Gutted - onion white root rot

[magz.mccarthy]

Hi All,

This weekend i was hoeing an onion bed and accidentally tipped over an onion. Then another, and another, until i eventually realised that the whole bed had terrible white root rot! The slightest tip knocked the onions over and the bottoms were covered with white fur. I had a look in my other 2 onion beds and they are all the same! And my garlic! All badly infected!

I just got this plot last october so am gutted! It looked like it hadn't been cultivated for years when we arrived, but in early spring, a few volunteer alliums popped up in a neat grid pattern - they must have been there for years. The adjoining plots are mono-cropped, so this one must have at some stage been used all for alliums. Is it possible that by these things (didn't leave them long enough to find out exactly what) growing every year, they picked up the white root rot? My whole plot seems to b rife with it, while my back neighbour has huge healthy onions all over his.

Margaret

[Two_Sheds]

I had this yesterday ... my Red Baron literally keeled over. White furry bulbs, yuk.

I put them in the Dalek. Before you shout at me, all you Grapes, read this:

the use of composted onion waste has been shown to destroy and reduce White Rot
http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/sci/wh...onwrposter.pdf

[pdblake]

Does that mean composting onions that already have white rot though, or healthy onion waste?

[Two_Sheds]

I think the thinking is similar to that of innoculation ... you introduce a little of the disease, in order for the organism (in this case the garden) to produce anti-bodies.

I may have this arris about face, like I said, I've not had time to look into it thoroughly. It probably needs a more scientific brain than mine ... where are you Auntie Flummery?

[Gwyndy]

Have a look at this - Armillatox - The environmentally friendly herbicide, fungicide and insecticide. I have used Armillatox very successfully to get rid of 'fairy rings' in my lawn so am going to try it out on my onion bed.

[zazen999]

Thanks Gwyndy - I'm trying to avoid chemicals - esp ones that have been taken off the market as they contain phenols [even though they have repackaged it as a detergent so that it can still be sold].

[magz.mccarthy]

hey that's not a bad idea! I'll give it a go next year, I love onions!

A friend also suggested making a raised bed on top of thick membrane and filling it completely with new topsoil, as it's something like 10 years required to kill white root rot.

[simmo 66]

Good idea...They say leave for at least 8 years before growing onions again