Other tuber diseases that may be confused with late blight include pink eye and Fusarium dry rot. These infections may open the way to bacterial soft rot, which breaks down the whole tuber into a gooey, smelly mess. On potato tubers, late blight causes a shallow, granular reddishbrown dry rot that invades the flesh in an irregular fashion. For all fruit, wash before using to remove dirt, microbes, or any fungicide residue that might be present. Late blight produces large, greenish brown greasyappearing spots that cover part or all of the fruit. Tomato flavor is best preserved above 50 degrees F, though this may also allow late blight and other disease symptoms to develop after harvest. Healthy tomato fruit from infected plants may be used right away or stored till use. If you harvest potatoes, try to do a thorough job – recognizing that it’s nearly impossible to get every last one. Composting also works, but try to build a pile with a mix of green and dry inputs so it will heat up (decomposition releases heat!), and turn it at least once to mix and aerate the pile and keep it heating till fully decomposed. Incorporate vines and leaves into the soil by digging or rototilling. This is mainly to reduce other diseases such as early blight and Septoria leaf spot that may overwinter in the residue in or on the soil. Now, we want to encourage decomposition of the crop residue. In mid-summer, when the major concern is preventing spread of late blight on windborne spores, put infected vines in the trash or pile them under a tarp to kill them. So far, only one mating type has been found in the Northeast so we do not expect oospores to be present. In some parts of the world, late blight has two ‘mating types’ (the fungal equivalent of male and female) which can produce long-lasting ‘oospores’ that survive independently. Late blight will not survive on tomato stakes and cages. Greenhouses where tomatoes were grown could allow survival only if they never freeze and the crop lives all winter. Certain perennial weeds can become infected with late blight, but none of their aboveground tissues live through the winter. Thus you can use your own seed or purchase seed to start next year’s crop without fear of late blight. Tomato seed, even from fruit that was infected with late blight, will not carry the pathogen. Tomatoes will not carry late blight over the winter, because freezing kills the whole plant. Potatoes that freeze or fully decompose will not carry the pathogen overwinter. Purchased for home use, and then disposed of (in compost or cull pile, as above).Kept in storage until late winter, and then put outside in spring.Disposed of in a large pile of culled potatoes which does not freeze completely.
Disposed of in a compost pile that does not fully decompose and does not freeze.Left in the ground at harvest, down several inches in the soil.Potato tubers that are infected with late blight and don’t freeze or decay during the winter can carry the pathogen over the winter to next spring. The fungus Phytophthora infestans needs live tissue to survive. When this occurs, fall is the time for gardeners to take steps to prevent this disease from surviving the winter, and to prepare for a healthy crop the following year. Occasionally, New England growers experience a widespread outbreak in tomatoes and potatoes of late blight, Phytophthora infestans.
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