crunchy gardener
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Location: Cambridge Wisconsin

compost contamination with early blight

I have a compost pile that has 3 walls. Honestly I don't do to much with it. I try to turn it at least once a summer. I throw grass, select weeds, dirt, food scrapes, coffee and tea, and garden plants and flowers when they are finished for the season. I have had early blight in two of my garden beds the last two summers. I keep discovering them as I move my tomatoes. By throwing weeds and tomatoes from those 2 beds in my compost will that transfer the fungus? I'm wondering if it's safe to spread that compost into beds this year or if I should just clear it out start fresh and not add anything from those 2 beds to it. Thank you!

Liz in Zone 7a
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You mentioned grass clippings in the compost and my first thought was if you amend your lawn with any chemicals at all (e.g. weed and feed)? To your question though, whether or not there are any signs of an issue I don't put any tomato waste into my compost heap because I don't think it gets hot enough to kill fungus/mold/virus etc.

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applestar
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Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M(11/B)

Have you been putting tomato leaves and vines with obvious signs of Early Blight in the compost pile?

When I prune off Early Blight and Septoria affected tomato leaves, I usually bag them and throw them out in the trash, but I do put any healthy leaves and vines in the compost. After the growing season is over or the tomato plant has died for some reason (disease, heat) I cut them off at ground level and would bag and put badly diseased ones in the trash, but if the cause is more senescence (determinate varieties) and not serious disease, then I put them in the compost especially in the height of the summer when the compost pile naturally runs hot and can be heated up with a little tweaking.

Early Blight doesn't seem to me to be a very serious issue -- some of my plants get it but they usually out grow the disease, and Septoria, also. I do spray with milk solution.

Late Blight with brown-black lesions on stems and fruits is another matter, and I've made sure to bag everything including roots if lesions has spread down to ground level.

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applestar
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Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M(11/B)

One way to try to overcome some of the pesky fungi, disease, etc. if you are worried, is to infuse you compost pile with good microbes. One way would be a small amount of good commercial compost or earthworm castings. You could multiply the microbial population by making AACT (actively aerated compost tea) following good tea brewing practices.

If you are REALLY worried, you could try to bring your compost pile up to pasteurizing temp for recommended period of time before using it.



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