Prevention of PM???

[cobain420]

Hello everyone,

Last run I had a problem with what I believe was PM after doing some research (white powdery on leaves, starting from the bottom up. It really ruined the entire crop and devastated yields.

I am not sure what caused this but I was wondering if anyone has anything else I can do to prevent this from happening again. Here's what will be done differently next time:

2 larger oscillating fans for more air movement, last time I had 2 smaller units. There was a bunch of stuff in the same room with the plants last time and since then I've totally cleaned it out and wiped everything down with bleach - floors, walls, ceilings, door, etc. Everything.

I have heard sprinkling some baking powder on the floor helps, is this true?

Any other prevention measures I may have missed would be greatly appreciated. Any input would be great!

Thanks!

 

[subrob]

the only thing that will completely prevent it is to never bring anything new from california into your grow room! haha. the only thing that will get rid of it is burning sulfor. no two ways about it.....

 

[PuReKnOwLeDgE]

yup, get a sulfer burner, and use it correctly and safely

 

[Shan Diego]

PM Prevention

PM Prevention

Actinovate.

 

[FreezerBoy]

Rather than treat the symptoms, kill the disease. Anything porous (plants, soil, rockwool etc) goes in the trash. Any thing non-porous (res, lamp assembly, pumps) are field stripped, sterilized in 5% bleach solution and reassembled. Wash all walls floors and cielings too.

 

[Frozenguy]

Unfortunately, without using harmful sulfur, the only way to get rid of it completely would be to use the method described by freezerboy. Otherwise you may be able to hold it a bay but it could explode come winter/heavy fruiting times..

To prevent it once clean, scrub your intake and wash your hands before you go in to your room/cab..

if you have been walking around places like the forest, places other then downtown with lots of concrete, I would even change my clothes..

Dont let animals in/near.. They can carry stuff they rub on their fur from outside.

Dont let leaves mold on your carpet..

 

[Cruzin]

Definitely follow those instructions for sterilization. I also highly recommend using Bloom's Foliar A & B. It will inoculate the plants for up to 3 weeks giving you plenty of time to knock out the PM.

 

[cobain420]

Thanks so much for all the replies, a ton of information.

I have already sterilized the entire room and threw out all old equipment, starting all fresh. Wiped the walls floor and ceiling with a bleach mixture, do I still need a sulfur burner?

This is my first run I've ever experienced PM and I HATE it!

 

[crippled1]

I was looking into some products to accomplish the same thing.
I ended up deciding to buy some Amistar SC.
I called this agricultural supply company to order it, the guy answering the phone ends up having a degree in horticulture.
He said screw amistar, use this your plants will love it.

iron PHortress

http://www.agdecision.net/maderalab/fclabels/fcliq261.pdf

the use of alternative fungicides for the control of grapevine diseases
http://fpath.cas.psu.edu/FIELD/AltFungicide.html

there's a link at the bottom with the summary.

I now pass this gift on to you good people.

 

[cobain420]

Thanks so much crippled, so you have used it before and it has cured previous PM problems?

 

[crippled1]

I have not used it yet, don't need to.

BTW Phortress is meant to be a foliar spray.

 

[Cruzin]

http://www.agriculturalorganics.com/aspx/products.aspx

Its listed on the site as imuno 1 and 2 with zero information for some reason. If your local shop carries it or if you call an online retailer they should back up what i said. Good Luck!

 

[Clackamas Coot]

The main ingredient in Iron Phortress is 'Soluble Potash' (K2O) which is found in any number of products like Dyna-Gro Pro-Tekt which costs about $14.00 for 36 oz.

Application rate is 1/4 - 1/2 tsp. per gallon meaning that you'll get 300-400 gallons per bottle.

Liquid Sand, Silicon Blast, et al. are similar products with much higher price tags.

HTH

CC

 

[imnotcrazy]

Green Cure (aka 85% Baking soda) works well to remedy the problem as does a self made mixture of baking soda and water w/ a bit of milk (natural fungicide).

Get the leaf surface PH above 8.0 for a while w/ weak/gentile foliar sprays such as baking soda and water and PM can't survive.

 

[Clackamas Coot]

Use of Baking Soda as a Fungicide

This article from the USDA also discusses potassium bicarbonate (Green Cure, Milstop, Remedy, et al.) vs. sodium bicarbonate (baking soda). Baking soda is 80% as effective as potassium bicarbonate at 1/30th the cost.

HTH

CC

 

[bendoslendo]

I really can't say enough for Serenade. I'm a big fan of biological controls. I haven't seen any PM in my gardens since I started using it. Bacillus Subtillus FTW!

 

[Cruzin]

Very interesting read. I will have to try it some time.

 

[darookie2000]

I use SaferGro mildew cure which is basically garlic oil and a few others. The main thing that makes garlic smell is sulfur, so it's probably safer than sulfur if it works