James Wong: give your tomatoes an aspirin

[Two_Sheds]

sorry if this has already been posted, but thought it might be of interest.

"Sprayin tomato plants in a very dilute aspirin solution can double the sweetness of their fruits & raise their Vitamin C by 50% "

Sprayin tomato plants in a very dilute aspirin solution can double the sweetness of their fruits & raise their Vitamin C by 50% #RHSTakeover : The_RHS

[Bill HH]

I cant seem to find much info on this on the twitter page, is there a link to this study anywhere?

[Alison]

Whenever I see these reports I always wonder how many things they try to get a result, have visions of them spraying 1001 different things on the off chance . More seriously, I find a lot of modern tomato varieties too sweet already, much prefer the old fashioned tasting ones, think this is why I don't rate Sungold much even though I know it's extremely popular.


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[wbmkk]

"Sprayin tomato plants in a very dilute aspirin solution can double the sweetness of their fruits & raise their Vitamin C by 50% "

I have an allergy to aspirin ... would eating fruit grown this way affect me ?

[Jeanied]

What dose? How often? More questions than answers at this stage.

[Jeanied]

A quick g**gle search reveals a few recommendations to spray with aspirin water - 1 and a half tablets dissolved in 2 (US) gallons of water - that is 1.6 imperial gallons. And a squirt of soap to help the spray stick to the leaves.

[mothhawk]

This link may help http://ijagcs.com/wp-content/uploads.../1184-1187.pdf

[mothhawk]

Funnily enough, I was reading a page about foliar feeding yesterday which said that "in some cases, a dramatic example being tomatoes, foliar feeding goes against long-standing strictures against ever allowing the leaves to get wet, as it greatly increases the chances of disease. While the conventional wisdom is, "Don't ever spray your tomato plants; water them only by soaking the ground beneath", modern gardening techniques strongly recommend spraying the leaves of a tomato plant with fertiliser, as part of the normal fertilisation routine." So maybe you'd get a similar effect by spraying a bit of comfrey tea over the tomato leaves.

[Bill HH]

This link may help http://ijagcs.com/wp-content/uploads.../1184-1187.pdf

yes that helps thanks but it must have been written by someone who's first language is not English. I still dont see a dose, asprin comes in many strengths and It doesnt make it clear. Does it have to be sprayed on or watered on the soil? it sounds like I should chuck some in the water butt and give everything a dose.Would taking asprin make my wife sweeter?

[Jeanied]

* shakes head, has great sympathy for Mrs Bill HH.

[Scarlet]

Here you go Bill!

Rebecca Brown, professor of plant sciences at the University of Rhode Island : Although the complete effects of treating plants with an aspirin-water solution are unknown, studies have shown that applying salicylic acid (aspirin is acetyl salicylic acid) to plants can induce resistance to pathogens, environmental stresses, and some insects. This protection should allow the plants to grow more vigorously. Under extremely stressful conditions or those highly favorable to the growth of diseases, however, salicylic acid may not prevent all damage from stress or disease. Salicylic acid is a naturally occurring compound in plants. When a plant is stressed or attacked by a pathogen, this compound stimulates the plant’s internal defense pathways. Treating a plant with additional salicylic acid appears to trigger the plant’s defense pathways in the same way.
In the summer of 2005, I directed a group of master gardeners with experiments on tomatoes. We looked at the effects of two strengths of aspirin water and the commercial product Messenger compared to plants sprayed with just water. Messenger activates the same internal defense system as salicylic acid but at a different point along the pathway, which may provide broader protection. Because of the dry conditions, none of the plants developed any disease. All of the plants grew equally well. We found that the plants treated with a solution of 250 milligrams of aspirin to 1 gallon of water and the plants treated with Messenger yielded more but smaller fruit than the control.
An aspirin-water solution of 250 to 500 milligrams (one or two regular aspirin tablets) of aspirin per gallon of water provides a solution similar to what has been tested; solutions at higher rates have been shown to burn foliage. Any brand of aspirin will work, but plain, uncoated tablets dissolve best. The solution should be applied every two weeks and may be used to water germinating seeds and new transplants.

[Bill HH]

Oh brilliant, thank you for that. Having read it makes me wonder if there would be any advantage on potatoes, maybe in resisting blight. They are of the same family after all.

[PyreneesPlot]

As another one with a severe allergy to aspirin this scares the pants off me!! You should see what I wear to cut willow.
Presumably if it was done commercially, produce would have to be labelled?

[Aberdeenplotter]

As another one with a severe allergy to aspirin this scares the pants off me!! You should see what I wear to cut willow.
Presumably if it was done commercially, produce would have to be labelled?

Aspirin would need to be licensed for the purpose first wouldn't it?

[bearded bloke]

Aspirin would need to be licensed for the purpose first wouldn't it?

Here you go AP,the rest of the previously quoted article (my emphasis) ..

Another form of salicylic acid that is gaining attention is willow water, made from steeping fresh-cut willow branches in water. Willows are naturally high in salicylic acid. The exact amount of salicylic acid in willows is unknown, however, so the amount to use and the timing of application is less certain. Willow water might be worth investigating as a source that could meet organic certification guidelines (neither aspirin nor Messenger do).

While there’s no harm in experimenting with these solutions, keep in mind that aspirin water and willow water are not registered pesticides. All of these products need to be applied preventively, before the first sign of disease. They may prevent infection but will not kill fungi or bacteria already infecting the plant. It may also take two weeks for the salicylic acid to activate the pathway and protect the plant.

Taken from .... Aspirin cures common plant headaches - Fine Gardening Question & Answer