What causes fruit rot after watermelon fruiting
When rotten melons appear during the watermelon fruiting stage, it is mostly related to pests and diseases and improper environmental management, and targeted prevention and control are needed. Today, let's have a good talk about it.
I. Main Causes
1. Pest and disease infestation
Bacterial soft rot: under high temperature and high humidity, the pathogen invades through wounds, causing the flesh to rot and stink, and water-soaked lesions to appear on the rind.
Charcoal rot: brown lesions form starting from the peduncle and gradually spread to the whole fruit, producing black spore-bearing structures in the later stage.
Fruit fly damage: the larvae bore into and feed on the flesh, causing internal rot, with visible wormholes and mucus on the outside.
2. Environment and management
Water imbalance: sudden heavy irrigation after a long drought, or excessive rain, can easily cause fruit cracking or blossom-end rot.
Nutrient imbalance: excessive nitrogen fertilizer makes the rind thinner, and a deficiency of calcium and boron increases rind brittleness, worsening fruit cracking.
Physical damage: wounds caused by field operations or pests provide a pathway for pathogen invasion.
II. Preventive Measures
1. Seed selection and pollination: choose disease-resistant varieties, and mark well when hand-pollinating to avoid uneven pollination that forms deformed fruit.
2.Water and fertilizer management: spray calcium and boron fertilizer on the leaves during the fruiting stage, and control the amount of nitrogen fertilizer; avoid flood irrigation and keep soil moisture stable.
3.Pest and disease control: hang fruit fly sticky traps and promptly remove diseased fruit; after rain, spray Bordeaux mixture or mancozeb-type fungicides to prevent disease.
4.Farm operations: carry out pruning and shoot thinning after the dew has dried to reduce mechanical damage, and promptly remove deformed fruit.
III. Emergency Handling
If rotten melons have already appeared, immediately remove the diseased fruit and inspect the surrounding plants to prevent the disease from spreading.