Clearing up after Blight

[Hans Mum]

Blight has been rampant on our site this year, even the toms in greenhouses/polytunnels have succumbed, is there something I should be doing to the soil in my poly to try and eradicate it for next year or shall I just resign myself to not being able to grown tomatoes

[Two_Sheds]

There really isn't much you can do to stop it. Even those who spray seem to get it eventually.

I just grow toms on the patio now

[Alison]

None of my potatoes got it and only one of the tomato beds which seems odd. One bed was dug up a few weeks ago but the others are still cropping and blight free, same varieties and not that far away. I think that it does seem to be getting worse though especially if you're getting it in your tunnel which I thought tended to be pretty safe.

[Mac]

Hi, I think my outdoor toms have blight, but not positive. Some of the leaves are showing what I thought were the signs, but it is still flowering (late planted and rubbish temperatures up here) and fruiting. Does it affect the whole plant? What is the time scale involved (some leaves been looking iffy for a couple of months, but plants seem to still be growing), and if it is, what should I do with the compost they are planted in (all in Morrisons buckets)?

[Nicos]

You need to burn all the foliage and thoroughly clean your greenhouse...and then next year you'll most likely be infected by spores from someone else's plot
Best place could well be at home if it's that bad on the site. ( easier to water too!)

[Alison]

However if they've not really progressed over a period of time then it probably isn't blight!

[vicky]

Collect ALL the leaves etc but don't put anything on the compost heap (council green waste is ok as apparently it's hot enough to destroy the spores).

I would make sure the ground is very exposed to frost and cold during the winter - ie don't plant that area for over winter crops or mulch or green manure and dig to turn over buried spores.

Don't plant tomatoes or potatoes in the same place next year.

I grow tomatoes in containers and tip the spent compost onto flower/fruit areas only.

When my show signs of blight I remove all the leaves and cut off the growing tip to expose the toms to sunlight to get them to ripen more quickly.