Farmers and backyard gardeners have much in common. They both invest physically, financially and emotionally in their crop. They both battle weeds, bugs, bad weather and crop disease.
Late blight, a disease that’s particularly hard on tomatoes and potatoes, is a threat in both gardens and commercials fields. This is the disease that caused the horrific Irish potato famines of the 1840s.
Now, a group of area organizations have published a guide to the disease. Besides offering a lot of useful written information, the guide provides color images of infected plants.
The guide is available on the North Dakota State University web site at www.ag.ndsu.edu/extplantpath/plant-diagnostic-lab/documents/LB-042911.pdf.
Despite its name, the disease can strike at any time. So if you’re planting potatoes or tomatoes, you might want to check out the guide early in the growing season.
