Vegetable garden disease management tips (part 2)
This week we will finish up with the second in a series of columns on managing for disease in the home vegetable garden. I know that the recent snowfall, rain, cool weather and damp soils may have vegetable gardening not high on your list, but note that vegetable gardening season will be here soon.
Vegetable gardening is the favorite hobby of many people in Northwest Georgia. It can be rewarding to be able to provide your family with fresh garden items too. Plus, the act of working in the garden can be a healthy activity.
I do realize that it can be disappointing when you do not get the production compared to the overall labor and financial investment made in the garden area. It can also be disappointing if your neighbor is having a super growing season and you are not.
One issue can be disease in the home garden, and today I will again be sharing disease management tips by use of a UGA publication by Elizabeth Little, UGA Home Garden/ Small Farm Plant Pathologist.
By way of quick review, last week I shared the importance of proper site selection for planting. You need a spot in a sunny area that is welldraining of excess moisture. Also, keep records of where you plant items and use crop rotation in your efforts to help starve out disease pathogens.
You should also use diseasefree seed and transplants in your gardening efforts. This can help give your garden a great starting advantage. I will add that planting at the right time can be a valuable resource in reducing disease issues so follow planting date charts. Don’t forget that mulch can reduce soil from splashing on the plants and can keep plant fruit from touch the bare soil too.
One of the biggest tips in managing for disease can be proper watering of the garden. Water management can be a benefit in keeping plants healthy. If the soil stays wet, it can lead to soil-borne issues such as seed decay, damping-off, plus root and crown rot. If the plant foliage stays wet, it can lead to foliar diseases. You need to promote a good plant root system. You need to water deeply and only when needed based on natural rainfall amounts. This deep irrigation should be equivalent to one inch no more than once per week, but while also keeping in mind the rainfall totals. I would have a rain gauge to help you keep track of rain amounts.
Obviously, more irrigation will be needed in hot and dry weather. For years, I have pushed the use of drip irrigation by sources such as soaker hoses as compared to sprinkler irrigation. Drip irrigation can get the water right to the root system while keeping the foliage dry. Our information adds that sprinkler irrigation is the least desirable watering method in regards to efficiency and disease prevention. If you must use a sprinkler, water on a sunny morning so the sun can help dry the foliage quicker.
I will add that many gardeners start their own disease issues by soaking plant foliage with a sprinkler at a time of day where the foliage will stay wet for a long period of time. This practice can be the last key ingredient to get disease started thus hurting your overall efforts. Another tip is to not work in the garden when the plants and soil are wet. Note that bacterial and fungal diseases can be spread from one plant to another plant by hands and clothing when the above ground parts of your vegetable plants are wet.
Proper fertilizing and organic matter in the garden can reduce disease. You still have time to get a proper soil test done for fertilization and pH recommendations. I will add that our information states that soil organic matter from decomposed plant material can be an important factor in plant health. This can lead to plants being able to use nutrition better and keep disease from getting established.
Another tip is good garden sanitation. Sanitation will include the removal of potentially diseased plant material. This practice can reduce the disease carrying organisms in the garden thus reducing the chance of disease issues. You can incorporate the removal of plants and plant residue after harvest too. It is to suggested to uproot entire plants when possible. Also, remove and destroy diseased plants.
Our information adds that leaf spot issues can be reduced if early infected leaves are removed and destroyed. Another tip is to take advantage of proper spacing in the garden area of plants. Also, many garden items such as tomatoes and beans may do better with some type of staking or trellising in regards to disease management.
Finally, I will add that Bob Westerfield, UGA Horticulturist, will be with us on March 12 for a home garden vegetable workshop at the Gordon County Agricultural Service Center. We can easily send you a workshop flyer by email or mail if you contact us. Hope to see you at this great workshop.