Ways to combat diseases and pests of strawberries

Growing strawberries is not an easy thing, because besides a whole complex of agrotechnical measures, a gardener will have to face all sorts of diseases and pests. How to recognize them and take effective measures, we consider in this article.

Garden strawberries - one of the most delicious berries of summer. A healthy shrub should have strong stems and leaves, bulk solid berries. However, not always the way a summer resident wants, especially a beginner.

Many factors can lead to diseases and the spread of pests:

• improper care;
• thick landing;
• insufficient / excessive feeding;
• lack of the required amount of moisture;
• careless attitude to wintering.

The bad news is that some diseases may have similar symptoms. And yet you should understand the main signs of the destruction of garden strawberries.

• If the strawberries are dry, then, most likely, it is worth looking for the cause in rot. The plant is susceptible to fungi, from it dry and quickly become unviable bushes and foliage.
• When a culture fades, it means that its roots are damaged. The reason for this are insect pests that live in the ground, for example, the bear. Also wilting can occur if the strawberry does not get enough water.
• Twisted and drooping leaves indicate that such pests as aphids and spider mites bred on them. Another reason is powdery mildew. Leaves can curl and due to improper watering.
• If the strawberry is rotted during the ripening period, it will rot, this may indicate the presence of root rot, which quickly causes the roots to become unusable. Another reason - the constant, irregular watering, especially thick plantings. The water stagnates, the plantation is not ventilated, and there are similar symptoms.

• Strawberry leaves turn yellow when the culture is affected by chlorosis. It may also indicate that it is time to feed nitrogen and magnesium. Yellow foliage becomes a consequence of the attack of strawberry mite.
• When the plant does not bloom, it causes particular stress on the gardener. After all, such a culture does not bear fruit, there are no berries on it. There are several reasons for this. Firstly, the summer resident did not observe the terms of planting and planted the strawberries sooner or later, therefore the bush will spend all its energy to root properly. Secondly, in the area under the guise of strawberries hiding weeds, which are difficult to distinguish from the usual form. They never bloom. They need to find and immediately uproot. Thirdly, the gardener overfed the crop with nitrogen, which provoked an accelerated growth of foliage.
• Those who grow such varieties as Victoria, may notice that the strawberry has become sour, not at all sweet. The reason for this is improper watering, strong shade, high acidity of the soil.
• Spots - a consequence of a lack of nitrogen. They appear even when the gardener fills too much or, on the contrary, rarely supplies water to the culture.
• If you find a barren flower on a strawberry, it means that there was not enough pollination. Try to plant male and female flowers as close as possible. Still barren flowers are formed on the bushes affected by the weevil, as well as on those that froze over or have been in intense heat for several weeks.

Strawberry - a culture prone to many diseases. The gardener must always be fully prepared to notice and recognize the symptoms of a disease in time.

This disease is very dangerous, it rapidly "jumps" from bush to bush, capturing the whole bed. The berry becomes small, gets a brown shade, decays.

This is a fungal disease that is also transmitted to the bushes through each other. The main feature is the lowering of the bushes to the ground. Sockets dry quickly, leaves and roots turn black and die.

Such a disease can affect not only garden strawberries, but everything that is in the garden. It occurs at high humidity, quickly spreading to all cultures. Ulcers appear on the stems, and large dark spots appear on the leaves. The roots gradually die off.

There are several types of rot affecting the whole plant.

The most harmful disease because of its swiftness. It develops in just two days, being transmitted to the bushes through water and air. Bushes become brown, fade, dark spots grow on berries, become useless and roots.

The only way of transmission of the misfortune is by air, thus, disputes easily fly from one bush to another. It affects all berries in the area of ​​its impact. The fruits begin to rot, a whitish down appears on them. Then the leaves turn white and die.

Detect the disease is possible only when digging a bush. If you notice that something is wrong with the plant, remove one bush and look at it. Black rot infects the root, causing its necrosis. Black spots and rings will be visible on the entire surface.

The onset of the disease is characterized by the appearance of a strange white bloom on the bottom plate of the leaf. Then this raid spreads further - to the upper part, and then to the stem. Fruits are deformed, they are impossible to eat. The plant affected by this ailment dies very quickly.

There are three types of spots - white, brown and brown.

1. When white spot on the foliage there are spots with a white center and a dark border. The plant begins to wither, the leaves fall. The cause of the disease is the abundance of moisture, overfeeding.
2. If small dark specks appeared on the culture, which later merged into one large spot, it means that the plant has a brown spot. Such bushes quickly perish, as there is no sap flow in them. Be careful - the fungus that caused the attack, in the absence of measures, will return next year.
3. When brown spots on the leaves appear oblong brown spots with a purple rim. This disease is very weakens the strawberries, in the winter it may die.

Unfortunately, not only a gardener, but also a variety of pests claim to plant strawberries. And it is necessary to worry about all - insects, slugs, even birds.

Slugs are disgusting in appearance pests that arise in conditions of high humidity. In the daytime, they are almost invisible, since parasites do not like sunlight. But at night they gnaw leaves and berries, damage the stems.

Weevil is a tiny gray beetle that loves to nibble on the stalk. In winter, weevils hibernate in the immediate vicinity of the plant, and in the spring they wake up and lay eggs directly into strawberry buds. The hatching larva eats the entire inside of the bud, and there it turns into an adult insect. The cycle starts again.

May beetle - a headache of every gardener, because this insect is just omnivorous. It is impossible to destroy the larvae beforehand, since the cunning parasite sets them aside at great depth. Such pests damage the roots, and as adults grow leaves and fruits.

We all know from childhood that ants are workers and real advocates of their home. In small quantities, they are even useful, but if their entire colonies, it is urgent to take action. The fact is that such insects can arrange an underground anthill directly in the roots of plants, which, of course, will cause the death of the culture.And because of their fault appears aphid, which eats leaves and fruits.

Nematode is a worm, almost imperceptible to the human eye. You can only find it when removing a bush from the ground. If you carefully examine the roots, you will notice that they are all covered with whitish ulcers. The plant itself will slowly fade, the leaves curl. Fruits turn out deformed, sometimes do not even blush.

Another insect that can not be seen. It is transferred through dirty tools, soil, and gardener's clothes. It develops only in conditions of high humidity.

Strawberry mite acts quickly, affecting the buds on the bushes. Thanks to his "work", the berries do not develop, the leaves turn yellow and curl, and the bush itself stops growing.

Trips are most often found in the inflorescences. These are the smallest bugs that hit the fruit. The strawberry becomes brown, becomes smaller, it is not possible to eat it. If the insect is flooded with beds, characteristic silvery traces on the bushes will be visible.

This is truly a "berry" insect, all gardeners know about it. Spider mite often loves strawberries, raspberries, all kinds of currants. Very small, juice is sucked from the leaves, thereby stopping sap flow. For large populations of bushes barely noticeable cobwebs.

Many gardeners believe that birds arriving at the site are an excellent insect prevention. However, this is not always the case. Indeed, besides insects, a large beautiful berry can attract a random bird, which it will surely taste. The next day, a whole flock will arrive, and it will not be easy for a gardener to handle them. One such plaque can deprive the entire seasonal crop.

Fighting diseases and pests is very difficult, because both have the ability to return. Nevertheless, without care and treatment, any plant will simply perish, so it will still be necessary to develop a struggle strategy.

Coping with many diseases of strawberries is recommended with the help of chemicals.

• Late blight can be controlled with the help of drugs such as Kvadris, Metaxil. It is also recommended to try "Fundazol" followed by thorough loosening.
• If the plant is affected by Fusarium, immediately treat the plantation with Fundazole. At the first stage, the administration of trichoderma will be effective.
• Anthracnose is treated by “Quadris” and “Ridomil”. It is also a good idea to process one percent Bordeaux liquid.

• The bushes that caught the gray rot are sprayed with a 3% Bordeaux mixture. In addition, the Switch will show good results. White rot is destroyed by "Dezoralom". Black, unfortunately, is not treated, only preventive measures will help here.
• To combat the powdery mildew, use "Fundazol", "Kvadris", "Topaz".
• The complex of measures for the treatment of all types of spots includes spraying "Dezoral", "Falcon", "Ridomil".

We don’t have to wait for big results from folk remedies, they are more suitable for preventive measures. Nevertheless, there are several techniques that can be tested in your garden.

1. Infusion of mustard. Two tablespoons of powder dissolved in a bucket of water. The resulting mixture watered culture.
2. Kefir infusion. Take one of these products to choose from: kefir, whey, yogurt, dilute in ten liters of water. Strawberries are sprayed with this agent twice a week.
3. Garlic infusion. Chopped pieces of green garlic pour five liters of water. Insist 48 hours, then sprayed strawberries.
4. Infusion of ash. I take 300 grams of ash, stirred in a bucket of water. Insist 24 hours, then you can apply.

This is not all recipes, many gardeners use a solution of iodine, manganese, fresh milk with the addition of soap.

Destroy pests should be comprehensive. If they are visible to the eye, then you can collect them manually, take it out of the garden, burn or feed it to chickens who love such “desserts”.

• Digging out shallow grooves in which ashes or tobacco can be poured in will help you from slugs. You can also place the salt on the site, rubbing the skin on it, the parasites will die. With large quantities of slugs, it is worth treating the drug "Thunderstorm".
• Weevil traps destroy will not work, here will only help "Karbofos" and "Aktellik."
• May beetle can be collected by hand, spreading a film under the tree. Do it in cloudy weather, when the insect is not too active. Still such beetles do not like white clover, which can be landed nearby. A radical measure of struggle will be the use of "Nemabakta", "Antikhruscha".
• In the case of ants, you can set traps saturated with poison. Well helps infusion of garlic, yeast, scattered around semolina. From insecticides use "Iskra", "Fitoverm".

• With the nematode cope by falling asleep manure into the ground, in addition, you can process the bushes "Heterofos".
• Strawberry mite does not respond to treatment, so you have to keep the situation under control. Dig and burn the most affected plants, destroy old and dried leaves.
• Against thrips, you can use "Decis", "Fitosporin." Good help and tincture of red pepper, yarrow.
• To combat spider mites, use Fitoverm, Vermitek. Soap and garlic solutions also work well.
• If the site was attacked by birds, you can cover the plantings with a grid. A great result will be given by the installation of sparkling trifles - old disks, silver medals, remnants of decorations, New Year's “rain”. Such reflections will scare the birds. You can also purchase a special bird repeller.

Any disease is a consequence of the fact that the gardener at some stage made a mistake. In order not to repeat them, it is necessary to carry out preventive measures.

1. Purchase only healthy seeds and seedlings.
2. If you grow strawberries for the first time, it is better to give preference to varieties of hybrids that are resistant to many diseases.
3. Do not forget about the rules of crop rotation. You can not grow a crop on the same plot for more than three years. The older the strawberry becomes, the more diseases it will collect.
4. Remember that you can not densely plant a plantation. The optimal distance between the rows is 30 cm. This will allow air to penetrate, in addition, water will also better feed the soil.
5. Dig and destroy any weeds appearing on the plot.
6. Follow all the necessary agricultural practices: watering, mulching, cutting off mustaches.
7. Before the start of the new season, clean the beds, removing last year’s leaves, because pests can spend the winter in them.
8. A good preventive measure will be treatment of plants Bordeaux liquid, it will help prevent a lot of diseases. After harvesting the land can be fed with nitrogen, manure solution.

If the proposed methods were not enough - the disease still manifested itself, try to use the drugs so that they act on a whole group of pests. This will help save money and yield, and at the same time will be the prevention of new diseases. It is worth remembering that Any treatment with chemicals can not be applied on the berries. They will simply become unsuitable for food.Any spraying (except folk remedies) are carried out before flowering or after it.

About why strawberries are rotting and how to avoid it, see the next video.