I found that out the HARD way! My whole garden began to die off, with brown splotches on the leaves... I had to take the leaves to a co-op place to get a diagnosis... I was told that tobacco has a nasty fungus on the leaves...and my smoking and then even touching my plants had been my undoing! They called it Tobacco Mosiac, and it's highly contagious in the garden! I lost the whole thing in less than 10 days. No way to stop it. And then there was this little tidbit of infornation: I have successfully poisoned my soil for some time with that fungus now! If you smoke, don't step on your cigarette butts and then walk into your garden. ALWAYS: Wash your hands before you touch anything after smoking! Man that fungus really bites!
mmm - Now I'll have to be more carefull with all my plants. I knew not to smoke anywhere near Tomato plants or touch them whilst or after smoking but this takes it to a whole new level. Damn thanks.
tomatoes, peppers and potatoes as well as nightshade are all related to tobacco any of them can and will carry the mossaic virus and pass it along something i learned a long time ago
Very interesting DF. I wonder what that tobaccy looked liked before they dried it?? Splotchy like your tomato plants? That sounds like some prime stuff you're smoking Seriously, you need to quit I found this most interesting because I was contemplating planting tobacco next year. For reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tobacco_mosaic_virus
Plant hygiene is important generally in the garden Although TMV affects plants of the Solanaceae family, it is always a good idea to carry out good gardening hygiene generally when looking after a productive garden. Remove all diseased plant material as soon as it is spotted. Do not use as mulch and don't compost it unless using very hot composting techniques, otherwise it should be disposed of in a bin, by burning or by deep burying. Clean all tools with disinfectant and wash hands immediately after handling infected plant material to ensure that you are not spreading disease around the garden yourself. Be careful of spreading soil from areas that have suffered from problems such as clubroot, root aphids etc. Keep plants cut back and well spaced so that air can circulate well. Damp areas with little ventilation help fungal diseases, moulds and many others to survive. Use clean, sterilised potting soil when filling potting containers Clean glass houses, cold frames and cloches (row covers) well each year. Water the base of plants rather than the foliage, and try and avoid water splash back off the ground Control pests that spread diseases such as aphids etc Remove Fallen Fruit that may harbour pests and diseases that could enable them to over winter to affect your crop the following year. Here are a few useful links concerning plant hygiene. Hygiene in plant propagation : Nursery and Garden Industry Australia Gardening Australia - Fact Sheet: Garden Hygiene Garden Hygiene: Essential Garden Cleanup | Organic Gardening 101 Garden Hygiene Garden hygiene / RHS Gardening
if you grow yuour own tobacco you can control TMV not let it go wild like the tobacco comps do they dont care if the tobacco looks bad, no one sees it, they just smoke it
My father would throw cigarette butts into a can of water. After the water was tan colored, he'd strain it and use it as an insecticide(?).
Yes....but! Yes, you are right about the insecticidal use of tobacco tea, but it is not recommended for plants of the nightshade / solonaceae family of plants (tomatoes, capsicums / peppers, aubergine (eggplant) potatoes etc) because of infection with TMV. Probably best for ornamental plants, fruit trees etc if you have to use it....it relies on nicotene for the active ingredient. Neem oil, and pyrethrum based insecticides are probably safer than tobacco based sprays. Don't use pyrethrum on flowering plants when in flower, as it will kill bees and other beneficial insects as well as problem bugs. Neem oil - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Discover Neem Oil: Uses, Benefits, Recipes and Remedies Make your own natural bug sprays Pyrethrin, Pyrethrum, pyrethrin insecticide, pyrethrin fogging products DIY Organic Pesticide Homemade Insecticide Information And Recipes
garlic oil works wonders too but it does kill some plants like pumpkins....(wife learned that the hard way )
I've read pyrethrum is safe around humans and animals. I live in a forest where bugs are both numerous and invasive and I have dogs. So I am interested in safe solutions. Black Widows are especially bad this year.
