On Tue, 15 Nov 2011 23:23:27 -0500, Steve Peek wrote:

wrote in message
...
"David Hare-Scott" writes:

wrote:
I have a decent sized (25'x30') vegetable garden. I have been using
the same plot of land for 17 years. Gradually I have started to have
more and more diseases cropping up.


What diseases? When? Of what?

I realized I left out my location --- I am near Boston. In a pretty
urban area, with no working farms anywhere nearby.

I really do not know exactly what diseases they are. Most seem to be
fungal in nature.

The tomatoes start getting sick in July, with lower leaves drying up,
upper leaves, and tomatoes, getting spots. The tomatoes on the counter
seem to have the pox after a while. Loads of small black/brown spots
on the surface. It does not really affect the taste. This year I got
about a quarter of a decent year's yield. A couple of years ago it was
early Late Blight, but that does not survive our winters. Also that
year the rot often started inside the tomato, not on the outside. I
grow mostly heirlooms, several brandywine variants, a couple of plums
types (one for cooking, one for fresh salsa) and two hybrid cherry
types. I have tried a few blight resistant types, but they just did
not taste very good, and did not seem to do much better against
disease.

The last two years my cucs just did not grow. This year one of the
hills did, the other did not.

This year my basil leaves started turning a yellowish green and tasted
very bitter. I ripped out the whole crop after just one batch of
pesto.

Onions, peas, beans, carrots all have done reasonably well.

I have had varying amounts of an internal rot disease in my garlic
(German Extra Hardy stiffneck). Last year it cost me half my crop, and
the garlic I stored did not last past January --- it usually lasts
until April or May. This year I got most of the crop, time will tell
how long it lasts.

I am sorry I cannot be more specific. I guess I want a reasonable
generic fix. If such exists. Something that will improve the odds of
minimizing common diseases.

I have decided to give the land a rest for a year. What should I do?

THe soil is still very fertile. I grow tomatoes, peppers, basil,
peas, beans, cucs, zucs, carrots, lettuce...

I rotate, but I am not sure the garden is really big enough for that
to be a big effect, and it is only a four year rotation.

Should I grow stuff that is completely different? Solarize? Just
turn the soil every few weeks to get it exposed to the sun and
elements?

Thanks in advance,

Depends on the problem(s)

Definitely plural, but sadly, non-specific.

Thanks,


--
Andrew Hall
(Now reading Usenet in rec.gardens.edible...)

Spray with copper, start early and spray often. I've had very good
success on my heirloom tomatoes with this method.

Copper fungicides have worked for me also. I'm also in Massachusetts. I
don't do it in the summer unless I see a problem on a plant.

If you want to let the land lay fallow this year I'd just plant clover on
it. Clover adds nitrogen to the soil and it's flowers attack bees. I
bought clover off of Amazon last spring and spread it on my lawn, my lawn
is healthier than it's ever been.