On Wed, 11 Jun 2003 14:37:17 +0100, "Druss"
wrote:

~"Colin Malsingh" wrote in message
.. .
~ After years of growing garlic without problems, I'm having problems
~ with Rust in my first year in an allotment.
~
~ I planted three varieties in October last year next to some Shallots &
~ other usual allotment stuff. The "Ivory" variety has had a bad
~ covering of rust for several weeks - plants encrusted with
~ yellow/orange, plants quite thick and tall but not much sign of the
~ bulb forming. The "Vitesse" has been slower to get affected, but the
~ bulbs are much further advanced. Finally, neither the Elephant garlic
~ or Shallots show any sign of rust.
~
~ Can anyone help with the following:
~
~ (1) I reckon the Vitesse will probably yield some useable bulbs soon,
~ but the Ivory will need longer. Is there any harm in leaving these in
~ the ground or should I get them out as soon as possible?
~
~ (2) Checking other sites gives conflicting advice about the other
~ crops that can be affected. Some say that Leeks and Shallots are also
~ vulnerable - others say they aren't (I'm afraid I haven't identified
~ which type of Rust I've got...)
~
~ I'm about to plant some leeks not very far away - are they likely to
~ be infected too?
~
~ (3) Are there any reliable ways of preventing this in future years?
~ It's never affected me before, but I see commercial growers in the US
~ get hit quite a bit. How do European growers manage (or do they
~ plaster theirs with chemicals?)?
~
~ If you've read this far, thanks in anticipation....
~
~ Colin
~ -----
~ Replace the obvious with Bigfoot
~
~I've had rust on leeks for years, usually just means we lift them young, but
~this year it has hit my garlic as well. I've lifted all those infected, and
~removed and disposed of all infected leaves. They are right next to my
~onions, and I am hoping the rest of the garlic and the onions will be able
~to cope. Mind you several of the garlic's were also trying to run to seed,
~annoying little buggers. These went in, with the old traditional, planted on
~the shortest day, and due to be lifted on the longest. Well it's only 3
~weeks away, so not too bad.
~Duncan
~
~
You say the garlics were running to seed - but be careful, some do
this anyway. They are known as hardneck or serpentine garlic, and now
is when you should go and chop off the scapes. They can be eaten like
asparagus or used as mild garlic flavoured chives. Removing the scape
usually increases the size of the resulting bulb by an appreciable
amount. I've been growing three different types - two softnecks
(Marshalls long keeper and thermidrome) and a hardneck (Marco), and I
hope that they will all have got a bit bigger by mid-July cos at the
moment the bulbs are only about 1.5-1.75" diameter.

I grew Marco last year too, and the current lot are the ones I forgot
to dig up and which resprouted on their own last autumn! I carefully
dug them out, split up and replanted and they are doing really well.
(apart from being slightly rusty too!)

http://www.garlicworld.co.uk/index.html will tell you all you need to
know and more... found this the other day by accident and it's not a
bad site.


--
jane

Don't part with your illusions. When they are gone,
you may still exist but you have ceased to live.
Mark Twain

Please remove onmaps from replies, thanks!