The Latest Control Methods for Strawberry Powdery Mildew

Strawberry powdery mildew is an extremely common disease in strawberry production, generally causing a 20%-30% reduction in strawberry yield, and it may even cause total crop failure, seriously affecting the economic returns of strawberry cultivation. So how should strawberry powdery mildew be controlled? Follow along with the editor to learn the details.

1. Symptoms

Powdery mildew can occur throughout the entire growth period of strawberries, mainly infecting strawberry leaves, flowers and fruits. In the early stage of leaf infection, dark spots of varying sizes appear; as time goes on, white powdery material forms on the leaf spots, and in the later stage the lesions turn reddish-brown, and the leaf margins gradually shrivel and scorch. After flowers are infected, the petals may turn red, preventing the flower buds from opening fully. After young fruits are infected, they cannot expand normally and dry up and shrivel; after mature fruits are infected, a layer of white fuzz appears and the coloring is uneven, seriously affecting fruit quality and edible value.

2. Causes of the Disease

The pathogen mostly completes its yearly cycle generation after generation on the host as mycelium and conidia. The conidia spread through airflow, invade through germ tubes and haustoria, and multiply rapidly; after one week mycelium can form, after which new conidia form and are dispersed and spread by airflow. Given the presence of the pathogen, the epidemic of the disease depends on temperature and humidity. Within the range of 15-25 degrees, when humidity is above 80%, the disease spreads relatively quickly, showing the characteristics of low temperature and high humidity. In addition, insufficient base fertilizer, soil water deficiency, or overwatering, excessive nitrogen fertilizer application, and insufficient light are also conducive to the epidemic of the disease.

3. Control Methods

Reasonable crop rotation can be adopted, as this can reduce the pathogen base and lessen the occurrence of the disease; when planting, powdery mildew-resistant varieties should be selected. When fertilizing, fertilize reasonably and never apply nitrogen fertilizer alone; follow the principle of “prefer dry over wet” when watering, irrigate frequently with small amounts of water, and never flood-irrigate; without affecting the normal growth of strawberries, extend ventilation time as much as possible to lower the humidity inside the greenhouse. When the disease occurs, diseased plants should be pulled out promptly and taken out of the field for disposal, then the diseased holes and the surrounding area should be sprayed with Tuzet (tuijunte) for control, so as to prevent the disease from spreading further.

  The above is an introduction to the control methods for strawberry powdery mildew. We hope it can help you. If you want to learn more related knowledge, please stay tuned to us.