Weekly Late Blight Update

This page is the online version of a listserv intended to facilitate communication about late blight in New York and the contiguous states and Canadian provinces. The report is collected by Abby Seaman, NYS IPM's Area Extension Educator for Vegetables.

To send a message to the listserv, address it to:cce-staff-lateblight-l@cornell.edu

For 8-11-09:

New reports this past week:

From Cheryl Craft 8/11:

I had a call today from a home-gardener in Saranac, NY (Clinton County) whose tomato plants all died in the last week, before he realized that his problem was late blight. His potatoes are also infected, but not as badly, so he has been spraying them

From Ginny Carlberg 8/11:

photos of tomato plants from Chautauqua Co., NY with classic late blight symptoms.

From Nancy Welch 8/11:

I'm sorry to report that one of our long time growers has late blight on his tomatoes in Long Lake (Hamilton Co., NY). Thus far we were disease free.

From Chris Smart 8/9:

On Friday evening I confirmed late blight on tomato in home gardens in the town of Seneca falls and the town of Waterloo (both in Seneca County). Both were home gardens with multiple tomato varieties. The plants that were brought to me were severely infected (all leaflets had multiple lesions).

From Molly Shaw 8/6:

Late blight is reported now in Schuyler county, (NY) and has really exploded in Broome, Tioga, Tompkins.

PREVIOUS REPORTS:

Week of 7/28-8/3

From Tom Zitter 7/29:

I have seen plenty of Septoria leaf spot and now early blight in my plots. Similarly, the diagnostic lab has been receiving leaves that have a lot of Septoria, and homeowners thought it was LB. If tomatoes out there in home garden situations have not already succumbed to late blight, they are probably showing a lot of Septoria and the early blight. The conditions favoring Septoria are very similar to those for LB, and in fact in our plots we can kill tomato pretty quickly with Septoria. Please check the Veg MD tomato key if you have doubts.

I've received reports from Extension staff in Delaware and Broome counties in New York that late blight has been diagnosed by their consumer horticulture staff and Master Gardeners

From Jud Reid 7/29:

I discovered late blight on 3 farms in Yates County (central Finger Lakes of NYS) on 7/28/9.

Late Blight Online Resources:

Meg McGrath has posted a lot of up to date photos and info, including a link to the horticulture dept blog post about late blight.

The Cornell Plant Disease Clinic has info and instructions for submitting samples.

Bill Fry's lab site. The three links at the bottom of the home page are particularly useful.

And of course, Veg MD online.

From Ann Hazelrigg 7/27:

Seems like late blight really blew north in the last group of storms in Vermont. It has been confirmed now on tomato at a large organic farm(s) in Chittenden county (Burlington)

From Jude Boucher 7/23:

On 7/21 I found a field of tomatoes in Windom County in CT that was mostly destroyed by late blight (about 2-4 acres). Also confirmed it on the largest tomato fields in New Haven county today 7/22. I checked 4 farms in New London County early this week and wonders of wonders they were all clean!

From Ruth Hazzard 7/22:

Late blight has been found or reported in farm fields in the following counties of Massachusetts within the past week: Berkshire (tomato), Franklin (potato), Middlesex (tomato, three locations), Bristol (tomato), Norfolk (tomato). In Franklin, the potato field was completely lost and has been mowed down. Two tomato fields were completely lost. Growers are trying to save later plantings of tomatoes. Has spread very rapidly in unsprayed tomato at a CSA in Middlesex Co, in both tomato and potato.

From Teresa Rusinek 7/22

So this week we have been swamped with tomato samples from Gardeners in Ulster County, almost all confirmed as Late Blight. More commercial farms reporting LB, all but one are organically oriented. I'm seeing lesions in P and T plantings alike. Was out scouting this AM, the sporulation is outrageous!

Week of 7/14-22

From Robert Hadad, 7/22

Found LB in two fields of potatoes in Niagara Cty., NY

From Dale Young 7/21

Found Late Blight on potatoes in a home garden in the town ship of Scriba in Oswego county, NY today.

Late Blight was also reported on a commercial field of potatoes in the Sodus area of Wayne County, NY on Monday.

From John Mishanec 7/21:

This morning we found late blight on tomatoes on two farms in Schoharie County, NY. Both farms had protective fungicides on the crops. On the larger plants with huge canopies, the spots were on the inner leaves while on the smaller plants that could get better coverage, the spots were on the stems.

From Vern Grubinger 7/17:

LB in southern and central VT at commercial farms on conventional field tomato and organic potato, respectively; also several homeowners in central Vermont where garden infections appear to have originated with purchased tomato plants from box store.

From Teresa Rusinek 7/17

Confirmed 3 more farms with LB in Ulster this AM

All three are Organic, many fewer lesions where copper was sprayed. At one farm potato field was loaded (in a dead air corner of the farm) while the tomatoes and other potatoes elsewhere looked clean. In this case grower is flaming down section of potato field and spraying heavily with copper on the rest.

From Bess Dicklow 7/15:

Late Blight confirmed in Hampden County, Massachusetts on commercial tomato field.

From Teresa Rusinek 7/15

Up until today, i only found LB in box stores on tomato (in Ulster Co., NY), this AM I found it in the field. Amish paste has many more infections than Primetime growing side by side, the potatoes looked clean, growing Katahdins, Corollas, Nardonna.

From Abby Seaman 7/15:

I found late blight on one tomato plant in a home garden in Avon, Livingston county, NY. Just a few lesions on the lower leaves of one plant. The plants were from a local garden center, not a national chain.

From Chuck Bornt 7/15:

For those of you that just read Abby's message with the counties in NY with late blight, you can add Columbia County, NY to the list as I confirmed it in two organic tomato fields and one organic potato field.

New York Counties with late blight reports: (Please note that this list only reflects counties from which samples have been submitted to the Cornell diagnostic lab or have reported on the late blight listserv. Late blight may be present in additional counties)

Albany

Cattaraugus

Chenango

Clinton

Columbia

Cortland

Dutchess

Erie

Essex

Franklin

Fulton

Genesee

Jefferson

Lewis

Livingston

Monroe

Nassau

Niagara

Oneida

Onondaga

Ontario

Orange

Oswego

Orleans

Otsego

Putnam

Rensselear

Saratoga

Schenectady

St. Lawrence

Steuben

Suffolk

Tioga

Tompkins

Ulster

Warren

Washington

Wayne

Westchester

Wyoming

Week of 7/7-14

From Chris Smart 7/14

I just confirmed late blight on potato and tomato from Genesee County NY. The fields were close to one another, with more disease in the tomato than in potato.

From Molly Shaw 7/14:

Saw a nasty case of late blight on tomatoes in Apalachin, Tioga county (NY), this morning. Nearby potatoes still looked good. Checked tomatoes in nearby Owego and they're still clean.

From Amy Ivy 7/14:

Richard Gast in Franklin Co (NY) reports another potato grower has some fields infested.

From Meg McGrath 7/13:

(Long Island, NY)

Local inspector just called to report finding LB affected plants in a store.

Couple more reports of LB: 2 farms, organic potato and tomato. Plus gardeners reporting now that they have seen photos in the paper.

From Jude Boucher, 7/10

If you haven't seen it on commercial farms yet, you should know that late blight is starting to snowball in CT. I have found it on 5 of the last 10 farms I have visited in the CT River Valley. Joan confirmed it from first farm at the UConn lab.

Week of 6/30-7/7:

Commercial farms and home gardens week of 7/7:

From John Mishanec 7/7:

In New York in Albany county - one farm with two very infected tomato fields, one potato field not infected. Also a confirmed report from Dutchess Co. on tomatoes on an organic farm and an unconfirmed report from Fulton Co. from another organic farm, crop not reported.

From Maire Ullrich 7/7:

In New York she has found late blight on every farm she visited in the southern, central, and western parts of Orange county.

From Chuck Bornt 7/7:

In New York on tomatoes at commercial farms in Albany, Rensselaer, and Washington counties.

From Maire Ullrich 7/3:

In New York in tomatoes and potatoes on a larger acreage organic farm in Orange County

From Monica Roth 7/3:

In New York on tomatoes in a community garden in Tompkins Co.

Garden centers week of 7/7:

Additional NY counties: Warren, Saratoga, Fulton, Oneida

Week of 6/23-30:

Commercial farms and home gardens:

From Chris Smart 6/30:

In New York, late blight has been found in two commercial potato fields, one in Wayne Co., and one in Genesee Co.

Forwarded by Steve Johnson 6/29:

Late Blight has been confirmed in four potato fields in the Monteregie area, south of Montreal, Quebec

From Beth Gugino 6/26:

In Pennsylvania, 3 acres of potatoes in Lancaster Co., and tomatoes and potatoes in a large garden in Centre Co.

From Sharon Douglas 6/26:

In Connecticut, on tomato in community gardens in West Hartford and Wethersfield (Hartford County)

From Sally Miller 6/25:

In Ohio, late blight on a tomato plant purchased from a store in Franklin County (Columbus)

From Beth Gugino 6/24:

In Pennsylvania, from a commercial grower on potato and tomato and on tomato in in a garden, both in Blair Co.

From Meg McGrath 6/24:

On Long Island, on tomatoes in a home garden.

Infected tomato transplants have been reported in garden centers in several states:

New York: Chautauqua, Chenango, Clinton, Cortland, Erie, Franklin, Jefferson, Lewis, Monroe, Ontario, Orange, Orleans, Saratoga, Schenectady, Suffolk, Tompkins, Ulster counties

(For non-NYers, the counties on this list represent areas from northern NY to Long Island and western NY to eastern NY.)

Massachusetts (Hampshire Co.)

Pennsylvania (Bradford Co.)

Connecticut (Middlesex County)

Infected tomato transplants were also found in garden centers in Bangor, Houlton and Presque Isle, Maine

Week of 6/16-23:

From Meg McGrath 6/23:

Late Blight on Long Island in commercial potatoes

From Beth Gugino and Sara May 6/18:

Late blight on potato and tomato from a garden in Bedford, Co., PA

From Andy Wyenandt 6/18

Late blight has been found on tomato in southern New Jersey.