disinfecting stuff

[littleminnie]

How would you disinfect bamboo poles? We all had Septoria Leaf Spot around here and I used bamboo poles and a few metal poles that I have for staking along with a few big cages. I plan to torch the metal stuff to disinfect it. I don't know what to do with the bamboo. If no one knows I plan on calling the extension office. I actually didn't oil and put the poles inside for the winter. I left them outside since there are so many now and that was that. I also have about 30 WOWs and they are all gross in the channels. I normally fill something with bleach water and try to swish them in it but they don't really get clean inside. I don't even think I am going to use them anymore and have contemplated selling them and my soaker hoses on Craigs List (since I am putting in drip irrigation.) I also thought about using them on basil plants and covering with FRC to prevent grasshoppers but it would make the basil such a nuisance to cut and I'm sure I would poke holes with my scissors! I took the WOWs off the tomatoes this fall and put them on some basil plants to get through the cool period before it got real cold. It worked but attracted grasshoppers to the basil leaves.
Oops sorry so long, mainly want to know about the bamboo poles. They are from 3 to 8 feet long.

[lavandulagirl]

Honestly, if I was concerned about spreading something with the bamboo, I'd replace it. However, here where I live, I can buy a dozen poles for less than 15 bucks. But me? I'd burn 'em when I was burning yard waste, or throw them away. If you're averse to burning them, maybe you can use them away from all your plants... I'm sure I could figure some use or another out with my coop, if I didn't want to burn them.

[sandbar]

I'd burn them, too. As Lav said, they are cheap to replace.

Or, you could give them to someone you don't like ...

[littleminnie]

Unfortunately the ones I have are not cheap to replace. I have the really thick, long ones. 1 inch thick and 6-8 feet long and I have about 60 of them used for tomatoes. But I don't want to get SLS again! I need to get enough large cages for all the tomato plants. Wow is that pricey! even when bought used like I have done. I had a dozen big cages that got stolen or something 2 years ago and I sure miss them.

IIRC SLS only affects tomatoes.

[wildseed57]

I know it would be a really hassle, but I think using Bleach on them would be your best bet, unless they have had the insides cut out I don't know what you could do about that unless you drilled a hole and injected bleach into them and then let them drain. keeping them so that they would remain straight is another problem after they get wet, but I don't think that they would be any worse than them getting wet in the rain maybe less. If they are looking all groady from getting dirty you could just white wash them with some thinned down white out door paint, you could even try using a small amount of dry pool bleach powder and mix a small amount of the powdered bleach into the whitewash to kill any bacteria and also seal out any bacteria that you might get later. The bleach powder could be sprayed inside and it would kill just about anything if it was mixed with some water. This is just a guess but worth a try if you don't want to replace them.
George W.

[elkwc36]

I just put mine in a wash tub of clorox water for 15 minutes. You can swish them around some and they will become disinfected pretty well. I also spray my cages ect with a strong spray on a cooler day where they will stay wet for a time. And then wash them off. These methods work well for me. Jay

[Joseph Lofthouse]

Septoria is so common in the environment (due to overwintering on many wild tomato relatives) that I wonder how much benefit would come from disinfecting the bamboo poles... I'm betting that using infected bamboo poles to lift the vines off the ground would be better than not using the poles and subjecting the plants to more humidity closer to the ground....

Bleach is a great disinfecting agent... I'd probably use a piece of PVC pipe that was big enough to hold the pole, and just dip them in one after another.

Since Septoria is primarily a humidity related disease,
I wonder if there are cultural things you can do to minimize septoria?... For example spacing plants and rows much further apart so that they dry out quicker and don't provide such a good moist habitat for septoria?... And/or furrowing the bed and planting on the tops of the furrows?... And/or not covering tomatoes with season extenders which trap humidity?... And/or orienting the beds so that the prevailing wind blows right up the rows rather than getting blocked by them?... And/or mulching tomato beds with sand instead of compost so that they do not retain so much moisture?... And/or drip irrigating instead of sprinkling?... And/or watering less often?...

In my garden I space tomato rows 5 feet apart with plants 3 to 4 feet apart in the rows. I might space more than that if I had humidity related septoria problems.

Regards,
Joseph

[littleminnie]

Great idea to use a PVC. I might try that as it is hard to find a container to even fit half. I use a garbage can or recycling bin when I disinfect my seedling trays but have nothing big enough for the poles.
Here are pictures of my tomatoes in 2010. Everyone had SLS in the area. I had two potted tomatoes at home 3.5 miles away on my deck and they got it later in the season too. I do mean to call the extension office about it since it was so prevalent in the state.



Here are photos from 2009 when I had a bumper crop of maters.

I plant them 3-3.5 feet apart and 3-4 feet in between rows.

[sandbar]

If you have access to a 55 gallon drum, you could mix a bleach solution in there and stick one end in the water for a period of time (maybe a half hour or so) and then pull them out and stick the other end in.

Have a friend that does that with all his wooden stakes every year. He was in a hurry this year and didn't disinfect. He paid for it. Lost his tomato crop.

[sandbar]

BTW, nice pics.

[sandbar]

If you have a piece of discarded rain gutter lying around, you could make a little trough out of it and fill it up with bleach water and dip them

[Joseph Lofthouse]

That's a great looking tomato patch! What is the purpose of the black plastic? Soil warming? Season extender? Weed proofing?

[littleminnie]

Thanks. I use the weed blocker for mostly weed prevention and water retention. It doesn't really warm the soil much when you check with a thermometer. I have used the heavy fabric for a couple years and it is still good. I use the cheap black plastic for the cucurbits and sweet potatoes. Everything else just has straw and cardboard for paths under the straw.
PS I will not be using the old weed blocker on the new tomatoes. They will be where the cucurbits were last year with the old black plastic. The old weed blocker will be used here and there for paths only next year. Also tomatoes, some peas and beans are the only things I grow in single rows. They need the air movement.