Late blight, which caused the Irish Potato Famine of the 1840s and 1850s, is killing potato and tomato plants in home gardens from Maine to Ohio and threatening commercial and organic farms, U.S. plant scientists said on Friday.
“Late blight has never occurred this early and this widespread in the United States,” said Meg McGrath, a plant pathologist at Cornell University’s extension center in Riverhead, New York.
She said the fungal disease, spread by spores carried in the air, has made its way into the garden centers of large retail chains in the Northeastern United States.
“Wal-mart, Home Depot, Sears, Kmart and Lowe’s are some of the stores the plants have been seen in,” McGrath said in a telephone interview.
The disease, known officially as Phytophthora infestans, causes large mold-ringed olive-green or brown spots on plant leaves, blackened stems, and can quickly wipe out weeks of tender care in a home garden.
McGrath said in her 21 years of research, she has only seen five outbreaks in the United States. The destructive disease can spread rapidly in cooler, moist weather, infecting an entire field within days.
“What’s unique about it this year is we have never seen plants affected in garden centers being sold to home gardeners,” she said.
This year’s cool, wet weather created perfect conditions for the disease. “Hopefully, it will turn sunny,” McGrath said. “If we get into our real summer hot dry weather, this disease is going to slow way down.”
FUNGICIDES WILL CONTROL BLIGHT
According to its website, the University Maryland’s Plant Diagnostic Lab got a suspect tomato sample as early as June 12, very early in the tomato growing season, which runs from April-September.
McGrath said the risk is that many gardeners will not recognize it, putting commercial farms and especially organic growers at risk.
“My concern is for growers. They are going to have to put a lot more time and effort in trying to control the disease. It’s going to be a very tough year,” she said.
“This pathogen can move great distances in the air. It often does little jumps, but it can make some big leaps.”
McGrath said the impact on the farmer will depend on how much the pathogen is spread. “Eastern New York is seeing a lot of disease,” she said.
She said commercial farmers will be able to use fungicides containing chlorothalonil to control the blight.
And while some sprays have also been approved for organic use, many organic farmers do not use them, making it much harder to control.
“If they are not on top of this right from the very beginning, it can go very fast,” she said.
(Editing by Maggie Fox and Lisa Shumaker)
By CHRIS JOHNSON
It seems Lily Allen has still not mastered the art of preserving her modesty.
Following her recent wardrobe malfunction at Glastonbury where her cleavage tape went awry, the singer was at it again after she ‘inadvertently’ flashed her bust mid song.
The 24-year-old star was on stage performing at the 43rd Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland when she made the slip.
Exposed: A bra-less Lily Allen had a wardrobe malfunction as her dress came away at the bust as she performed at the Montreux Jazz Festival
After lifting her arm in the air in a seemingly graceful pose, crowds were left smiling as the songstress’s loosely-fitting dress came away around her chest to reveal a bra-less Allen.
It’s certainly not the first time The Fear singer has experienced such a mishap.
In fact ‘accidental’ flashes of her bust and underwear appear to be becoming part of her repertoire.
At her recent stint at Glastonbury, Lily shrieked and was nearly disrobed again after her cleavage tape ‘fell off’.
No Fear: The singer made the slip as she took to the stage in a gaping, sleeveless mini-dress at the Stravinski Hall on Tuesday
The singer shrieked at festival-goers: ‘My t*t tape has fallen off!’
Lily, who is currently in the throes of a world tour, has also been finding time to do the rounds at the summer festivals.
She made her appearance at the the Jazz festival on Tuesday at the Stravinski Hall, one of the venues where the three-week-long event is taking place.
And it seems the singer’s run of gigs is working wonders for her figure.
Over the years her weight has fluctuated, but she now appears to be at her most toned to date.
Smile: Lily has made time to perform at a host of summer festivals while she is on her world tour
By SIMON CABLE and DONNA MCCONNELL
It’s been only three weeks since she left her home in poverty-stricken Malawi.
Yet little Mercy James seems to have had no trouble adapting to the jet-set lifestyle as the latest addition to Madonna’s growing brood.
Despite the four-year-old barely having time to settle into the multimillion-dollar New York apartment she now shares with her adoptive mother, she has been whisked off to Paris.
Give me a moment, Mummy: Mercy James stops to look around as she and Madonna arrive at the Ritz Hotel in Paris yesterday
The pair arrived at the Ritz hotel ahead of Madonna’s performance in the French capital last night as part of her Sticky And Sweet world tour.
Also in the party were Madonna’s adopted son David, three, and daughter Lourdes, 13.
Only son Rocco, who yesterday attended the Harry Potter premiere in London, could not be seen.
The experience is certainly a long way from life in Malawi, where Mercy had been living in a mud hut prior to her adoption last month.
I can't believe it: Mercy holds tight to Madonna's hand as she takes in her new surroundings
Luxury suites at the Ritz cost up to £11,000 a night, while a meal in its restaurant is around £150 a head, with the menu featuring duck foie gras and lobster salad among the delicacies.
In contrast, Malawi’s national dish is a basic maize-based meal called nsima.
On Wednesday Mercy was swept into the hotel dressed from head to foot in designer clothes. It follows her fleeting visit to London last month where she stayed at the 50-year-old singer’s £15million Mayfair mansion after arriving by private jet from Africa.
A typical house in the area of Malawi where Mercy lived
- The Paris Ritz, where Mercy stayed with Madonna
An onlooker said: ‘Mercy looks as though she is getting used to the high life. She still looks a little-confused by it all but she is now smiling and striking poses in the street for the cameras.
‘She has only been living with Madonna for a matter of weeks yet she has already visited more countries than some people will see in a lifetime.’
Clutching her new mother’s hand, four-year-old Mercy insisted on stopping in the street as they got out of their car in front of the hotel.
He ain't heavy: Madonna's adopted son David is carried into the hotel by a friend
Still holding tight for reassurance, she twisted around to take in the beauty of the Paris street and the imposing facade of the Ritz.
In a pale pink hooded jacket, jeans and matching pink pumps,she looked like any little girl dressed by a fashion-conscious mother.
The only remaining hint of her former life in Malawi was her beaded cornrowed hairstyle.
Big sister: Lourdes is in Paris too although it looks like brother Rocco stayed in London with father Guy after attending the Harry Potter premiere
Mercy is going to have to get used to travelling – albeit in luxurious style – as her pop star mother shows no signs of slowing down her career.
Meanwhile Madonna is said to be in talks with Simon Cowell about performing on this year’s series of The X Factor.
A show source told The Sun: ‘The last series proved anything is possible when Beyonce performed with Alex – the final got 15 million viewers and that is enough to entice the biggest stars onto our stage.
‘This year is going to be bigger than ever – we are planning to get the best names in music. Madonna would be so sensational.
Other stars possibly in the running to appear on the ITV show are Robbie Williams, Lady Gaga and Rihanna.
