We live in a country where the grey menace thrives outdoors around this time of year mainly due to our cool wet climate.
There's probably not one of us who have grown outdoors that has'nt suffered and lost plants and potential harvests because of the horrible grey plague.

While we cant do anything about the weather we can help our plants and give them a fighting chance by using anti-fungal agents ( non-systemic ), training, keeping our gardens clean and hygenic and by growing mould resistant strains.

Here's what I'm doing this year to help the plants out.

^ is a recipe for disaster for the following reasons.

1. the plant is too bushy, there is minimal airflow between the branches.
2.weeds and organic matter are surrounding he plant,when they die back in a month or so they will provide a great home for botrytis.
3.lower branches are too close to the soil and decomposing organic matter.


^ these pics are of the same plant after preventivate measure were taken.

Every weed and bit of organic matter was cleared and the soil was left bare,roots were removed and the soil was treated with Serenade in an attempt to kill any spores remaining.
The bare earth was then covered with weed control fabric and then covered with plastic sheeting.
Weed control fabric is pourous so the layer of plastic on top prevents rain from splashing the spores in the soil onto the plant.

lower branches were removed and the cuts were cleanes with hydrogen peroxide before using a sealing agent.

The plant was then trained to improve airflow between the branches.
The sun travels east to west so the brances that were shaded by the hedge were either removed or trained into a position where they will recieve more direct sunlight.
Plants will sway in the wind so just using rope/twine or coated wire will chaff the branches.
I use hemp twine treated with armillox and old bicycle inner tube to tie on to.
There is a bit of give in the rubber which will help in times of high winds and spores wont get a foothold on it's smooth surface nor will it chaff the branch.
I used bamboo stakes because of it's resistance to mould or rot and it's smooth surface will be washed clean in the rain.

Apart from that I'm using Mycostop and Serenade alternating on a weekly basis on the plant itself.
The plastic is given a daily wash with hydrogen peroxide,it breaks down quickly and wont harm the plant.

Another important thing to remember is to treat the plants surrounding your MJ plants with anti-fungal solutions, if it's not an eddible or smokable plant use a good strong systemic spray.

I hope this is of some help to you guys who brave the elements and try to grow outdoors.
Stay safe and happy all

Thanks cookie. Ill def be taking what you said into account.

[Hundred Gram Oz]

Unfortunately on our wee island mold is a major problem for outdoor growers, always remove all dead leaves, if you see any leaves (dead or alive) laying on the ground around your garden then GET RID OF THEM, dead leaves and moisture are a bubbling cauldron for mold. Never water at night, make sure you water first thing in the morning, high humidity is molds best friend, mold cannot grow easily at humidity levels below 50% so keep that in mind.

Make up some sprays, a real good spray is a baking soda, horticulture oil, and water mix, baking soda is a contact fungicide and will kill the mold in minutes. Keep in mind that mold will show resistance so don't use bicarbonate as your only defensive spray, there are a few other organic mixes out there, you should do some research. Mold will flourish when giving a chance and will destroy your garden so it's up to you to stop it at any and every chance you get.

HGO

[Hundred Gram Oz]

Cookie I'm going to go ahead and make this thread a sticky, mold is a major killer for us Irish outdoor growers. Feel free to pack this thread full of information folks

HGO

got a Finger length patch of mold on a stem wtf should i do?

Some more tid bits of info,

Copper sulphate sprays are used on food crops to prevent and control botrytis as is bordeaux mixture (copper sulphate+lime).

Training plants to ensure that buds and leaves receive more light reduces the chances of botrytis getting a foot hold as it prefers to grow in shaded conditions like those found under the canopy of our outdoor plants.

Of interest to indoor growers is that studys on tomatoes grown in greenhouses have shown that botrytis is not a big fan of UV light.

Rows of toms were illuminated with UV lights ( black lights) for a period 3 times a day.
Compared to untreated plants infection rates were lower.

When I'm not so stoned and tired I'll edit the post with details and links

[Yes4Prop215]

UV lights kill bud rot? thats pretty cool....i havent had botrytis yet but ive had plenty of Powder Mildew. my key now is simply keeping humidity down. when running a soil setup, with 2 days between waterings, it really keeps humidity down below 40%.

i havent seen any mold on this crop yet..crosses fingers.

Originally Posted by Yes4Prop215

UV lights kill bud rot? thats pretty cool....

I thought so too , it might go to explain why indoors it always starts on the inside of the bud and rarely on the exposed stem as can happen outdoors.

A lot of the botrytis cures also work on PM.

[greenjoint]

just use a sulphur hotbox cures all the above The Hotbox Sulfume sulphur vapouriser helps to protect crops from fungal diseases such as Mildew, Botrytis and Black Spot. It also inhibits the spread of greenhouse pests.

Originally Posted by greenjoint

just use a sulphur hotbox cures all the above The Hotbox Sulfume sulphur vapouriser helps to protect crops from fungal diseases such as Mildew, Botrytis and Black Spot. It also inhibits the spread of greenhouse pests.

Hiya Greenjoint
Is that safe to use around pets and wildlife?