Blight watch 2017

[veggiechicken]

Home - Blightwatch

Just had my first Blight watch warning of 2017.
"Smith" periods have been replaced by "Hutton"
What are Hutton Criteria - Blightwatch

Anyway, if you're growing spuds or tomatoes its well worth registering with Blightwatch for alerts...............and its free

[Martin H]

Thanks for the reminder, VC. No warning yet in my area, but we did meet the Hutton Criteria last Friday.

[Penellype]

Cheers VC - we are due to meet the Hutton criteria for the first time tomorrow, although not (yet) a full Smith/Hutton period.

[veggiechicken]

Here's mine today

[Welsh76]

Here's mine today

[ATTACH=CONFIG]73508[/ATTACH]

CF14.. The posh area of Cardiff

[veggiechicken]

Hahaha!! Yeh, we talks proper yer

[Bren In Pots]

Luckily mine in the green

[Penellype]

I just emailed them to ask where the previous years have gone, as I wanted to check the earliest date for a smith period. They say they have removed that data from the site as it wasn't used much

[jackarmy]

Yep, also had one in swansea VC, fingers crossed. It was a touch humid here yesterday so wasnt that suprised to get one but still not nice

[Jay-ell]

In the green.

So if it does go into the red - what do you do?

It's not as if you can move the spuds into the greenhouse is it.

[veggiechicken]

I just emailed them to ask where the previous years have gone, as I wanted to check the earliest date for a smith period. They say they have removed that data from the site as it wasn't used much

Last year we had warnings on 11th May http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gra...tch_89529.html

[Mr Bones]

Blightwatch emailed this morning, Hutton period here too.

[Penellype]

In the green.

So if it does go into the red - what do you do?

It's not as if you can move the spuds into the greenhouse is it.

Some people spray the foliage with epsom salts which is said to deter blight, although I don't know of any evidence for this. However that isn't going to work well in the pouring rain as it will just wash off, and if its not raining my instinct is against wetting the leaves.

Really all you can do is be aware and keep an eye open for signs of blight and remove affected foliage as soon as you see it. If the worst happens and you are going to eat the potatoes straight away you can dig them up, but if you are going to store them the advice is to cut off the foliage and leave the tubers in the ground for a couple of weeks so that you don't mix the spores on the surface of the soil with the tubers during harvesting. Blighted tubers will rot in store, so if you do store them you will need to keep checking for rotten ones. If I am in any doubt I mash them and freeze them.

[1Bee]

We do tubs and tubs of dauphinoise potatoes... *drool*

[burnie]

Just signed up to this, thanks for the heads up, all clear up here.