ORONO, Maine (NEWS CENTER) - For centuries farmers have struggled to keep Late Blight from destroying their crops.
The disease can damage tomatoes and potatoes.
The disease spreads through a fungus during cool, wet weather.
Pest management specialists say to check your plants when you buy them to ensure that they aren't infected.
Specialists say you can use pesticides to prevent the fungus from developing but once your plant is infected, the only way to save them is to cut off the infected parts.
"It has to have living tissue to survive on, so it doesn't survive in soil or that type of thing," explains Jim Dill, a pest management specialist, "It has to be spread from year to year from living tissue."
There are reports of Late Blight from York County to Aroostook County.
NEWS CENTER