Dont give up on them yet. Try the baking soda water. Spray them down every 2 days. The pm should be gone after you spray them down 4-5 times. In addition to running a dehumidifier in your basement, Im willing to bet that will get you to the finish line.
But how long does the UVC bulb need to be on in order to kill spores? Like, if you got one of those UVC sterilizing wands that you run over packages, etc....That kind of light wouldn't need to be on for long enough to cause degradation, would it? Or just have it come on for less than a minute every so often.....?
It might work in the tent But where did the spores come from thats the real problem? If the pm is not to bad we dont have pics so we dont know It can be held off with some simple cheap sprays.
According to what I read, 1-3 hours, dependent on distance and intensity.
I saw dyson is using a robot with UV-C leds to sterilize plants in veg to prevent it.
UVA and UVB really help trichome production, too.
If UV light was effective against PM, we wouldn't have it in the wild. I'm not discounting your experience, but the science simply doesn't back it up.
Thats a valid point.
Yeah I agree with what your saying good point. I think the uva , combined with all the other things I did may have helped with the plants internal resistance to PM. My point is there are very many factors, focus on having healthy vigorous plants with good airflow, temp, humidity. Do as much as possible to keep them nourished and you will end up with less issues.
In my experience, once PM spores has taken hold in your grow space, the only way to get rid of it completely is to sanitize the grow area via ozone or UVC.
Saw it somewhere that a compost tea sprayed (foliar spraying) on your plants can be really good at preventing spores from attaching to the leaves, I've personally used a lactic acid (LABS) solution (that I made myself) to get rid of PM.
Powdery mildew dies if you get it wet; this is why surfactants are so effective against it.
Solacure UV lights have a solid reputation.Mold can't grow in direct sunlight because it naturally contains UV light. Have you noticed that you only see fungus growing in shaded areas? And even though fungus dies in sunlight, it is actually the invisible portion of the light spectrum that destroys the mold.
Nature
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41438-021-00629-5
UV-B light and its application potential to reduce disease and pest ...
Sep 1, 2021 · Ultraviolet-B radiation (280–315 nm), perceived by the plant photoreceptor UVR8, is a key environmental signal that influences plant growth and development and can reduce …
I use 2 Solacure Flower Power bulbs, for each 4 x 4 area, and have for 6-8 years. I also start my seedlings, and Rooted Clones, under either a 1000w Hortilux Blue, or 1000w Hortilux Blue, and 2 SC bulbs for 4 x 4. Though I have bought some of the new MassMedicalStrains 1000w 5800k bulbs to replace the Hortilux Blue, as they stopped making the HPS, and Halide. The MMS bulb, has about the same exact spectrum as he Blue, around 5800k, and is up to $100 cheaper, and 20% More Powerful. MMS bullb was $60. Blue was $150.
The Solacure, is the only Plant Specific UVA/B bulb, that goes to 280nm. It is also T12, and has a huge diameter, which equals more light, and also has a Built In Reflector, inside the bulb.
You cannot reflect UVA/B. Period. It is absorbed, and not reflected, by normal means. Solacure uses expensive glass, that allows the transfer of 280nm. Its the strongest bulb of its type at 280nm-315nm.
The Agromax Pure, goes to 290nm, but wont activate the RUV8 Receptor, and at T5, doesnt put out nearly as much light, even with 54w vs 32w-40w for the Solacure. Solacure is also overbuilt, and can be run as high as 80w
We licensed Sol Glass for this lamp, like our SG series lamps. It is more transparent than any other UV glass made, and allows transmission of UVB between 280nm and 300nm, something other lamps don't do well, and is infinitely more powerful than the most powerful Replite bulb, which is the Arcadia Desert Dragon.
Like most Solacure lamps, the Flower Power has a built in reflector, so you don't need to worry about using reflective material with it. Mylar, white paint, all these absorb UV anyway, they are useless for reflecting it. The image on the left shows a regular lamp, the image on the right is how the Flower Power is designed, with an internal reflector. It forces all the light to go in one direction, making designing and installing a system much easier. This means the lamp has about 50% more total UV output than a non-reflector design with a home made reflector.
Also, the Hortilux Blue, and MMS Halide have a spectrum oof 280nm-2400nm+
PM won't die by just getting wet. Surfactants make water "wetter" so whatever is mixed in it actually lathers the plant surface, but the surfactant isn't doing anything itself.
Ive read about compost tea too, never tried that but i did try milk, which didnt really work. How do you make lactic acid? Mind sharing your procedure?
Powdery Mildew can grow in direct sunlight, I've seen it for myself in my garden in the summer, although it does better in a shaded environment. I double checked on ChatGPT just incase and it confirmed it can grow in sunlight. I don't have any personal experience with UVB bulbs, I was so fed up i just went straight to the nuclear UVC option. I've read of growers using UVB to control PM, no personal experience though. I think I'm going to pick up a Solacure UV you reccomended though, I was planning on buying a random reptile bulb instead, I've been wanting to add UVB into my flowering tents anyways.