busy lizzy/impatient downy mildew

KelliM

I bought busy lizzy plants from a nursery. They had a white powder on the leaves and I initially thought that they had been spayed with chemicals. I placed them in the polytunnel. Two days later I rang the nursery to enquire about the powder on the leaves. The lady at the nursery said bring them back and she will refund the money. Turns out that they had impatient downy mildew.
Other buzy lizzie plants that were bought weeks earlier in the same polytunnel have since been affected by this downy mildew disease. After a lenghty argument, I got a refund by the nursery for them. The buzy lizzy plants in question also carry bord bia approved labels and are grown by the nursery.
I have containers outside with buzy lizzies also. I want to bring out other summer bedding from the poly tunnel. Could the bedding in the poly tunnel carry the downy mildew disease and affect the buzy lizzies outside?
According to the Internet they are no chemicals to combat this disease yet. Is there anything on the market that can be sprayed to help control this? Have popped into other nursery's but they don't seem to know much about this new disease.

redser7

All I know about this is that it was widespread last year and most people were affected by it. So much so that alot of places (nurseries/DIY chains) didn't bother to stock them this year. I don't know what the story is this year but sounds like it is still about. I sowed lots of seed last year, had healthy little plants and they all bought it.

virino

I heard the gardener Dermot O'Neill say on the radio that a diluted milk solution would help with this. I haven't had to try it because I have been fortunate so far with mine, which are all grown here by seed. Time will tell, I suppose.