I hate to be the bearer of bad news but late blight, the disease caused by the fungal-like pathogen
Phytopthera infestans, has been confirmed on a farm in Mercer County, NJ. This is the first confirmed case of the disease in NJ for 2013. This devastating disease of tomatoes, potatoes and other solanaceaous plants is notorious for it's ability to quickly wipe out entire crops, from a few plants in a home garden to entire commercially cultivated fields, putting farmers at serious financial risk. Remember the Irish Potato Famine back in the mid 19th century? Yup, that was late blight. So if you're growing tomatoes in any capacity this year, I can't encourage you enough familiarize yourself with the symptoms of this disease, to check your plants at least twice a week (more frequently when the weather is as wet as it has been lately), and destroy diseased plants immediately. If you're growing tomatoes and visit any other gardens or farms also growing tomatoes, especially any "you pick" fields, be sure to clean your hands, clothing, gloves, shoes and any tools used with hot, soapy water between locations to help prevent the spread as well. For more information from Cornell University on late blight, including how to identify infected plants, go to
http://nysipm.cornell.edu/publications/blight/. Not sure if you have late blight or not? Reach out to your county's Rutgers Master Gardener Helpline. For Burlington County, contact the RMG Helpline at (609) 265-5050 or mgburlingtoncounty@gmail.com. For other counties in NJ, check here:
http://njaes.rutgers.edu/mastergardeners/helplines.asp. For other states, check with your state land grant university cooperative extension program.
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Late blight on mature green tomato fruit.
Rutgers Cooperative Research & Extension, (NJAES,)
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. |
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Late blight on mature green tomato fruit.
Rutgers Cooperative Research & Extension, (NJAES,)
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. |
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