The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Growing => Fruit => Topic started by: AnnaB on September 20, 2015, 11:14:34 pm
-
A friend gave me quince tree years ago and because my orchard plans were a good from reality it lived in a pot. Finally panted out 4 years ago it is growing but doesn't seem happy.
The leaves come out pale green and healthy looking then get black spots, shrivel up and drop off, new leaves then come further up the stems.
It has had small amounts of blossom tho' none this year but never any fruit.
I'm presuming this is quince leaf blight .....what can I do now most fungicides are unavailable
Is it contagious to my apple, pear and plum trees ?
-
I get similar on some of my pear trees... quince rootstock.
DIY bordeaux mixture works with an early spray as the leaves frm and another midseason. The same solves my peach leaf curl and prevented blight on the spuds this year (first spray when a smith period was reported), In fact this is my first blight free spud season and the crop is huge.
Wikepaedia has the mix ratios and the quicklime and copper suphate can be bought as chemicals from the bay.
It;s probably too late to bother this year since the leaves are going to fall soon anyway - unless the tree is near death.
Use caution when mixing quicklime... add slowly to the volume of water and be aware that it's exothermic. can boil and splatter. Not something you want in your eyes. I dissolve each half into seperate empty pop bottles and then throw them together in the sprayer as needed.
-
Thanks will get the husband on the task .....sounds like a boy job mixing chemicals :eyelashes:
-
I get similar on some of my pear trees... quince rootstock.
DIY bordeaux mixture works with an early spray as the leaves frm and another midseason. The same solves my peach leaf curl and prevented blight on the spuds this year (first spray when a smith period was reported), In fact this is my first blight free spud season and the crop is huge.
Wikepaedia has the mix ratios and the quicklime and copper suphate can be bought as chemicals from the bay.
It;s probably too late to bother this year since the leaves are going to fall soon anyway - unless the tree is near death.
Use caution when mixing quicklime... add slowly to the volume of water and be aware that it's exothermic. can boil and splatter. Not something you want in your eyes. I dissolve each half into seperate empty pop bottles and then throw them together in the sprayer as needed.
What did you use for your quick lime PK .. hydrated lime from a builders merchant ???
I've got my coppersulphate crystals out in the garage.
-
I bought Calcium Oxide from ebay... a quick look now shows some silly prices there that have to be errors. I can;t remember for sure but since I'm inherently mean i doubt I paid as much as a tenner for my 1kg delivered. There are some import cheapos listed.paypal should give you security or buy it as hydrated lime and recalulate the amounts. It wont all dissolve anyway and leaves a fine suspension.
Or if really into DIY make your own CaO... chalk, seashells, marble.. whatever you have locally and then build a small lime kiln powered by home made charcoal. We've lost these skills. there's a hill fort in St Lucia that was built by the British Navy a few hundred years ago from seashell mortar with the remans of the lime kiln still at the base of the cliff.
-
Thanks I too I saw the high prices last night ..
They are adjusted by the shop owner to give folk an interest to put it on watch .
Usually done when they have sold all stock and are bringing in more . Evidently it keeps the advert for the item live in their shop , so they don't have to close the listing and then make a new one when the new goods arrive ..they just change the price .
I did a Wikki on slaked lime .. I wondered if might be able to convert some builders lime ( hydrated lime ) once I finish building my small propane fired melting furnace of low heat metals such as brass , copper , aluminium & various alloys .
As things stand at present wrt me & my spinal rehab , it may be much quicker to buy a seal-able container of it for a few quid when it shows up as more sensible price.