Phytophthora

Phytophthora (Phytophthora) is a genus of microorganisms like fungi. The defeat of plant crops by this microorganism leads to a disease such as late blight. At this point in time, experts have given a description of only 70 types of these microorganisms. And there are about 500 varieties of them, the description of which is not yet available.

The name "phytophthora" comes from two words from the Greek language, meaning "plant" and "destroy" in translation. Another translation sounds like "destroying the plant." The second name of the plant is "brown rot". Late blight most often affects Solanaceous crops. These include tomatoes, potatoes, peppers and eggplants.

Favorable factors for the development of late blight

The following factors can lead to the development of phytophthora on plants:

• insufficient oxygen;
• the presence of a shelter;
• the formation of condensation;
• unsuitable temperature regime;
• non-compliance with the rules of crop rotation;
• thickened plantings;
• a lot of nitrogen and lime in the soil;
• lack of trace elements such as iodine, potassium, copper, manganese.

These are the main factors that must be taken into account in order to prevent the development of late blight.

Features of phytophthora

The favorable period for the onset of late blight begins in mid-July and continues until the very end of summer. It is better to detect this disease at the initial stage of occurrence, because it is very dangerous and capable of destroying up to 2/3 of all plantings of the above mentioned crops. The simplest fungus is Phytophtora infestans. This fungus multiplies at such a high rate that it has deservedly received the name "infectious plant eater." The earlier a lesion is detected, the greater the likelihood of minimizing negative consequences.

As a rule, the defeat of the leaf plates located in the lower part of the plants occurs first. Then the fungus takes over the remaining parts and, thus, gradually infects the entire plant as a whole. Conditions of high humidity contribute to the fact that brown specks appear on the foliage. In the lower part there is a white fluffy bloom formed by fungal spores.

Infected shoots develop dark brown streaks. Increased humidity will cause stains and streaks to rot faster. After the establishment of dry weather without precipitation, the shoots simply begin to dry out. And foliage, affected by fungi, after a while turns into a dry crust.

On tubers with an affected surface, dark areas are also formed. Rotting and decay occurs in these areas.The rotting process can also begin on the stored tubers that appear healthy.

Brown spots also appear on the fruit. They grow both in width and in depth. The age of the fruit does not matter. Both green and ripe fruits can get sick. And healthy peppers and tomatoes plucked from bushes affected by late blight will eventually turn black and become unusable.

Fight against late blight

Prevention measures

The best way to fight late blight is prevention. Since the disease is difficult to treat, or rather, it is completely impossible to cure it (you can only suppress the action of the pathogen). Experts advise to systematically carry out measures to prevent the onset of the disease. For example, one of the most common procedures is spraying plantings with special solutions. This is not the only preventive measure. Below are some more simple preventive measures to prevent late blight in plantings:

1. They choose varieties that are initially highly resistant to the disease.
2. Be sure to observe the crop rotation.
3. Different cultures of the same family Solanaceae are located as far away from each other as possible, since the defeat of one culture can quickly lead to the spread of the pathogen. For example, in a week, in addition to potatoes, tomatoes and eggplants will be affected.
4. Exclude strong thickening, since insufficient air and tightness are favorable conditions for the appearance of late blight.
5. Sudden temperature drops at night and during the day can spur the spread of the disease. For this reason, experienced gardeners recommend planting seedlings in open ground only after the return frosts have passed completely. If there is no time to wait and you need to plant right now, you will have to take care of the shelter of the seedlings.
6. It is necessary to monitor the level of humidity. This will help mulching the site and careful watering, avoiding getting on the plants themselves.
7. Moderation is observed in dressing. You need to be especially careful with fertilizers containing nitrogen.
8. The crop is harvested only after the fruits have reached technical maturity. Do not overripe.
9. The leaves below the fruit must be removed. The same is done with flowers that do not give ovaries.
10. All infected fruits and plantings are burned.

When the disease is only at the initial stage of development, it can be overcome with the help of simple folk methods. They are time-tested and do not pose a danger to the plants themselves and the environment. When traditional methods do not have the desired effect, you can resort to using fungicides.

Treatment with pesticides of plants

However, in order to eliminate late blight, it is not always enough to carry out proper agricultural technology or care. Sometimes the gardener needs to resort to pesticides to process crops. To eliminate this ailment, a large number of different drugs have been created. To many of them, pathogenic microorganisms adapt very quickly. In order to avoid addiction, it is recommended to use several of them one at a time.

The first treatment is carried out in the spring. Spray immediately after placing the seedlings in the open field. Many experts recommend correlating subsequent treatments with the growth of ordinary forest mushrooms: it is necessary to process when the mushrooms are just starting to grow. In this case, the presence of signs of the disease is not required at all. It is preferable to start spraying the bushes in the morning and be in time before lunch. It is preferable to process on a sunny day when there is no wind or precipitation.

Tillage

In the elimination of phytophthora spores, microbiological agents and fungicides help well. For preventive purposes, fungicides are applied in early March, as well as at least 28 days before planting potatoes or seedlings in open ground conditions.

Microbiological agents are applied at any time throughout the growing season, except for the time when the plants are blooming. It is not recommended to introduce during the flowering period, so as not to harm the bees.

The following preparations with copper have shown high efficiency in eliminating late blight: Fitosporin-M, copper sulfate, Bordeaux liquid, Trichodermin, Ordan.

For example, for preventive soil cultivation, a 2% or 3% solution of copper sulfate is taken. After adding it to the ground, digging is carried out, after which it is thoroughly spilled with a solution of Fitosporin-M. A bucket of water will require st. spoon of funds. For 1 sq. m. 10 liters of the mixture is enough.

The areas where it is planned to grow flowers or strawberries are spilled with a solution of Ordan or Alirin. The same products are also suitable for preventive treatments of vineyards.

For plants in greenhouse conditions, preventive treatments are done either in the fall or at the very beginning of spring. For processing, use special sulfur checkers. During processing, all safety rules must be observed, staying away from the smoke emitted by the checkers.

Phytophthora on tomatoes: how to fight

Most gardeners prefer preventive measures in the form of agrotechnical methods in order to prevent the development of the disease on tomatoes. After all, it is difficult to fight late blight. The main measures to eliminate late blight on tomatoes include the following measures:

• preliminary soil treatment before planting seedlings;
• after planting seedlings, soil mulching must be carried out;
• stepchildren and lower sheet plates must be removed in time;
• peas or beans can be planted around the perimeter of the plot with tomatoes;
• after planting seedlings in open soil for prevention, spraying with solutions of one of two drugs is carried out: Trichodermin or Fitosporin-M.

Compliance with these simple rules will help prevent late blight on tomatoes.

Fight against late blight on seedlings

Seedlings can also be affected by late blight. In this case, it is necessary to remove all initially diseased bushes, and then properly shed the soil with Fitosporin-M solution. As an additional measure, it is recommended to dive seedlings in separate pots. The soil used must be sterilized with the same Fitosporin-M solution before planting tomato seedlings.

Attention! After processing the soil on the site, at least a month should pass. Only after the passage of 30 days can tomatoes be planted on the site. If this is too long a period of time, then Alirin can be used for soil cultivation.

Tomato processing

In a rainy summer, to eliminate late blight from tomatoes, they are treated 4 to 5 times with an interval of one to two weeks. The last spraying with pesticides should be 20 days before harvest.

To increase and strengthen the immunity of tomatoes to diseases, they are treated with a growth-stimulating drug called Oxygumate. Take 100 ml for one bucket of water. Alternatively, you can take Exiol at the rate of 1 mg per 3 liters of water.

Late blight can also affect crops growing in open ground and those growing in greenhouses. If tomatoes are affected in greenhouses, the entire crop may be lost, because the disease will spread faster in greenhouse conditions. In the greenhouse, the same pesticides are used as in open soil.

Attention! When working with pesticides in a greenhouse, you must take precautions, because the likelihood of poisoning is higher here. The first priority is to protect the eyes, hands, and respiratory organs.

It must be remembered that it is necessary to process all plantings at once, since processing one plant at a time will either not give any result, or it will be ineffective. This disease cannot be completely eliminated. Perhaps only to suppress its development for a while.

Preparations for late blight on tomatoes

The tomato culture is the first of all the other Solanaceae that is susceptible to late blight. Many chemicals have been created to fight the disease. The most effective ones are described below.

For the treatment of tomatoes from late blight, the following agents are used:

• Radiance;
• Tattoo;
• bordeaux mixture;
• Ridomil Gold;
• Quadris;
• Baikal EM.

In each package of the drug, instructions from the manufacturer must be accompanied with it, indicating the methods of application and dosages. Before diluting the drug, you must carefully read the information specified in it. To suppress the disease on the bushes, several treatments are carried out with an interval of 7 to 10 days.

Important! The causative agents of the disease tend to quickly get used to drugs, and therefore it is imperative to alternate funds. Treatment should begin with a weak preparation and gradually apply more and more powerful fungicides or microbiological agents.

Late blight on potatoes

Potatoes are no less prone to late blight than tomatoes and the symptoms here are very similar, almost the same. Small spots appear on the foliage, which rapidly spread throughout the plant. Gradually, the leaves begin to curl and dry. When tubers are damaged, dense spots are formed on the surface.

Treatment for late blight

The purpose of the treatment is to prevent the further spread of late blight. In the process of processing, the following scheme is adhered to:

1. The first treatment is carried out using a systemic fungicide. They begin to process tops with a height of 25 to 30 cm.For spraying, you can choose one of three means to choose from: 1% Bordeaux liquid, copper sulfate at the rate of 0.2 g per 1 liter of water or copper sulfate at the rate of 2 grams per 1 liter of water.
2. The second treatment is carried out just before flowering. At this stage, it is good to use tools such as: Exiol, Oxygumat, Epin. They are good when the weather contributes to the development of late blight. Otherwise, when the conditions for the spread of the disease are unsuitable, it is enough to treat with a resistance inductor (Krezacin, Silkom).
3. The third treatment is carried out one to two weeks after the second with a contact fungicide. The drug Ditan M-45 or Efal is suitable. Another good option is copper oxychloride. If treatment is required as a prophylaxis, then the dosage is reduced by half. In case of severe damage to potatoes, drugs such as Oksikhom, Ridomil Gold MC, Ridomil MC are used.
4. After another 1.5-2 weeks, they are re-treated with the same drugs. After the bushes have faded, you can spray with a solution of Bravo.
5. The treatment is repeated after 1.5-2 weeks.

So, in total, five treatments for late blight are carried out at intervals of an average of one to two weeks.

Attention! When the tubers are still at the ripening stage, Alufit is used for processing. Not every day is suitable for processing, only cloudy and without precipitation, without wind. If it suddenly rains, you will have to carry out the processing again. The tops are sprayed until the moment they die off.

Prevention measures

The best prevention of potato late blight is the choice of the most suitable place for it, as well as the varieties most resistant to this disease. An important preventive measure is the timely processing of the plant. For growing a culture, flat areas are predominantly suitable, because when choosing a lowland or a site with high humidity, an increased development of phytophthora may begin.

Planting requires light, loose soil with good drainage. The landing site itself should be well-lit by the sun and open for ventilation. If possible, it is worth choosing a site away from the rest of the Solanaceous plantings.

The best potato growth is observed in those areas where perennials, beets, flax previously grew.It is not recommended to locate where crops from the Solanaceae family grew. Only after 4 to 6 years can potatoes be grown here after tomatoes, peppers, eggplants. When it is not possible to adhere to such long planting dates, it is worth growing potatoes at least once every couple of years. In between, mustard or radish is sown on the plots. This will reduce the risk of potato blight by late blight by 3 times.

Before planting, be sure to carry out soil processing (according to the instructions above). Experienced gardeners recommend using only healthy planting material for growing, without damage. To see which tubers are infected with late blight and which are not, keep the tubers for two weeks at a temperature of + 15 degrees above 0. Sick tubers are harvested, and the material that remains is treated with Fitosporin-M or Agatom-25K.

Processing before planting

Once again, it is worth noting that for planting it is worth choosing those varieties that are highly resistant to late blight. These varieties include Visa, Arina, Verb, Lazar and others. For preventive purposes, phosphorus and potassium are added to the soil before planting or during it.

It is possible to increase the potassium content by 1.5 times when the tubers reach a sufficient mass. With a high nitrogen content in the soil, tubers may develop more slowly than expected, and therefore they will be more susceptible to late blight. After the final mass gain with tubers, the soil surface is loosened, the tops are removed. This will help the tubers grow their skin faster. This process will also be facilitated by soil treatment with Reglon Super solution.

Important! It is necessary to dig up and remove plants affected by late blight in a timely manner, removing weeds from the site. In dry and cool weather, the sprinkler method is not used for irrigation.

Late blight on various crops

From the description above, it should be clear how to eliminate late blight on tomatoes and potatoes. However, all of the Solanaceae family are prone to the disease, including peppers and eggplants. It has not yet been said about them.

Symptoms are exactly the same as for late blight on tomatoes and potatoes, so they do not require additional description. Preventive measures here are the same as for the defeat of tomatoes. However, the recommended means are slightly different. For example, in case of an eggplant disease, it is recommended to use Quadris, Antracol, Consento.

So, after planting seedlings in open ground, after 8 to 10 days, they are sprayed for the first time with any of the drugs of choice with Quadris or Antracol. Then the spraying is repeated systematically every 12 or 14 days. Fungicides must be alternated so that the fungus does not develop resistance to the substance.

Peppers infected with late blight are sprayed with Barrier, Oxychom or other fungicides. The most important thing to remember is that you cannot treat with the same agent for two or three sprays in a row. In some cases, cucumbers that are grown in greenhouses are affected. For their processing, it is advised to use only folk remedies.

Preparations for phytophthora

To eliminate late blight, gardeners are increasingly resorting to the use of the following pesticides:

1. Fitosporin-M, Trichodermin and Alirin. These are microbiological fungicides with a wide spectrum of action. Their creation is based on natural bacterial cultures.
2. Anthracol, Bordeaux liquid and copper sulfate. Broad spectrum contact fungicides. They are very effective against late blight.
3. Quadris and Bravo - systemic fungicides used both for greenhouse conditions and for open ground. They are distinguished by a protective, curative, eradicating effect.
4. Ridomil Gold, Tatu, Oksikhom and Ordan - systemic and contact fungicides.
5. Baikal EM - a fertilizer of biological origin, which promotes the growth of shrubs and the ripening of fruits.

These are the main drugs that can be used in the fight against late blight. Any of them will be effective. Since it is necessary to alternate drugs, it is advisable to purchase several and find out in advance about the compatibility of the selected funds.

Folk remedies for phytophthora

Among gardeners and gardeners, there are also those who prefer to use folk remedies for phytophthora and, if possible, refuse to use chemicals on their plantings for various reasons. Most often, because of the safety of such funds. This is effective only at the very beginning of the development of the disease. As it increases, the effectiveness of their use will become lower and lower. The following are the most popular ways to combat late blight, tested by many gardeners.

Copper wire from late blight

This method was invented and patented by scientists from Germany. This is a simple and unique method, completely unusual at first glance. Its essence lies in the fact that before planting seedlings in the soil, the root system of plants is wrapped with a very thin copper wire and then placed in the ground.

There is another way to use copper wire for prophylactic purposes against fungal diseases. In this case, the stem of pepper, eggplant, tomato is pierced with this wire from 3 to 4 cm long. After that, the wire is threaded through the stem, and the tips are lowered down and pressed against the plant.

With this approach, the culture will constantly receive microscopic doses of copper, which will improve the respiration process, normalize the production of chlorophyll and make oxidative processes more intense. This will increase the plant's immunity to fungal diseases, it will get stronger noticeably. The causative agent of late blight will be simply powerless in such conditions.

A little explanation. Particular attention must be paid to the preparation of the copper wire itself. To do this, it is calcined with fire and cleaned with sandpaper. After these procedures, the wire is cut into pieces of very short length and inserted into the stem of the bush to a height of about 10 cm above the soil surface.

Attention! The ends of the wire are not wrapped around the stem.

Iodine

Iodine is one of the best ancient remedies with antimicrobial properties. It is used to protect potato foliage, as well as the leaves of tomatoes, peppers and eggplants. To eliminate late blight, iodine is used as follows: 1 liter of milk with low% fat is poured into a bucket of water and 20 drops of iodine are added. All are mixed. With the resulting mixture, the plantings are processed, two weeks after planting in open ground conditions. Then they are sprayed every 7 days.

Acetic acid

To prepare the solution, you will need 100 grams of acetic acid and a bucket of water. Plants are processed completely.

Serum

Whey has also been shown to be highly effective against late blight. To prepare the solution, you will need serum and water. Combine in a 1: 1 ratio. After spraying, a very thin film appears on the treated surface. It is she who performs a protective function, preventing pathogenic microorganisms from entering the plant.

The secret of the effectiveness of this recipe lies in the microflora of serum, which is harmful to phytophthora. The protective film is formed only for a short time and quickly degrades after processing. For this reason, it is necessary to systematically spray the bushes. The first treatment takes place in July, and then it is carried out daily.

Kefir

To prepare the product, you will need a fermented two-day kefir or yogurt. This mixture is simply treated with bushes. The first treatment with this composition is carried out two weeks after planting the seedlings in the garden.

Salt

A solution prepared using salt is also quite effective in combating late blight. The saline solution that gets on the shoots and leaves forms a film on their surface that protects the stomata of plants from pathogens.

Attention! This solution is only suitable for protection, not for treatment.

Garlic

Garlic is another powerful remedy for late blight, which has a detrimental effect on fungal spores. It has an antibacterial effect and improves immunity. The first processing procedure is carried out a little earlier than the formation of ovaries. Then repeat twice: after 10 days and 15 days after the second treatment.

To prepare an infusion for processing, take 1.5 cups of chopped heads and stalks of garlic on a bucket of water. After a day, filter and add about 2 grams of manganese potassium. Everything is thoroughly mixed and processing begins.

Wood ash

Ash spraying can also help against late blight. Prepare the infusion for processing. 5 liters of wood ash are added to a bucket of water. It will take three days to insist. Stir the contents from time to time.

The finished infusion is carefully drained and so much water is added to it so that in the end the volume is equal to 30 liters. Grind 35 grams of households on a grater. soap (you can take liquid) and add to the infusion. Mix thoroughly. This agent is treated three times during the season: 1.5 weeks after planting the seedlings in the garden, before flowering and after the start of the formation of ovaries.

Tinder fungus

To prepare a solution based on a tinder fungus, take 100 grams of fresh mushroom and grind it thoroughly, then dry it and pass it through a meat grinder. Next, the crushed mass is poured with a liter of boiling water and the container is covered with a lid on top. The mixture should cool completely. The infusion is filtered.

Treatment with the resulting infusion is carried out systematically every 10 days in the early morning, in calm and calm weather. The first spraying is carried out during the formation of ovaries on the bushes. And after 15 days, another treatment is done.

Late blight is a dangerous disease, therefore experienced gardeners recommend taking preventive measures to prevent its occurrence. Different types of pathogenic microorganisms infect individual crops. One of the most susceptible crops to the disease is the Solanaceae family, which includes tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, and potatoes. There are many excellent fungicides and microbiological agents that can help suppress the growth of harmful bacteria. At the earliest stages, as well as as a preventive measure, it is worth using folk remedies. Compliance with some rules of agricultural technology and planting will also help prevent late blight.