Why are strawberry leaves stained and what to do?

The formation of brown, purple, raspberry and white spots on garden strawberries is the first symptom of a fungal infection. Fungal spores hibernate in the surface layers of the soil, and as soon as comfortable conditions are established for them, namely high humidity, excess nitrogen and a lack of ultraviolet radiation, they begin to multiply intensively. The disease can affect all parts of the plant: roots, stems, as well as leaves and even berries.

One of the most common causes of staining on strawberry leaves is ramulariasis. The first sign of pathology is small red-brown formations on the leaf blades. As the infection develops, they begin to grow gradually and brighten in the center. Soon the light area dries up, falls off, and the leaves become perforated. From the leaf plates, the infection passes to the stems and peduncles, and from there it goes to the roots. If untreated, the bush dies very quickly.

The peak of fungal activity occurs at the end of May - June, at the time of flowering of garden strawberries. During this time, spores are carried by wind and pollinating insects. Preconditions for the development of infection are high humidity, excessive thickening of the plantings and hot weather. The danger of ramulariasis is that this fungus easily tolerates even the most severe winter. Moreover, it can affect garden culture not only in open areas, but also in greenhouses.

Ramulariasis spreads very quickly and is capable of destroying an entire strawberry plantation in a matter of weeks. However, if treatment is started promptly, it can be cured.

• First, you should pluck diseased affected fruits and leaves.... If the root system is affected, it makes no sense to spray the plant, it must be dug up and burned.
• For treatment, the bushes are irrigated, and the earth is spilled with a solution of Bordeaux liquid 1%. This should be done before flowering, as well as in the period after fruiting.
• A good drug against the fungus is Ridomil, to carry out the processing of plantings, it is bred at the rate of 25 g of powder per bucket of water.
• Preventive measures give a good effect. To prevent infection, you should regularly thin out the beds and carefully approach the soil fertilization with mineral fertilizers.

Another common ailment is brown spotting.... First of all, spots are formed at the edges, after which they quickly grow throughout the sheet. Later, areas with fungal spores are formed on them, they have a dark color.

Fungi are most active in conditions of thickened plantings, lack of sun rays and high humidity. When an infection occurs, the affected bushes should be destroyed. Healthy plantings for prevention are sprayed with 1% Bordeaux liquid or copper sulfate. For the period of treatment, the introduction of nitrogenous fertilizing should be excluded and irrigation should be reduced. After fruiting, strawberry bushes are spilled with "Fitosporin".

In order to prevent the development of infection, all overwintered foliage should be removed in a timely manner. It is very important to deal with garden pests that become spore carriers. Mulching of the plantation plays a special role; it is best to take straw or ash for this.

Deciduous rust is a common fungal infection that occurs during springtime. The pathogen causes the appearance of yellowish spots, over time they darken and acquire a rusty color. The affected area rapidly grows over the entire surface of the leaf and increases in volume, resembling a moldy coating of a red hue. The stems and leaves dry up, the berries stop growing and ripening. If prompt action is not taken, the infected bush will quickly wither away, and the fungus will spread to other plants.

If rust appears on the strawberry bed, lay a film under the bush, put gloves on your hands and cut out all damaged leaves and stems at the root. Infected greens burn, you cannot bury it in the ground, otherwise the fungus will overwinter in the ground, and with the arrival of spring it will again attack cultivated plants. After pruning, garden strawberries are sprayed with Bordeaux liquid or systemic fungicides (Titan, Agrolekar). With a large damage zone, the entire plantation is sprayed with fungicides. But it should be remembered that they can contain copper and mercury that are toxic to humans, so they are used only after the fruiting period.

As a preventive measure, it is necessary pay attention to the observance of agricultural technology. Timely weeding, removing weeds, mulching the beds and applying ash - these simple measures will significantly reduce the risk of fungal infection.

Other fungal diseases can also cause spotting.

Anthracnose is popularly called black spot, since it is accompanied by the formation of a large number of brown spots on the leaf blades. As the infection progresses, they merge with each other and become almost black, the surface of the whiskers and young stems is covered with sores. Especially often, anthracnose occurs in greenhouses, it affects all parts of the plant: leaves, flowers, berries, shoots and roots. This type of fungus easily withstands external adverse factors. He feels comfortable with humidity parameters from 90 to 100% and temperatures from 20 to 28 degrees Celsius. But temperatures over 32 ° C are destructive for him.

When the first symptoms of infection appear, the plants are treated with fungicidal agents - Signum or Metaxil. The working solution is made up of 40-50 g of the drug, diluted in a bucket of water. You can save an infected bush if only the leaves are damaged. When the infection spreads to shoots, petioles and roots, such a plant can only be destroyed. All neighboring bushes are sprayed with fungicidal solutions for prophylaxis, in this case the working concentration of the active substance is halved.

This infection is transmitted through the root system. The first signal of pathology will be the formation of brown spots on the leaves. Soon the leaves turn yellow, curl, and the shoots turn brown. As the disease worsens, the roots begin to die off - this leads to the wilting of the entire bush. If you do not take action quickly, the fungus will destroy up to 60-80% of the plantation within a few weeks.

You can cure the bush at an early stage. For this, treatment with fungicides should be carried out, the greatest effect is given by "Fitosporin". To prevent infection, seedlings should be chosen meticulously. The planted bushes should not show signs of fungal infection. Also, the likelihood of fusarium increases sharply if strawberries are planted in a garden where tomatoes or potatoes were previously cultivated.

The cause of the appearance of red spots is the fungus Marssonina potentillae... Small changes in color first appear on the lower leaves of the bush. But soon the spots grow and change color to burgundy. Black dots are distinguishable on them with the naked eye - spores are located in them. If the spot covered a large area of ​​the leaf, then it is not possible to save this bush. It must be dug up and burned. All strawberries growing nearby should be treated with Falcon or Oxyhom fungicides.

The active spread of the fungus is largely due to the high humidity and neglect of strawberry plantations. To prevent the activity of the fungus in the spring, as soon as the snow melts, the bushes of garden strawberries should be treated with a solution of 1% Bordeaux liquid. The pathogen usually hibernates in last year's foliage, so it is extremely important in the fall, even before the snow falls, to thoroughly clean the garden plot of fallen leaves.

In addition to infection, the leaves dry out and become covered with burgundy spots when the soil is acidic or there is a lack of phosphorus. To alleviate the condition of the plant, it is necessary to spray the plantation a solution of crushed wood ash.

In general, there are general measures to combat fungal infections of strawberries.

• Get rid of stagnant moisture on the plantation.
• Sanitize your plantings regularly.
• Do not overuse nitrogen-containing dressings, it is better to focus on potash and phosphorus.
• Before budding and flowering, as well as after fruiting, treat the garden with copper sulfate.
• If you notice that the spot is spreading over a large area, use fungicides. It is necessary to process both the outer and inner parts of the sheet plates.

To prevent the appearance of spotting, you should adhere to the basic rules of agricultural technology.

• Use only healthy seedlings, Plant fungus-resistant strawberries.
• Create strawberry beds in dry, sun-exposed areas... It is best to organize a high bed - in this case, excess moisture will not accumulate in the soil.
• Thin the landing in time, if diseased bushes appear on the plantation, remove them by the roots and burn them.
• Fight insect pests - they become carriers of spores, for this you can use sparing folk remedies.
• Stick to crop rotation rules. If the garden strawberry has been infected with a fungus, then it is permissible to plant it in its original place no earlier than 5 years later. The best precursors are carrots, garlic, and beans. But areas where eggplants, corn and tomatoes used to grow should be avoided.
• Do not plant strawberries in fresh manure / dung - you need to take rotted.