How to deal with fusarium blight on cucumbers: life-saving advice from gardeners and proven remedies
It’s a shame when a cucumber bush grown with love and care suddenly withers. Gardeners in such a situation immediately ask themselves: what did I do wrong? There are a large number of possible reasons for wilting cucumbers. One of them is fusarium.
What is fusarium wilt, what are the symptoms and causes of fusarium wilt on cucumbers, how to cure and prevent it - read in this article.
What is fusarium blight on cucumbers?
Fusarium wilt of cucumbers is an infection caused by the fungus Fusarium oxysporum or Verticillium spp. Its spores spread through the soil and are carried by wind and water, infecting plants and causing them to wilt.
Fusarium can affect not only cucumbers, but also other crops growing nearby. The disease is characterized by rapid spread, so it is important to notice bacterial wilt in plants in a greenhouse and open ground in time and take immediate action.
Causes
Fusarium can appear on cucumbers for various reasons.:
- contaminated soil;
- non-compliance with crop rotation;
- infected seeds;
- watering plants with water containing fungal spores.
Favorable conditions for the spread of fungus:
- acidic soil;
- microtraumas on roots and root hairs;
- lack of nutrients in the soil, non-compliance with the fertilizing schedule;
- sudden changes in temperature and humidity of air and soil;
- pest attacks;
- lack of heating in the greenhouse;
- air temperature from 18°C to 25°C.
About other diseases of cucumbers:
Causes and treatment of black plaque on leaves
Causes and treatment of anthracnose in cucumbers
Prevention and effective treatment of peronosporosis of cucumbers
Symptoms
The peculiarity of the disease is that its main symptoms appear only during the flowering period. cucumber And already during fruiting, the disease completely destroys the plant. The first sign of the disease in young plants is the appearance of root rot: the lower part of the stem darkens and gradually becomes thinner.
The main symptoms of fusarium blight on cucumbers:
- the leaves gradually fade (from bottom to top);
- the green part of the bush turns pale, yellow spots appear;
- a pink coating appears on the stem - conidia of the fungus;
- the stem darkens, cracks, traces of rot become noticeable;
- the ovaries turn yellow and die;
- fruits do not develop;
- As the disease progresses, all parts of the plant gradually wither, and eventually it dies.
Measures to protect against fusarium and wilt
Since the disease does not reveal itself immediately, it is extremely difficult to fight it. Basically, drugs help at an early stage of the disease.
There are three options for protecting cucumbers from fusarium:
- chemicals;
- biological products;
- folk methods.
Important! If fusarium is detected, immediately remove the diseased bush from the garden bed and burn it to prevent the spread of infection.
Chemicals
Unfortunately, treating cucumbers for fusarium blight with fungicides is rarely effective, especially at a late stage of disease development.
One of the suitable drugs is Fundazol.. Firstly, to disinfect the seeds, they are treated with it before planting.Secondly, in the early stages of fusarium wilt, the soil at the roots is watered with a solution of Fundazol and the above-ground part of the plant is sprayed. The effect of the drug lasts 2-3 weeks.
A 0.2% solution will help cope with foci of infection on cucumbers fungicide "Topsin-M" or 0.15% solution "Previkur Energy". Also, at the early stage of fusarium, drugs such as Maxim, Gymnast, Quadris and Acrobat MC are used. Treating seeds and seedlings with Humisol will help increase resistance to Fusarium wilt.
Important! After treating cucumbers with chemicals, fruits from the bushes can be collected no earlier than a month later. Carefully follow the instructions for the medications and take precautions.
Biological products
The most popular biological product among gardeners to combat fusarium on cucumbers - “Trichodermin”. For prevention, it is applied to the soil a few days before planting seedlings, and in case of infection, the plants and soil are sprayed with a suspension according to the instructions for the drug.
Also effective against fusarium such biological products as “Planriz”, “Tikhofit”, “Baktofit”. But they are used exclusively for prevention.
A modern biological agent that can be used already with the development of fusarium wilt, - “Fitosporin-M”. It stops the spread of fungal infection. Available in powder, paste and liquid form. Treatment of plants is carried out according to the instructions for the drug.
Attention! The instructions for the drug indicate how long you need to wait between processing the bush and harvesting.
Traditional methods
When it comes to plants whose fruits are eaten, gardeners are reluctant to resort to chemicals.They are interested in whether there are any natural ways to get rid of fusarium on cucumbers. Treatment with folk remedies comes to the aid of summer residents in the fight against fusarium wilt.
The most popular preparation is a solution with whey. 1 liter of regular whey is diluted in 2.5 liters of water and mixed thoroughly. Cucumbers are sprayed with this solution both for the treatment and prevention of Fusarium wilt.
Another recipe - iodine with milk. Add 30 drops of pharmaceutical iodine solution and 20 g of crushed laundry soap to 1 liter of raw milk. Mix thoroughly and spray once every 10 days during the growing season of the plant.
Garlic infusion Prepare according to the following instructions: 50 g of garlic are crushed and diluted in 1 liter of clean water. Leave for 24 hours, then add water to 9 liters. Cucumber bushes can be sprayed with this infusion once, or the procedure can be repeated if desired.
Another infusion for fusarium - infusion of wood ash. Add 1 glass of wood ash and 10 g of laundry soap to 2 liters of boiling water. Leave for 48 hours and spray the cucumbers twice - at weekly intervals.
Yeast treatment will help in the fight and prevention of fusarium. 100-200 g of fresh baker's yeast are diluted in 10 liters of water and poured into the soil.
Is it possible to fight in the active phase of development?
Unfortunately, the effectiveness of the listed methods in the fight against actively developing fusarium is low. Since the disease is practically invisible at an early stage of development, it is extremely difficult to take action in time.
When the fungus has become noticeable and can no longer be treated, the most effective way is to save healthy plants by removing a diseased bush from the greenhouse or garden bed, and then burn it and under no circumstances leave it in the compost.
For these reasons gardeners prefer to do everything possible to prevent the appearance fungus in the soil.
Attention! Main advice: take preventive measures to prevent Fusarium wilt from overtaking your plants.
Preventive measures
Focus on issues related to fusarium blight on cucumbers, gardeners focus specifically on prevention. The disease is transmitted mainly through soil and contaminated seeds. Therefore, special attention should be paid to them when preventing Fusarium wilt of cucumbers.
Effective prevention measures:
- soil disinfection - treatment with boiling water, removal of the top layer of soil and replacement with a new one, disinfectants;
- careful selection of seeds - choose healthy ones, purchased from a trusted manufacturer or collected from high-quality, even fruits;
- treating seeds with antifungal drugs - soaking in fungicides;
- correct crop rotation - cucumbers can be returned to their original place only after 4 years;
- systematic examination of the plant for symptoms of the disease - it is important not to miss the very first signs;
- timely harvesting - every 2-3 days, so overripe fruits do not weigh down the vine and do not deplete the bush;
- timely fertilizing - plantings are covered with mullein, during flowering - with chicken droppings, and during fruiting - with ash; during the growth of the bush, fertilize it with nitrogen, during flowering and fruiting - with potassium and phosphorus, completely eliminating nitrogen from fertilizing;
- spraying and watering the plant with fungicides;
- sterilization of tools and clothing - fungal spores can remain and overwinter on clothing or garden tools;
- compliance with the temperature regime - at temperatures above 35°C, cucumbers wither and weaken (the ideal air temperature for the plant is 20-25°C);
- correct watering - cucumbers should be watered with warm rainwater 1-2 times a day, depending on the air temperature; at temperatures below 15°C, stop watering;
- pest control to avoid reducing plant immunity;
- removing diseased plants and burning them so that the fungus does not have time to move to neighboring healthy bushes;
- selection of cucumber varieties resistant to fusarium.
And a little about crop pests:
Resistant varieties
Agronomists have long learned to breed plants that are resistant to various diseases.. Therefore, there are a considerable number of cucumber varieties that are not afraid of Fusarium wilt. These are mainly hybrids labeled F1. If you doubt that you can protect your plantings from fusarium, it is better to choose one of them.
The most popular varieties:
- Dvoryansky is a mid-early hybrid that requires insect pollination and is resistant to fusarium, anthracnose, bacteriosis, cladospora blight, ascochyta blight and viral infections.
- Vocal is a high-yielding hybrid, resistant to fungal infections and unfavorable conditions: high humidity, temperature changes, lack of sunlight.
- Obsky is a hybrid with tasty and juicy fruits, resistant to fusarium, downy mildew, bacteriosis and temperature changes.
- Ideal and Vityaz are mid-early parthenocarpic hybrids.
- Zaichik, Zhukovsky, Hector and Alex are early ripening parthenocarpic hybrids.
- Sudar, Dolomite and Christina are early ripening bee-pollinated hybrids.
In addition to these varieties, cucumbers show resistance to fusarium Rowanushka, Dunyasha and Caprice. The manufacturer indicates the characteristic features of the variety in the description on the seed package, where you can also find information about the diseases to which they show resistance.
However Prevention should be carried out even when growing disease-resistant varieties. Be extremely attentive to cucumber bushes and other plantings in your greenhouse or on your plot - and you will get a healthy, tasty and high-quality harvest.
Conclusion
Fusarium is an insidious disease that does not manifest itself at an early stage of development. When signs of damage become noticeable, it is almost impossible to cope with the disease. In such a situation, all that remains is to remove and burn the diseased bush - this way you can save healthy plants from withering.
Since fusarium can hardly be treated, do not neglect preventive measures. Choose disease-resistant varieties. Disinfect the soil and tools, treat seeds and seedlings, use fungicides and properly care for cucumber bushes.