Peppers, while popular in gardens and greenhouses, are susceptible to a variety of diseases. To maximize yield, it’s important to be aware of these potential problems before planting.
In this article, we discuss 4 common pepper diseases that can potentially harm plants and how to manage them. While prevention isn’t guaranteed, with knowledge and caution one may reduce the risk of plant infection and get the most out of your harvest.
1 Pepper Damping-Off Disease
Plants need water to survive. But too much water can be just as harmful as too little. Over-watering can cause a plant to develop a condition known as damping-off disease.
Capsicum seedlings are especially vulnerable to damping-off disease. Early signs include water-soaked lesions at the base of the stem, which can quickly expand and cause constriction.
Affected plants become wilted and generally remain green, even after reaching collapse. When dry, the stem rots and presents with a distinctive linear wither.
During the germination period, damping-off may lead to serious seed and bud rot hindering the seedling’s emergence. High-humidity environments are accompanied by copious amounts of white cottony hyphae near the infected plant.
Control Method:
Pepper damping-off can be prevented and managed through a combination of agricultural and chemical control. Resistant varieties should be used, quality seedlings grown in a sterile environment, and measures such as bed disinfection taken. Fungicides may also be employed to solve this case.
Additionally, gardeners could also opt for protecting their plants from fungus-causing organisms by denying the spores easy access to foliage/stems with lowered watering methods such as bottom watering and adding mulch or compost to create preventive barriers.
Application of Product:
Fungicide of Metalaxyl-M 5%+ Hymexazol 25% SL has high prevention and control effect on Pepper damping-off. 450-675ml formulation per hectare is mixed with water three times by the spray method, with an interval of 5-7 days. The amount of liquid sprayed should be sufficient to wet the seedbed.
2 Pepper Seedling Diesease (Rizoctonia solani)
Rhizoctonia solani, commonly known as dead seedling and mycorrhizal fungi, is an extremely destructive pathogen responsible for the wilting and death of pepper seedlings.
This disease thrives in humid and warm conditions and is challenging to control. Symptoms often include dark brown or black lesions on the leaves, stem, and root system underneath a mat of fungal growth. Other tell-tale signs of infection may include yellowing of the leaves over time, followed by withering and eventual death.
In its early stages, Pepper Seedling Disease manifests itself through wilting of leaves during peak times of day before forming circles around stems that lead to severe shrinkage. It’s essential for growers to recognize the signs to effectively prevent any mass destruction brought about by this fungus.
Control Method:
Correct prevention and management of pepper damping-off are key for preventing infection. Agricultural control measures such as selecting a suitable seedbed and cultivating robust seedlings are important, in addition to chemical treatment of the seeds with fungicides where appropriate. Additionally, fungicide applications can be applied to the soil to reduce the risk of further spreading.
Application Of Product:
Metalaxyl-M 10g/L + Fludioxonil 25g/L FS could be used as a treatment of pepper seedling diesease against Rizoctonia solani at 400-800 g/ha mixed with water three times by the spray method. To pay attention, it should be at a depth of about 10 cm after spraying chemicals.
3 Pepper Scab
Pepper scabs are a fungal disease that affects pepper plants. The fungus enters the plant via the stem or leaves and produces spores, which can move on other pepper plants.
Symptoms of pepper scabs can include small, dark spots on the plant’s parts such as leaves, stems, and fruits. These spots may grow into raised scabs. This can lead to reduced production of peppers from the infected plant.
The disease can infect seedlings as well as adult plants; symptoms usually manifest in watery yellow-green spots before appearing in round or irregular spots with dark brown edging and a slightly raised texture like a scab on the center of them.
Control Method:
When dealing with pepper scabs, the best course of action is to plant varieties that are naturally disease-resistant. If this isn’t an option, there are a few measures you can take to help manage the spread of the disease. Ensuring that your soil is well-drained is essential, as wet conditions provide an ideal environment for scabs. Avoid overhead watering and water your peppers from below as much as possible.
Additionally, any infected foliage or plants should be raked up and destroyed right away— once infected, it won’t heal and destroys the chance of passing the infection on to other plants in the area.
To effectively deal with pepper scabs, integrating prevention methods such as these with chemical control solutions should help contain the situation.
Application of Product:
Difenoconzole 10% WDG is applied before or at the initial stage of the pepper leaf spot disease, at 800-1200 times, for 2-3 times application with an interval of 7-8 days.
4 Capsicum Brown Spot
The capsicum cinerea fungus is the cause of a devastating fungal disease known as capsicum brown spot. This can have serious implications for commercial pepper production, causing significant yield loss. Symptoms of the disease manifest primarily on the plant’s leaves, with small brown circular spots being one of the primary indicators.
In severe cases, entire plants may be defoliated. Identified lesions on fruit are round, yellow-brown in colour with a dark brown border and micro-depressions that can lead to black mould growth. It is imperative for growers to be aware of these signs and take preventative action to reduce infection rates.
Control Method:
To effectively contend with capsicum brown spots, cultivating healthy plants is key. This includes ensuring proper soil nutrition and water supply. Additionally, infected leaves and fruit must be picked off the plant to avoid its further spread. If caught early enough, fungicides can be employed as a control measure.
Aside from this preventative action, one may select disease-resistant varieties or sterilize soil, equipment, and seeds before sowing. Rotating crops every other year with different vegetables helps deter the fungus’s growth while strengthening cultivation and management is also crucial.
If the plant is already diseased, it’s important to select an appropriate medicament for spray control that should be administered every 7 – 12 days in succession twice or thrice. Then any defoliated leaves should be promptly removed after harvest.
Application Of Product:
Difenoconazole 20%+ pyraclostrobin10% SC could be used as a treatment of pepper brown spot at 200-375 ml/ha mixed with 30kg water by the spray method for 2-3 times application with an interval of 7-8 days.
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