Cherry moniliosis: how to treat the disease with drugs and folk remedies

Fruit trees become infected with pathogenic fungi when flowering begins. Spores are sent through the pistil into the tissues of the plant, multiply and ripen in fruits, causing secondary infection. Cherry moniliosis is affected in many areas of the middle zone, in the Urals, in the southern regions of Russia, in Siberia. The spread of the disease was facilitated by the fact that gardeners at first did not pay attention to its signs, because they believed that the leaves simply froze.

What is this?

Moniliosis, which is caused by ascomycete fungi, leads to the death of entire plantings, if you do not fight this disease in time. Dealing with gray rot, as it is also called, is very difficult. Spores affect the entire tree, not just individual parts of it.

In winter, the mycelium of a pathogenic fungus does not disappear, but colonizes branches and dried fruits. Spores germinate when the air is heated to at least +12 °C. Therefore, gardeners in the fall need to check if there are grayish pads on the cherries. About the occurrence of a serious problem says:

• presence of unripe dried fruits;
• blackening and thinning of twigs;
• the appearance of lethargic, as if frozen leaves.

Drupe plant disease has not one form, but two. Fruit rot settles on infected berries and infects the plant the next year.

If fungi get into the wounds and cracks in the trunk, a monilial burn occurs. On large trees, the border between the diseased and he althy parts is especially noticeable.

Causes of the appearance and development of the disease

During the flowering of cherries, the mycelium, overwintered on dried branches and fruits, releases spores that infect the plant through the pistil and buds and destroy the tissues of the shoots. Young branches quickly dry out, the berries do not fill with juice. Leaves turn brown.

Fungi are activated when the temperature drops to about minus 2. Promotes reproduction:

• wet and cool weather;
• heavy fogs;
• abundant dew;
• prolonged lack of sun.

Spores reappear in the dried shoots, and the infection process continues even when it gets warmer and the rains stop.

During the summer, not one generation of fungi occurs, but several. The whole garden becomes ill with moniliosis. In winter frosts, spores hide in dried berries and branches, and in spring they continue to multiply and capture new plantings of cherries, sweet cherries or apricots.

The fungus is carried by aphids, codling moth and other insects from infected trees to he althy plants, destroying huge planting areas over the course of several years.

Problem definition

You can understand that a cherry is sick with moniliasis by the fact that young branches dry out very quickly, flowers fall off, leaves become lifeless, the ovary does not form.

If a tree with fruits is affected by fungi, growths of spores form on the berries, and they rot and mummify.

Methods of struggle

To cope with a dangerous and rapidly spreading disease, it is necessary to use simultaneously different methods of eliminating both moniliosis and the destruction of its pathogens. It is necessary to constantly cut off damaged branches, remove leaves from under trees, spray cherries with fungicides.

It is better to get rid of diseased shoots in autumn or spring, before the buds have time to open. When flowering ends, it is necessary to check again if the affected areas have reappeared. The disease spreads less with the timely formation of the crown. Old trees need to be pruned more often.

Leaves, rotten fruits, dried branches must be burned, as spores hibernate in them. Not all summer residents who grow cherries in their area know how to treat moniliosis. It is necessary to take measures urgently and in a complex, trimming alone cannot solve the problem.

To defeat the disease, drugs are used in which copper is present. They prevent the reproduction of spores. Cherries are sprayed with systemic fungicides not once, but several times per season. The most effective among them is Horus, the drug has a negative effect on pathogenic fungi even at low temperatures.During the growing season, cherries can be treated with bacteriological preparations - "Fitosporin", "Gamair".

Fungi quickly get used to different formulations. In summer, the remedy for moniliosis should be alternated with insecticides to destroy insects that spread spores to other trees.

Knowing how to deal with the disease of fruit crops, and starting treatment in a timely manner, it is possible to stop its spread. Most often, varieties bred many years ago are affected by moniliosis - Felt cherry, Vladimirskaya.

Prevention

Preventing infection with fungi is much easier than dealing with the disease they cause:

1. You can not plant cherries where trees affected by moniliosis grew.
2. The place for new plants should not be selected in the lowland, where the roots will rot, but on a small hill.
3. So that pests do not gnaw the bark on the trunks, they need to be wrapped in dense synthetic material, otherwise spores can settle in the damage and wounds.
4. Dried twigs must be removed every autumn, the cut points are covered with putty.

Fallen leaves and unripe berries should be burned, loosen the ground in the garden. It is necessary to select fruit crops for the site that are zoned for the area. It is advisable to immediately treat the seedlings with Bordeaux liquid.

Before bud break, all trees should be sprayed with a solution of copper sulfate, and lime should be added to the ground, which will help reduce acidity and prevent the development of moniliosis.

Varieties most resistant to disease

To protect the garden from the spread of gray rot, you need to seriously approach the choice of cherries and cherries. Some of them are more often affected by moniliosis, others less often.

Shokoladnitsa is resistant to disease. A low tree does not have a dense crown, but up to 12 kg of brown berries weighing a little more than 3 g ripen on its branches. They resemble sweet cherries with a sweet taste. The first fruits appear on the plant at the age of 4 years. The tree normally tolerates frost and temperature fluctuations.

Cherry Turgenevka rarely suffers from moniliosis. In this variety, the berries are distinguished by a rich red color. There is a lot in the pulp:

• iron;
• ascorbic acid;
• vitamin B.

Sweet heart-shaped fruit weighs about 5 g.

Cherry The toy is resistant to gray rot, not afraid of frost. A tall tree is distinguished by an oval crown, has thick branches. The fruits are tied in the third year and ripen at the end of summer. Large berries weighing up to 9 grams please with sweet pulp, the stone is separated from it without problems.

The variety Nochka was bred by breeders by crossing cherries with cherries. The hybrid is distinguished by a lush crown, large beautiful leaves. Flower buds on the tree are laid in the first year, so the fruits appear already in the third. The brush is formed from 8 berries, some specimens weigh up to 10 g. The variety takes root in areas with frosty winters, it is resistant to moniliosis.

Cherry Novella was created at the Oryol Breeding Institute by crossing Griot Rossoshanskaya with a steppe hybrid. A tree about 3 meters high has a spreading crown and powerful roots. The plant blooms in May, pleases with sweet almost black berries. Variety valued:

• for high yields;
• immunity to fungal diseases;
• excellent presentation.

Bystrinka is planted by both summer residents and farmers.The hybrid barely reaches two meters in height. Harvesting fruits is a pleasure. Cherry is unpretentious in care, does not take up much space. The variety loves fertile land, gives a decent harvest of berries that can be transported over long distances. Bystrinka does not suffer from coccomycosis, it is rarely affected by gray rot.

Cherry Minx is grown in the steppes of Ukraine, in the North Caucasus. It was bred on the basis of varieties Kyiv and Samsonovka. The tree is characterized by rapid growth, has a spreading crown, straight shoots, shiny leaves. Burgundy fruits weighing about 6 grams are used to make jams and compotes. The hybrid is not afraid of frost, rarely affected by fungal diseases.

To minimize the risk of moniliosis in cherries, it is necessary to feed the trees with organic matter and mineral fertilizers, remove excess shoots and shoots, water in the absence of rain for a long time, and loosen the soil between rows.

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