fruits, dark purple and gray stains are clearly visible under the skin. In principle, if such fruits are cut off, then the remaining parts can be used in food. Another thing is that tomatoes infected with late blight will not taste good.

True, some scientists write that slightly rotten tomatoes should not be eaten, but there is no scientific confirmation of this.

BY THE WAY

Now you need to especially carefully monitor the tomatoes, especially with sudden changes in the weather. If you do not want to risk, then remove large tomatoes still green and leave to ripen. Some of the fruits can be pickled with garlic with the addition of cloves. Thanks to cloves, tomatoes are obtained as in old Soviet recipes. Cloves give a pleasant taste, pungent, one thing per can is enough. In addition, green tomatoes are also useful: they contain a substance that increases human immunity.

Why did tomatoes become curly?

In tomatoes, 4 stems appear on one stepson. I have been planting this variety from my seeds for several years, but this is the first time with these tomatoes. There are three varieties in the garden, and such a problem is with only one of them. Tell me, what could it be?

Valentina Iosifovna, Minsk.

The only way to answer this question is to see the plants. Offhand, I can suggest three options: firstly, it may be a viral lesion. Bushiness is just characteristic of him (the plant becomes shaggy, many stems climb from the stepsons). The second reason: the variety could be overdusted with another variety, which gives many stepchildren. Under normal conditions, plants are not cross-pollinated, but bumblebees can carry pollen. It happens that a bumblebee pollinates a plant, but in the first year this will not be noticeable - you will collect seeds from such plants and save until next year. The first year, similar tomatoes will grow, and only in the second year will splitting begin.

The third reason lies in excessive feeding. If more nitrogen fertilizers are applied unevenly, then the plant will give more shoots.

What drug will save the phytophthora in the greenhouse?

I have already removed the tomatoes in the open field so as not to damage the late blight, but I have left them in the greenhouse. True, I am afraid that this attack will not get them there. Tell me what drug can be used to protect tomatoes in the greenhouse from late blight, and taking into account the fact that they will soon be eaten.

Tamara Vasilievna, Brest region.

When the fruits are ripening, you can use the Bordeaux mixture, "Azophos" (not to be confused with the fertilizer of the same name!) And "Cuprosat" (copper sulfate). These are non-systemic drugs, they do not hit the plant like that, but they protect it until the first good shower. For Bordeaux mixture and Kuprosat, the waiting period is 4 days in open and protected ground, for Azophos - 3 days in protected ground.

ON A NOTE

Even if you applied all the necessary fertilizers while planting the plants, this does not mean that they do not need further nutrition. After all, it also happens that in the process of growth, it may be necessary to carry out additional introduction of nutrients. To understand what exactly the plant lacks, it is enough to have external signs that we have collected for you in this table for your convenience.

Role in the plant

Deficiency symptoms

Excess symptoms

Responsible for the growth of leaves, stems.

Shredded leaves and stems, pale green color, growth retardation.

Excessive growth, folding and shedding of leaves, instability to diseases and pests.

Promotes flowering and fruit formation.