Diseases and pests of blueberries: methods of dealing with them and what to do for treatment

Northern berry culture is unpretentious and not capricious. If the rules for planting in acidic soil are followed, care recommendations are followed, the plants grow strong, bear fruit abundantly. Failure to follow the recommendations for growing turns into a weakening of the bush, as a result, the appearance of blueberry diseases, damage by pests.

Blueberry diseases and how to treat them

Gardeners in the process of intensive cultivation of blueberries are faced with diseases that lead to a change in color, structure, drying out of individual organs or the death of the whole bush.Information about the types, signs of diseases, ways to fight infections helps to avoid mistakes in caring for the crop.

Fungal diseases

For the introduction, development of all types of fungi, the same prerequisites are characteristic:

• heavy rainfall;
• steady warmth;
• proximity to groundwater;
• lack of drainage;
• density of plantings;
• mechanical damage to the stem, shoots, leaves;
• unsuitable acid-alkaline environment of the soil, mineral additions not balanced.

Mushrooms are visualized on damaged surfaces as a sticky substance or mold with fluff. Infection occurs through neighboring diseased plants, spores are carried by insects, wind, and precipitation. Infectious agents overwinter on blueberry bushes, in fallen berries, on the ground.

Fungal diseases cause significant damage to crops, reduce yields, change the taste and aroma of berries. Unlike viral infections, fungal infections are treatable if time is not lost.

Stem Cancer

When blueberries are infected with stem cancer through the root system, the following symptoms are noted:

• the formation of red dot spots on the leaf plates, gradually growing and merging;
• death of affected foliage;
• shrinkage of stems after the appearance of deep brown ulcers on them;
• violation of metabolic processes, leading to a slowdown in plant development, grinding, shedding of berries;

Sick blueberries can be cured by treating the culture with Bordeaux liquid, Topsin or Fundazol when the first symptoms appear and to consolidate the result after harvest.

Phomopsis

Tall varieties of blueberries are susceptible to fungal infection. The disease begins at the tops of young shoots, gradually descends lower, causing wilting of all parts of the bush.

Features:

• changes begin with the appearance of brown, then gray spots on branches up to 10 mm in diameter;
• after time, clearly defined brown border with a gray tint of ulcers are formed;
• after 8-12 weeks, blueberries dry out;
• tops of branches curl up.

Favorable environment for the development of mushrooms - low humidity - less than 60%, high summer temperatures. To save garden blueberries and protect neighboring plants, diseased branches are removed and burned. The bush is sprayed with a solution of Topsin, Tridex or Fundazol.

Grey Rot

Suitable conditions for the growth and reproduction of mold pathogens are high humidity, steady heat. Stem, shoots, leaf blades are covered with gray or brown bloom with fluff, but the disease is more pronounced on berries.

First, yellow dots form, gradually darkening and increasing in size. The fruits begin to rot, the bush dries out. If there is no mold on the berries, then the taste qualities change, the fruits become inedible. When gray rot appears during flowering, the inflorescences turn brown and fall off.

To protect the crop from a common disease, every autumn and spring the plant is sprayed with fungicides with copper.

Moniliosis fruits

The second name of moniliosis is fruit rot. Drooping shoots and flowers turn yellow, then turn black and die. Blueberries look frostbitten. Fruits, not having time to reach the desired size, slow down in growth, dry out, crumble.On damaged leaves and berries, fungal spores form colonies and wait out the winter cold.

Damaged shoots, carrion collected from the ground are removed, fungicides are used for treatment - Funginex, Topas, Mission.

Physalosporosis

In August-September, red spots are visible on young blueberry stalks, eventually transforming into encircling rings. Ultimately, the shoots die. In the spring, old branches are removed, leaving a few young shoots. It is recommended to treat the culture with Bordeaux liquid, Fundazol or Topsin twice - in spring and after picking berries.

White spotting

The disease begins with the appearance of multiple small brown spots on blueberry leaves. They increase in size, turn white and are outlined by a brown border. Affected areas rot or dry out, forming holes in the foliage. Later, fungi migrate to branches, fruits.The berries acquire a grassy taste, become smaller.

Spores develop rapidly in humid warm weather, but tolerate heat well, temperatures from 3°C. It is recommended to mulch the soil around the plantings, spray with Bordeaux mixture or fungicides.

Witch's broom

A characteristic symptom of a plant disease is the growth of short reddish shoots in the form of a bunch or irregularly shaped ball at the rooting site of the fungus. The leaves on the branches are not viable, quickly dry out. The ovary and fruits are not formed. With the active growth and reproduction of fungi, pieces of mucus fall from the plant. The rapid growth of short thin shoots takes away some of the nutrients and moisture from the blueberry, oppressing, leading to the death of the culture.

Removal of formations does not get rid of the fungi that cause the disease. The treatment of bushes with Fundazol, Kuprozan helps. Witch's broom is difficult to heal.

Viral diseases

Diseases of this etiology are incurable. Whole plants are removed, taken out of the garden plot, burned.

Viral diseases include:

1. Mycoplasma or dwarfism. The first four years are the latent period. All organs of blueberries slow down growth. The leaves begin to turn red, then die off. A distinctive sign of dwarfism is the stripes on the branches.
2. Mosaic. The disease develops rapidly. The blueberry bush dies in a few months. First, the growth rate of shoots decreases, there is no fruiting. Yellow mosaic patterns appear on the foliage. The last stage of disease development is complete wilting.
3. Red ring spot. From mid-July, red spots are visible on the leaves of the culture, standing out in a brighter tone along the edges. Later, the formations merge into a single whole, the leaf dies.

If blueberry leaves turn red, get rid of the plant to avoid infection of neighboring bushes. Measures aimed at combating virus carriers - nematodes, ticks help prevent spotting.

Pest pests and methods of dealing with them

It is estimated that blueberries are attacked by 28 species of insects, of which more than half are butterflies. Agrotechnical measures taken in time to protect the crop reduce the risk of reduced yields.

Triangular flat leaflet

A small butterfly, whose wingspan barely reaches two centimeters, lays eggs on a bush. The green caterpillars formed from them with stripes of a more saturated color on the sides and back eat buds and buds. Later, the leaves are braided with cobwebs, which begin to curl. Hence the name - leaflet. The pest, which is found everywhere, affects most of the buds, half of the foliage on the bush.

The caterpillars are harvested by hand, removing them along with the curled leaves. In the spring, at the beginning of sap flow, before budding and after blueberry flowering, the chemicals Kemifos, Iskra, Decis Profi are used. For prevention purposes, Prophylactin is used, and when whitewashing boles, copper sulfate is added to lime.

Blue Moth

Moth caterpillar - yellow with black stripes along the body. It has two pairs of legs on its abdomen. They are activated immediately after the blooming of the buds of the culture, eating them, leaves, buds. A month later, insects on the threads of the web descend to the ground, where pupation occurs. One butterfly is able to lay up to three hundred eggs under the bark. Damage to more than 10% of the foliage is a signal for the treatment of blueberries with pesticides (Lepidocide, Sumition).

Heather shooter

The insect is common in the middle zone of the European part.Hairy brown caterpillars with contrasting black and white patches are active during the summer period. They feed on the leaves of the plant. In the fight against heather shooter insecticides Karbofos, Aktara, Fas, Lightning are effective. Chemical preparations are recommended to be alternated to avoid addiction.

Prevention measures

To prevent the development of fungal and viral infections, disease-resistant blueberry varieties are selected. Reduces the risk of diseases, pest attacks, proper soil preparation, crop care.

Preventive measures include:

• control of soil acidity, if necessary, adding organic acids to the soil;
• planting blueberries in a loose, drained substrate;
• avoiding waterlogging of the earth;
• autumn and spring pruning of diseased and deformed blueberry shoots;
• weed weeding;
• balance of applied fertilizers;
• mulching soil around plants and between rows with bark or sawdust;
• covering blueberry bushes with spruce branches for the winter to repel rodents;
• use of covering material to prevent freezing and weakening of the culture;
• treatment with fungicides of plants in early spring, three times after the appearance of leaves with an interval of a week, 3 times after harvesting the fruits and at the end of the growing season;
• sanitary cleaning of the earth from fallen leaves, berries, fragments of branches.

Before planting blueberries, the intended area is checked for the presence of bugs and wireworms. If the concentration of insects per 1 sq. m exceeds 2 and 7 individuals, respectively, then this place is not suitable for blueberries.

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