this is a picture of one of the beefsteak tomatoes I was getting until now, Late Blight has set in and destroyed every tomato plant except for those in greenhouse. All the vines, and fruit are black! When LB starts, you see some wilting of the leaves, then some dead spots, the some blackened areas on the stems. Within a week, they are all dead with nothing green. LB can't winter over except on infected potato tubers being held over. Maybe also in some compost piles if they don't freeze. The extension service says this LB comes in on seedlings imported from out of state. Small seedling plugs go to two local greenhouses where they are potted up and sold to the big box store. The spores just sit waiting for cool wet weather, then they just take over like some alien invasion from outer space. They are airborne and can travel 40 to 50 miles. When I saw this stuff start, we picked off our plants and got 5, 5 gallon pails. A couple days later, I had to toss out one pail full because they showed signs of being infected. we made tomato relish, dilled green tomatoes, canned tomatoes, and tomatoes canned with summer squash. We were up canning until 1 AM.
But, this winter when the cold wind blows, we have our shelves full of our summer vegetables. I have some nice pictures of when they were doing well. I’ll be busy plotting out next year’s gardening tactics.
But, this winter when the cold wind blows, we have our shelves full of our summer vegetables. I have some nice pictures of when they were doing well. I’ll be busy plotting out next year’s gardening tactics.
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