Q: Tomato viruses & powdery mildew
I live in Upstate New York and have a small vegetable garden. There really isn’t enough room to rotate my crops. Every year my tomato plants get various viruses and powdery mildew. I would like to know if there is a mulch of some kind that I can put on the soil around my plants so that the soil doesn’t splash on the tomatoes. This is the only way I can think of to stop all the viruses, etc. Does anyone have any thoughts on this??
Tags: crop rotation, mulch, powdery mildew, tomato, tomato problems, virus
May 26th, 2009 at 1:57 pm
First, when watering – use a drip system so there is no spray to get on the leaves. A mulch may not work in your favor because it will collect humidity. But any mulch should do. Also consider a spray of 1 teaspoon of baking soda per quart. Spray every 7 to 10 days. It seems to keep powdery mildew at bay. I am not sure of the other viruses. These are likely not the water splash but other bugs like aphids and beetles bringing in the diseases. If powdery mildew is already in full swing you may have to start over. And start spraying early (before you see white flakes).
May 26th, 2009 at 2:12 pm
We have quite a few ground mulching products that help suppress weed growth and that would help keep the soil from “splashing up” The first item that comes to mind in mulching film. This comes in multiple colors, but I have heard that red is best for tomatoes and strawberries. We also have silver mulching film that is supposed to help your plats growth by reflecting sunlight upward. If you want some sort of spreadable material to use as mulch the Cocoa Mulch is a wonderful smelling medium you can spread as a top dressing to your beds (you might not want to use this if you have dogs because they can have allergic reactions). One more alternative could be weed suppressing mats made from coco fiber. These discs fit around the base of your plants and lay over the soil.
Take a look at this previous blog entry that concerns getting rid of mildew.
Hope that answers your question.