The Latest Control Methods for Pepper Gray Mold

Pepper gray mold is one of the more common diseases we encounter when growing peppers. Its onset period is between December and May of the following year. The pathogen prefers environments with low temperatures and high humidity, so it is prone to occur on cloudy and rainy days in winter and spring, and in severe cases it can cause plant death. Below, Qinnong Net introduces the control methods for pepper gray mold.

Before introducing the control methods, Qinnong Net will first introduce the symptoms of pepper gray mold, so that everyone can have a basic understanding of this disease. Although for many experienced growers this disease is already commonplace, it is still worth introducing here.

I. Harmful Symptoms of Pepper Gray Mold

At the seedling stage, it harms leaves, stems, and terminal buds. At the beginning of the disease, the tip of the cotyledon turns yellow, then spreads to the young stem, which constricts and becomes thinner, and often breaks and falls at the diseased part, resulting in death. At the adult plant stage, it harms leaves, flowers, and fruits. Leaf damage mostly starts from the leaf tip, initially forming light yellowish-brown lesions, which gradually extend upward into a "V"-shaped lesion. Stem infection produces water-soaked lesions, and the part above the diseased area dies. When flower organs are damaged, the petals wilt. When fruits are damaged, it mostly starts from where the young fruit adheres to the petals, showing water-soaked lesions, which after expansion cause brown spots on the whole fruit. The boundary between diseased and healthy tissue is obvious, and there is a gray-brown mold layer on the diseased part.

The above are the symptoms of pepper gray mold. Next comes the control measures that everyone is more concerned about. In fact, as Qinnong Net introduced at the very beginning, this pathogen prefers low-temperature and high-humidity environments, so the most environmentally friendly approach is necessarily not to create a good growing environment for gray mold. Let us look at the specifics below.

II. Control Methods for Pepper Gray Mold

1. Strengthen ventilation in greenhouses and glasshouses. Watering should be done in the morning on sunny days, and the water amount should be controlled and must not be too large. After rain, drain accumulated water promptly, and ventilate and dehumidify reasonably in the greenhouse;

2. Eliminate the source of the pathogen. Remove diseased fruits promptly and take them out of the greenhouse or glasshouse for deep burial. After harvest, thoroughly dispose of diseased plants, etc., carry out deep plowing, and turn remaining diseased leaves and diseased branches into deeper layers. Cultivation with plastic film mulching can reduce the occurrence of gray mold;

3. Chemical control. For diseased plants in protected cultivation, 15% procymidone smoke agent 250-300 g per mu can be used for fumigation, once every 5-7 days, for 2-3 consecutive or alternating fumigations. You can also use Lüheng 70% pyrimethanil water-dispersible granules at 1000-1500 times dilution, Lüheng 30% pyrimethanil · thiram suspension concentrate at 700-800 times dilution, or clove · carvacrol aqueous solution at 600 times dilution, combined with Lüheng No. 6 (50% chlorobromoisocyanuric acid soluble powder) at 750-1500 times dilution or Lüheng Copper Master (86.2% cuprous oxide) at 1500 times dilution for spraying, which can strengthen the control effect against gray mold and at the same time control various concurrent diseases. It also has special effects on bacterial diseases. Spray once every 7-10 days, and spray 2-3 times continuously depending on the condition of the disease.

The above is Qinnong Net's introduction to the control methods and medication for pepper gray mold. Doing a good job in disease control is also one of the key factors affecting the yield and benefits of pepper cultivation. I hope everyone can gain something after reading this article and that it can serve as a certain reference for the control of pepper gray mold.