Diseases of cucumbers, their description and treatment

Fungal

Fungal diseases of this culture are considered the most common. Their pathogens are spores of microscopic fungi that are fixed on the leaves, stems, roots and fruits of cucumbers. Fungi can cause the complete destruction of the entire planting, if no processing is carried out and the necessary measures are not taken to combat the disease.

One of the most famous cucumber diseases is powdery mildew. The disease manifests itself as a whitish bloom, which initially forms small spots. Over time, they expand and merge into one continuous spot, covering almost the entire sheet. In this case, the leaves and stems begin to dry out and die off. Powdery mildew negatively affects the fruiting of cucumbers and can cause a complete lack of harvest.

Spores of the powdery mildew fungus overwinter on organic residues and begin active growth in cloudy and humid weather, when the temperature does not exceed + 20 ° C. In order to prevent powdery mildew infection in time, remove the cucumber tops after harvest, water the plants with warm water and do not rush to planting dates. Get resistant varieties.

If powdery mildew does appear on cucumbers, chemical fungicides are used to combat. There are many effective means on the agricultural market, for example, Topsin, Hom, colloidal sulfur. From folk remedies, spraying with a solution of soda and soap is used. For 10 liters of water, take 50 grams of baking soda and 50 grams of laundry soap.

Fungal pests often share common traits. Peronosporosis is popularly called downy mildew, since the disease has similar symptoms. Cucumber leaves are also covered with spots, which eventually merge into one whole. Only in the case of peronosporosis, the spots are light yellow. The infection can affect plants at any stage of growth.

To combat downy mildew, solutions of copper oxychloride, Bordeaux liquid are used. Of the professional drugs, Ridomil and Ordan are used. Try to create greenhouse conditions for diseased plants with a temperature of at least + 25 ° C. If you find characteristic spots, stop watering and feeding for the time being.

Cladosporium (brown olive spot) affects both leaves and fruits. They are covered with dark green ulcers. The disease develops actively in cool and humid conditions. Especially towards the end of summer when the nights are getting cooler. To combat cladosporia, treatment is used with a 1% solution of Bordeaux liquid and a 0.4% solution of copper oxychloride. In addition, the drug Oxyhom shows excellent results, which is diluted in a proportion of 20 grams per 10 liters of water.

Viral

Viral pests of cucumbers are considered the most dangerous, since it is almost impossible to get rid of them and the only way to protect them is prevention, selection of resistant varieties or destruction of infected plants.Even in the initial period of growing cucumbers, they can be attacked by a cucumber mosaic. The virus manifests itself as marble chlorotic spots on the leaves, which dry out over time. The number of female inflorescences is significantly reduced, the fruits grow small and light green, the leaves wrinkle and bulky spots appear on them, similar to warts.

The virus is transmitted by small insects, such as aphids, and persists in weeds and organic debris. Also, the virus is transmitted by garden flowers phlox, cannes, gladioli. If signs of a disease are detected, the plant must be destroyed, at whatever stage of cultivation it is. This will help protect nearby cucumbers. Also remember to disinfect garden appliances, especially those with which you treated flowers susceptible to the virus.

Cucumber viral necrosis develops in low light and cool weather. As a result, the yield may decrease by 20-50%. At first, brown-brown spots can be seen on the leaves. They are located along the veins and after a while cover the entire sheet. Infected fruits grow small with light spots. In order to detect diseased plants in time and remove them, it is important to carry out frequent preventive examinations. You also need to steam the soil and monitor the crop rotation.

Video Full complex of treatment ”

Bacterial

From bacterial diseases, angular spotting should be distinguished, which is caused by a special highly specialized type of bacteria that affects only cucumbers. Plants can be affected as early as the cotyledon stage. Oily dark green spots appear between the leaves. On older cucumbers, spots appear between the veins of the leaves.

With high humidity, an oily coating and yellow mucus form on the leaves. Fruits are also affected by microorganisms. Wet, dark ulcers appear on them. To combat angular spotting, copper-containing preparations such as Champion and Cuproxat are used.

Another bacterial disease is called wet rot. You can see signs of infection on the inside of the leaf. Weeping oily spots are formed there next to the central vein. On the tissues of the stem, exudate begins to stand out. Young plants can wither in a day, and recover again in the morning. But after 3-4 days the cucumber withers completely. If untreated, yield losses can be as high as 40%. To prevent the spread of the disease, use only healthy and treated seeds. Also, be careful not to damage the stems during harvest and weed removal, as the infection will penetrate into the damaged areas.

Disease prevention

The best prevention of cucumber diseases is the selection of varieties that are resistant to them. It should be noted that today there is no absolutely universal variety that would withstand the attacks of all diseases.

When choosing varieties for your garden, pay attention to what diseases are more common in your climatic zone and directly on your site, because most infections affect not only cucumbers, but also other crops. Hybrid varieties F1 Anyuta, Athlete, Vasilek, Adam are resistant to one of the most common diseases, powdery mildew. A high degree of resistance to downy mildew was found in the varieties Delpina, Vicenta, Anyuta. Cucumber mosaic is not terrible for Amur 1801, Marta, Danila, Hector, Vicenta, Makar varieties. Varieties Nastenka, Romance, Luzhok, Vasilek, Anyuta and others resistant to olive spot. The Romance variety, in addition, is not afraid of ascochitis and fusarium.

There are prevention measures for each individual disease, but there are also general rules that will help you protect your cucumber plantation. First of all, you need to monitor the cleanliness of the planting. Loosen the soil and remove weeds in time.Do not allow the formation of thickets, because it is in such conditions that diseases can quickly move from one plant to another.

Watering plays a key role in the cultivation of cucumbers. But everything should be in moderation. Most fungal diseases are caused by excess moisture and extremely low water temperatures. It is especially important to follow this in the first stages of cucumber growth. A healthy plant can only be obtained from healthy seeds, so keep an eye on the condition of the seed. If you harvest the seeds yourself, then in no case use fruits from infected plants. Also check the condition of the seeds just before planting. All rotten, broken, spotty seeds should be sent to the bin.

Protection of cucumbers from diseases includes the procedure for disinfecting seeds, which consists in soaking the seeds in a solution of potassium permanganate. Observe the crop rotation. Cucumbers should not be planted in the same place for several years in a row. The gap between plantings should be at least 5-6 years.

Video "Diseases in the greenhouse"

What diseases can overtake your cucumbers when grown in a greenhouse? Find out from the video. The video also describes the main methods of pest control.