The Monterey Garden Club

 Research at Virginia Tech indicates blight is encouraged by excessive moisture and low soil fertility. It usually does not survive in healthy soil.  It is suggesed that you make soil enrichment and environmental management your garden priorities for 2010.

Let's start with what you can do now:

• 1. Remove all spent tomato vines and other plant debris from the growing area. Make sure there are no "volunteer" plants remaining that sprang up from dropped seeds. Haul the plant debris completely out of the garden area.
• 2. Apply greensand, rock phosphate and fresh compost. Work this into the soil before the end of October. This will ensure adequate nutrition is available in the spring. Top the growing area this fall with several inches of chopped autumn leaves and grass clippings. Keep this soil-enriching blanket on top of the growing area all winter. Think of it as a winter refuge for earthworms.
• Select tomato varieties next spring that are disease resistant. "Legend" is a new (2001) variety reportedly resistant to blight. Also look for letters on the plant label such as VFNT. This indicates the variety is resistant to Verticillium wilt (V), Fusarium wilt (F), nematodes (N) and tobacco mosaic (T).
• Ensure consistent soil moisture by using plastic mulch and drip irrigation. Black or red plastic mulch will prevent soil moisture from escaping while also preventing the plant root zone from becoming saturated in wet weather. Drip irrigation allows the gardener to control the amount of soil moisture.

Always destroy blight-infested plants immediately. The fungus spreads rapidly and contaminates soil. As a preventive measure, spray plants with a home garden fungicide every seven to 10 days early in the season. The best defense against blight is sanitation and healthy soil. Strive to enrich your soil so it becomes earthworm friendly, has plenty of organic matter and adequate nutrients for plant growth

Information thanks to Jeff Ishee: The Staunton Daily New Leader