Bacterial Speck-resistant?

We recently had a member request to add this to the PDB section where we list resistance to various diseases.

I'm not familiar with the designation, so I thought I'd ask our "resident experts" - is this becoming a standard notation on resistant varieties? Should it be added to the list?

I've heard it is popping up in Fla but I guess it is beginning to show up in more places now. (Can be transmitted by seeds folks, so seed savers should please remember to fermint.)

Here's a good site with a succinct description and methods to control it. http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/3000/3120.html

Thanks, Shoe. From a cursory reading, it appears the problem is more a function of good hygiene (or lack of it) than - at this point - plants bred to be resistant?

Meaning that if we were next-door neighbors, your seedlings of XYZ variety might be disease-free because you fermented or otherwise treated them and kept a squeaky-clean greenhouse. But my seedlings of the same variety (perhaps second generation from the same package) could have problems because I didn't take the proper steps to ensure the seeds and/or environment were/was disease free.

If that's a fairly accurate assessment, I can't see adding the notation to the database, since the resistance isn't specific to particular varieties (with the possible exception of certain paste tomatoes, which seem to be naturally resistant?)

Maybe it should be added to "Garden Terms"(?) Or would that not be the proper place? Also, can hyperlinks be put in Garden Terms to lead people to the above link so they'd know how to deal with this malady?

Or maybe just leave this thread as is, then when people do a search for Bacterial Speck this thread will lead them there?

Bacterial Speck and Bacterial Spot are the two most common BACTERIAL foliage diseases worldwide as well as being very very prevalent here in the US in almost all areas.

To my knowledge there are no tolerant varieties. With two minor exceptions dealing with Alternaria solani ( Early Blight) there are no tolerant varieties to ANY of the common foliage diseases.

Both speck and spot are transmitted by airborne means initially but then can be shed from infectied plants into the soil where in subsequent years splashback can cause reinfection.

However these diseases are relatively slow moving as compared with the fungal foliage diseases so a harvest is usally obtained.

Commercial growers do have access to certain antibiotics that can be used for spraying, but home gardeners do not. And while copper based sprays are usually used for fungal foliage diseases by those who primarily grow organically, copper has shown some, albeit a small amount, of control.

I don't think most folks realize that seldom does one have one foliage disease at a time, more common would be to see 2-3 at one time.

Many of my toamto varieties have bacterial speck and/or spot every year and I'm sure that's true for many of oyu althugh you may not recognize them. It goes with the territory of growing tomatoes. (smile)

Carolyn