May 2, 2011

Late blight found in Connecticut greenhouse

Late blight has been identified on tomatoes and potatoes grown in a greenhouse in Hartford County, Conn., according to Cornell University Cooperative Extension.

Symptoms started to show up April 22 on Mother’s Finest tomatoes, which were grown from seed collected locally last year. The growers have been pulling symptomatic plants since then, but new plants are developing symptoms; foliar and stem lesions were observed, according to Cornell.

About the same time, Australian Crescent potatoes grown from organic seed pieces purchased from an out-of-state commercial supplier started showing symptoms. Stem lesions were observed.

The find follows other positive identifications on potato seed in Michigan and Wisconsin earlier in April, according to Cornell.

The university had this advice for grwoers: Inspect your transplants, especially if they are coming from greenhouses that might have year-round production of tomatoes.

Also check potato cull piles frequently. Recent weather has been prime, so if there was any inoculum it will be growing.