The last several years our pumpkin, squash and cucumbers have been getting hammered by the downy mildew fungus. He have used several products and techniques to retard the problem during the growth period of the plants, but what I am looking for is a way to STERILIZE the ground to get rid of this fungus once and for all. Does anybody have any ideas.
thanks in advance
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mortgage lifter
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This is something that we need to look farther into. I have read you can spray bleach to kill fungis and disease. I have the same problem with my pumpkins late in the season. I have problems with powdery mildew. I spray baking soda to help control it. I want to try the bleach deal, but I don't know how much? what harm to beneficial insects and worms? So good luck and I'm going to read more on the subject.
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opabinia51
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Welcome to the Helpful Gardener,
Sterilizing the ground will not solve the problem. What it will do is compound the problem that you have because what you will end up doing is artificially selecting for organisms that are resistant to whatever product you use to sterilize the soil.
Moreover, you may end up killing the powdery mildew fungus (most likely not) but, what you will definately do is irreversibly kill and decimate the populations of beneficial soil organisms that are in your soil. This includes plants, animals, other fungi (the vast majority of fungal organisms are actually beneficial to plants) and bacteria.
What works really well for powdery mildew is a foliar spray of Milk as a preventative method and as a treatment. Also, brew yourself an aerated compost tea and use it as a foliar spray.
Furthermore, do not plant your squash, etc in the same place each year because what you are doing by planting these plants in the same spot is promoting the growth of Erysiphe spp. and Sphaerotheca spp (powdery mildew) by providing a common substrate and nutrient profile.
Sterilization will definately cause you more problems than any it may solve.
You will be inviting disease to your garden by killing all the beneficial flora and fauna.
Sterilizing the ground will not solve the problem. What it will do is compound the problem that you have because what you will end up doing is artificially selecting for organisms that are resistant to whatever product you use to sterilize the soil.
Moreover, you may end up killing the powdery mildew fungus (most likely not) but, what you will definately do is irreversibly kill and decimate the populations of beneficial soil organisms that are in your soil. This includes plants, animals, other fungi (the vast majority of fungal organisms are actually beneficial to plants) and bacteria.
What works really well for powdery mildew is a foliar spray of Milk as a preventative method and as a treatment. Also, brew yourself an aerated compost tea and use it as a foliar spray.
Furthermore, do not plant your squash, etc in the same place each year because what you are doing by planting these plants in the same spot is promoting the growth of Erysiphe spp. and Sphaerotheca spp (powdery mildew) by providing a common substrate and nutrient profile.
Sterilization will definately cause you more problems than any it may solve.
You will be inviting disease to your garden by killing all the beneficial flora and fauna.
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mortgage lifter
- Newly Registered
- Posts: 4
- Joined: Thu Jan 10, 2008 6:20 pm
- Location: Reading,Ohio
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opabinia51
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 4659
- Joined: Thu Oct 21, 2004 5:58 pm
- Location: Victoria, BC
You are both more than welcome, That's what we are here for. 
I wish I could remember the name of the book with all the different non synthetic remedies for plant diseases to give you but, I have forgotten the name.
But, try planting something different in your acre for a few years just to try to eliminate the population of powdery mildew fungi which obviously feast on your squash.
Perhaps try corn for a year and then plant some legumes along with a soil soil buider like rye, oats, wheat and so on the next year.
Incidentally, another way to stave off disease is to not plant monocrops of plants, look up companion planting on the internet:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_companion_plants
https://www.ghorganics.com/page2.html
And you can also look at creating guilds in your garden.
Basically the crutch of what I am talking about is variation creates buffers against disease organisms from spreadidng therefore, if you have different plants in your planting area say a patch of squash amonst some corn (they are companion plants) and some legumes (peas, beans) amongst the squash and corn. You have a) already broken up transition of airborne funal spores between squash plant
b) The soil itself is diversified and will have different fungi and bacteria associating with the different roots and therefore defend against disease
Anyway, then you could have a buffer area of a root vegetable like carrots, parsnip, potatoes with their companion plants (Something that would grow above the soil). This would surround or just lay on one side of the squash area.
And so on you go.
Of course your harvesting technique would have to change as well but, disease will find it very difficult to take hold of your crops because there is such variation
I wish I could remember the name of the book with all the different non synthetic remedies for plant diseases to give you but, I have forgotten the name.
But, try planting something different in your acre for a few years just to try to eliminate the population of powdery mildew fungi which obviously feast on your squash.
Perhaps try corn for a year and then plant some legumes along with a soil soil buider like rye, oats, wheat and so on the next year.
Incidentally, another way to stave off disease is to not plant monocrops of plants, look up companion planting on the internet:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_companion_plants
https://www.ghorganics.com/page2.html
And you can also look at creating guilds in your garden.
Basically the crutch of what I am talking about is variation creates buffers against disease organisms from spreadidng therefore, if you have different plants in your planting area say a patch of squash amonst some corn (they are companion plants) and some legumes (peas, beans) amongst the squash and corn. You have a) already broken up transition of airborne funal spores between squash plant
b) The soil itself is diversified and will have different fungi and bacteria associating with the different roots and therefore defend against disease
Anyway, then you could have a buffer area of a root vegetable like carrots, parsnip, potatoes with their companion plants (Something that would grow above the soil). This would surround or just lay on one side of the squash area.
And so on you go.
Of course your harvesting technique would have to change as well but, disease will find it very difficult to take hold of your crops because there is such variation