Neem oil for blight is a very potent and robust remedy only if you have the right neem oil spray and know precisely how and when to use it. Blight can also attack a variety of other home and commercial plants, so neem oil can be used for all the blight-infected plants.
In this article, we will take you through the process of using neem oil as a foliar spray to effectively and quickly get rid of blight on your tomato plants so let us get started.
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How To Remove Blight Using Neem Oil Spray?
You can remove blight by using neem oil spray by inspecting the plant, arranging the neem oil spray, and choosing a dry day. Then, you can go ahead and start spraying the plant, and finally applying aftercare and preventative measures so the blight does not come back.
Blight is caused by fungal diseases and can be very invasive as it can consume the surface of the leaves. It is very fast in growing and looks like water drops first but soon turns into blight. All in all, neem oil can be very potent in stopping the spread of the blight, which is why when you see the first sign of blight, move to use neem oil.
1. Inspect the Plant
The first step in the process is to inspect the plant thoroughly. Unlike insects and bug infections, blight is very visible to the naked eye. This is the case if the spread has gone out of hand. In the start, the blight will look like tiny water droplets and later on turn to brown and burned patches on the leaf surfaces, but you must ensure that you are inspecting well to know where to use the oil in the long run.
The browning of the leaf is a dangerous state for the plant to be in because the leaves account for the photosynthesis from which the plants make their own food. If the leaves are affected, the plant might not get the required food and eventually become dry and die.
So make sure that before many of the leaves come under the fire of blight, start working on strategies to stop blight spread and tackle it just as you see them. Before going into a much deeper cleanse of the insect, if the invasion is small or has just started, you might want to hose the insects with plain water a medium pressure.
The water will remove the insects, and you can manually remove them from around your plants. Keep in mind that this will only work when the insects are very small in number. If the number of insects is much larger, follow the further steps to get rid of them, keeping your plants healthy and thriving.
2. Choose A Dry Day
Choose a dry day for spraying the plants as this will help the neem oil work better. This is because you should start by spraying the plants from the top then make your way down to the roots of the plant, and you shouldn’t do so in the heat of the day as the sun is blazing, and it can harm the plants. Hence, go for it in the afternoon when there is no chance of rain.
It is totally fine if the neem oil spray goes here and there because it is safe for almost all plants except for the ones with wispy leaves like oregano, basil, and thyme. After carefully and generously spraying the plants with neem oil, leave the plants be for some time.
The worst time to use neem oil for blight-infected plants is definitely nighttime because at night, the neem oil does not work well as compared to when sprayed on the plants in the daylight. The sun plays a crucial role in neem oil work, but of course not the bright and direct one.
Additionally, spraying neem oil in rainy or cold weather may also be useless as the neem oil may be washed away or cease to work in those weathers. This is why make sure that if you want the neem oil spray to work well, you will need to use it in the proper and recommended way.
This is when the sun is out, and it is a dry day which will help the neem oil to work at its maximum potential.
3. Arrange the Neem Oil
Neem oil is a natural oil that has the power of a pesticide and insecticide, all packed into one powerful oil and extracted from the neem seeds and tree. The natural antimicrobial chemical compound found in neem oil is called azadirachtin and is very potent against very wide and diverse varieties of insects and bugs that may harm your plants or pets.
Neem oil is thus a very effective and easily available remedy and the best thing about it is that it is non-toxic to humans, making it safe to use. The second step in the process is arranging the neem oil spray that will be sprayed on the plants to remove the insects and their infection.
You can buy a neem oil spray from any plant shop or online because they are available everywhere and with various chemicals added that offer additional powers to the spray. In case, you want to spray the neem oil plants with edible fruits or vegetables on them, it is best to use the neem oil that has the least amount of chemicals and preservatives in it.
This will ensure that your plants are not getting sprayed on by any chemicals that prove to be toxic later on. If you are using such a spray, make sure to wash your sprayed-on fruits or vegetables very nicely before consuming them.
Additionally, you can also choose to make your own neem oil spray at home. You can do this by getting a gallon of water with two to three tablespoons of neem oil and a kitchen-safe dishwashing liquid in a container. This is a better option, because you can mix a small quantity with so much water as you dilute, and it will do a great job.
Mix all of these ingredients together until a solution is formed. You can use this homemade solution like you would use the store-bought one but this solution might not have a long shelf-life as the other one because it is devoid of any and all preservatives.
4. Spray the Plant
The third step in the process is to spray the plant with the solution of neem oil, either homemade or store-bought. The first thing you must remember here is that protective gear is of utmost importance.
It will save you from getting any bugs or insects on your clothes and later on to your skin. You can also protect your eyes, as you wear eye goggles, gardening gloves, overalls, a face mask if sprays are involved, and gardening boots if you plan on going inside the garden with taller plants.
For spraying, the container should have a nozzle with adjustable hole sizes because this will make the spraying much easier and non-tiring. You will also be able to use the spray more widely and consistently throughout the plant, and this way, it will spread well and in an even way.
Note that using too much oil on blight-infected plants is bad because after the neem oil has effectively killed the blight, the excess oil will seep into the soil and change its conditions. The soil may no longer be right for plantation of any sort until fixed, on the same notion, it can also be harmful as it blocks any airway.
The neem oil has antibacterial properties and a bitter taste. The soil can tolerate a little change in the pH, but a higher pH change can be catastrophic for the plants in a bigger quantity. The soil may lose its integrity and make it harder for you to grow any new plants.
To rectify this mistake, you will need to take some measures to fix the soil like adding new soil or using a pH stabilizer.
5. Apply Aftercare
The last step in the process is to apply the aftercare which will include making a schedule of reapplication of neem oil and also fixing protective and preventative guards that will help protect the plants from future invasions and infestations.
Make sure that after use, you store the neem oil in a cool and dry place, so it does not get spoiled in the short run, even though the lifespan is not that long.
Lastly, the neem oil will start killing the insects and when it does, make sure you remove the dead insects from the plants as they will rot there. Sometimes, the rotting insects can have a very bad smell and attract other beings.
It may be possible that blight may go after just a single coat of neem oil spray but the best thing here is to apply multiple coats so that you can be sure that the problem of blight is taken care of. Even then, keep your guard up because blight could come back.
It is best to do at least two to three coats of neem oil to ensure the blight is gone for good. The neem oil will also work very well when you use it in the right conditions which are in the daylight and on a bright sunny day. So make sure that the neem oil is used in a good setting and in a recommended dosage for the best and most effective results.
Conclusion
In this article, we talked about the simplest way of using neem oil for blight but in case you missed anything, here is a short conclusion of the important points in the article:
- You can remove blight by using neem oil spray in four simple steps: inspecting the plant, arranging the neem oil spray, spraying the plant, and finally applying aftercare and preventative measures so the bight does not come back.
- Tomato plants are the most common plants to get the curse of blight which is why neem oil can be effectively used to remove the blight from the infected outdoor or indoor plants and also act as a preventative measure for them.
- In the start, the blight will look like tiny water droplets and later on turn to brown and burned patches on the leaf surfaces.
- Make sure to remove the killed insects from the plants as they can cause a very bad smell and attract other beings to the plants. After using the neem oil, make sure it is stored safely.
Here we come to the end of the article: how to use neem oil for blight-infected plants. We hope that this was an informative and useful article for you to read. Happy gardening!
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