Well, that's it. My tomatoes have contracted some kind of (probably) fatal disease, which gives them coppery gray/brown spots all over the leaves. And while the supports have held steady, the top of one plant has snapped off in the wind. As far as I can work out, the disease could be 'Gray Leaf Mould' - the result of overwatering in really wet conditions. So much for the "I don't mind that its pouring with rain all weekend, it'll be good for my plants" theory. If there's a tomato doctor out there, please get in touch!
I'm leaving for Sunrise Festival in Somerset tomorrow so, if I don't have time to get some kind of cure for them in the morning, I expect they'll have wilted into compost by the time I get back. Not to be defeated, I still dutifully picked out the shoots which have appeared at the base of the stems, just in case they survive enough to flower and fruit. Its probably a move akin to feng shui with collapsible seats on a certain oversized boat though. Good job I've still got 7 plants left that I haven't yet given away!
Following advice from a comment on the Observer Allotment blog, I have now raised my slug beer traps above ground level so that all the nice beetles who eat the nasty pests will be unable to continue their practice of kamakazie drunken swimming. Apparently, the slugs love it so much they're prepared to climb for it though, just like my lettuce. I've also made a new trap out of an old milk bottle with windows cut in the side and the lid on, which will hopefully keep the rain out. I filled them all up with some (oxymoron alert!) cheap Waitrose lager I got at the weekend. Apparently they do prefer a dark ale though, so will be getting them a four pack of that next time. I don't know, lap of luxury eh?A final gruesome fact (or garden ledgend) for you is that apparently slugs are more attracted to beer if its got other dead slugs in it. Just goes to show how depraved the little bastads really are...
Red Cross
2 comments:
Hello Chris, like your blog- you have lots of healthy plants that should feed you well this year!
Re you ailing toms, I’ve just read an article on Garden Action (follow link from list on my blog and click on the 'To Do' veg calendar for May and click on 'tomato growing secret’. It basically says that you should remove all but 3 leaves from the plants, so that energy goes into fruiting, and lets the plant breathe! In theory it would lessen the chances of catching any type of mould, so I’m going to try it on a couple of plants to see if it works! Stop by when you can,
SWD.
Hey Chris. I've found that only a copper barrier really works against slugs, unless you resort to chemicals. Otherwise coffee grounds seem to be the next best thing.
The have made light work of my runner beans, i'm having to replant the whole lot.
MF
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