Tomato Experiment with asprin spray.

[marchogaeth]

Sorry, didn't mean to offend.

's cool.

[solway cropper]

I should think that willow water would be more effective as that would contain salicylic acid rather than the acetylsalicylic acid in aspirin and it's the former that has been used in trials and found to be beneficial. The problem with a lot of 'folk' remedies is that they take a little bit of science and then distort it without actually understanding it. It's like saying that sodium chloride and sodium chlorate are similar. Try sprinkling chlorate on your dinner every day and see what happens.

[Nicos]

^^^^^...perhaps not!

http://www.hpa.org.uk/webc/HPAwebFil.../1287148061089

[Bill HH]

Say what you like, soluble aspirin is doing my tomatoes a lot of good and I shall not be persuaded otherwise.

[Snadger]

Say what you like, soluble aspirin is doing my tomatoes a lot of good and I shall not be persuaded otherwise.

Ah, but will your tomatoes cure my headache!

[Bill HH]

Ah, but will your tomatoes cure my headache!

Dunno but they say they are good for your heart.

[marchogaeth]

I should think that willow water would be more effective as that would contain salicylic acid rather than the acetylsalicylic acid in aspirin and it's the former that has been used in trials and found to be beneficial.

I take your point, the problem will be that I have no idea what dose rate I'm applying, of course. I know it's already on the thread but I remember being told to give cut flowers a bit of aspirin to kill "bugs" in the water and a dollop of lemonade for vitamin C and something else. The person said this was basically all that was in the little sachets you bought to put in cut flowers. I think they were a cut flower producer (certainly trade), the point being that it's sort of old news that aspirin had a bacteriostatic/fungistatic ability but it hasn't really been tested in this spray form.

I was wondering what was in organic rooting powder.......and, if it's salicylic acid, how soluable that might be......(something else to do while I should be doing other things!)

[brownfingers]

Ah, but will your tomatoes cure my headache!

Why aye man. That'll depend on the brew yer neckin' in your photo! If it's Newky Brown, you've no chance!

[mothhawk]

Well, I've been following this thread with interest, and not being at work today, I've been out and clipped some willow shoots from the overgrown jungle that the local bridleway has become. They are chopped up and soaking in a bucket as I type. I'll use the water on the toms in self waterers and see what happens.

[BUFFS]

The problem with this is that aspirin is very poorly soluble in water so even if you crush it up very small you are likely to get an incredibly weak solution. Using 'soluble' aspirin tablets would help but they contain other substances so you wouldn't know which, if any, was having the effect.

The many scientific trials that have been done used salicylic acid which is not the same as acetylsalicylic acid (aspirin)

is this so you can get the wife eating loads of toms and never getting a "headache"....

[Bill HH]

That should be interesting, pity you cant have a couple of plants separate, one untreated and one treated with ordinary aspirin as a control. Mine are all on aspirin so I really have no way of knowing if they would not have done so well as they are doing.

[Richard Eldritch]

That should be interesting, pity you cant have a couple of plants separate, one untreated and one treated with ordinary aspirin as a control. Mine are all on aspirin so I really have no way of knowing if they would not have done so well as they are doing.

Well I'll say this Bill; If I spray and they all still get blight, then at least I know it's tosh. If they don't suffer I get loads of Bolognese Sauce.Next year I can add a control to make it scientific like?

[Richard Eldritch]

Well, I've been following this thread with interest, and not being at work today, I've been out and clipped some willow shoots from the overgrown jungle that the local bridleway has become. They are chopped up and soaking in a bucket as I type. I'll use the water on the toms in self waterers and see what happens.

Thank you! Sadly I'd get nicked If I started stripping the willows in the park so I'll settle for Asda soluable asparin.

[Bill HH]

Thank you! Sadly I'd get nicked If I started stripping the willows in the park so I'll settle for Asda soluable asparin.

Richard, I don't think anyone is saying aspirin will stop blight, what it is supposed to do is enhance the plants immune system and help it fight all diseases, there are also claims (just claims) that if improves yield and flavour of the fruit. There are sprays that help protect against blight such as dithane (I think) or Bordeaux mix and these are probably more effective if you want to go down that route. Mostly these have to used before the disease starts as a protection.

[Richard Eldritch]

Richard, I don't think anyone is saying aspirin will stop blight, what it is supposed to do is enhance the plants immune system and help it fight all diseases, there are also claims (just claims) that if improves yield and flavour of the fruit. There are sprays that help protect against blight such as dithane (I think) or Bordeaux mix and these are probably more effective if you want to go down that route. Mostly these have to used before the disease starts as a protection.

Of course. It has been said that it seems to boost the plants immune system like a vaccine which is what I was interested in testing. I make no claims that it's a fungicide.