Strawberry Diseases and Pests: Possible Problems, Control and Prevention Measures

Strawberries or strawberries are one of the most popular berries on the garden plots of Russian gardeners. Breeders have bred many different varieties that are distinguished by excellent taste, productivity, cold tolerance, but none of them has protection against most diseases typical of the culture. They love strawberries and pests, which are able to deprive the gardener of a significant part or even the entire crop. Therefore, you need to know how to recognize the problem, deal with it and what to do for prevention.

Possible problems with growing strawberries

Diseases of strawberries and the defeat of its pests are manifested in a variety of ways. The same symptom can indicate completely different problems. The first alarming sign is a change in the appearance of plants. Sometimes this is due to certain errors in care, and the situation normalizes when they are corrected. But there may be other reasons. The most common symptoms are:

• Grinding drying berries. Most often this is due to intense heat and a long absence of precipitation. Strawberry is a moisture-loving culture, proper watering is very important.
• Lack of fruit. This may indicate that the variety belongs to the category of “weedy”, fruit ovaries on such bushes are absent in principle (they do not bloom at all or form only empty flowers). Other possible causes are old or, conversely, new plants, fertilizer deficiency, freezing of bushes (especially not winter-hardy varieties). If the ovaries appear, but dry and fall off, the most likely cause is the appearance of a weevil beetle.
• Low productivity, small berries. Most likely, this is due to the presence of pollination problems, especially if strawberries are grown in a greenhouse. Bees and bumblebees are not too active in cool damp weather.
• Yellowing leaves. There are many reasons for this. The most common are planting plants in direct sunlight (they burn the leaves), too acidic substrate, moisture deficiency, lack of nutrients - magnesium (leaves become covered with small yellowish spots), nitrogen (acquire a lemon-yellow tint), iron (turn yellow between veins) . It can also be associated with the appearance of insects that feed on plant juices - aphids, spider mites, weevils.
• Blushing leaves. Toward the end of summer and autumn, this is natural. During the growing season, such an unnatural shade can be caused by a deficiency of potassium or excessive thickening of the plantings.
• Drying leaves. Most often, the cause is various fungal diseases (any spotting, late blight) or the appearance of pests (whitefly, strawberry leaf beetle). In extreme heat, the leaves dry out due to moisture deficiency.
• Curling young leaves. This symptom is characteristic if the strawberry tick attacks the planting.
• Deformed fruits. The main reason is a deficiency of boron. Also, this may be due to the fact that the plants during flowering came under spring return frosts - the receptacle suffers because of them.

Photo gallery: Symptoms characteristic of common diseases and typical strawberry pests

Culture-typical diseases and methods of controlling them

Most diseases affecting strawberries are caused by fungi. There are viruses that are dangerous for the plant (mosaic spotting, “witch's broom” and so on). It is impossible to cope with the latest modern means. Affected plants can only be dug up from the beds and burned, thus eliminating the source of infection.

White rot

Blurry light spots appear on the leaves and fruits. Gradually, these tissues dry out (if the street is hot) or rot (in wet, rainy weather). In especially severe cases, the fruits and leaves are covered with a thick layer of white coating, similar to cotton wool. You can’t eat such a strawberry. Most often, strawberries grown in open ground suffer from the fungus. The risk is significantly reduced when it is cultivated in a greenhouse, on vertical beds, on a black film.

White rot extremely rarely affects strawberries growing in a greenhouse, as well as on vertical beds

To combat white rot, they use Derozal, Horus, Bayleton or Switch. The number of treatments and their frequency - in strict accordance with the manufacturer's instructions.

The use of any chemicals is strictly prohibited during fruiting and for at least 15 days before it. It is also very undesirable in the flowering process.

To prevent white rot between the rows of strawberries, garlic or onions are planted. Every 8-10 days, the bushes are sprayed with an infusion of mustard powder, ground red pepper. The soil in the garden is sprinkled with sifted wood ash. If most of the bushes in the garden were affected by a fungus this year, 2-3 weeks after harvesting, plants and soil should be sprayed with any of the recommended preparations.

Gray rot

The fruits are covered with a thick layer of gray "fluffy" plaque. If you touch them, clouds of "dust" of the same color rise into the air. The disease spreads rapidly, especially with direct contact of sick fruits with healthy ones. If nothing is done, the fungus can destroy 50-90% of the total crop. Early ripe strawberry varieties are less susceptible to gray rot, especially Ruby Pendant, Novelty, Friendship, Pocahontas. Light deficit, dense plantings, high air humidity, and excess nitrogen in the soil contribute to its development.

Strawberry gray rot spreads from diseased berries to healthy ones very quickly.

For prevention, just before flowering, strawberries are treated with infusion of onion or garlic shooters, XOM, Tiram, Figon preparations. Water it from the moment buds appear only at the root, the soil must be mulched so that the berries do not touch the ground.

To cope with the fungus, you need to regularly remove the affected berries and thin out the plantings. Watering is dramatically reduced, allowing the soil to dry well. After that, for 2-3 weeks, ordinary water is replaced with a pale pink solution of potassium permanganate. With each loosening, add a little wood ash, crushed into chalk powder, on the bed. It is also advisable to carry out foliar top dressing - 2 g of boric acid and 20 drops of iodine in 10 liters of water.

Video: ways to combat gray rot

Root rot (rhizoctonia)

Most often, strawberries suffer from this disease when crop rotation is not observed, as well as when planting in the garden where any Solanaceae had grown before. The roots (especially young ones) quickly blacken, become slimy to the touch. They dry out, break easily. Then, similar lesions appear on the petioles of the leaves and "horns." The bush can be extracted from the soil almost effortlessly.

To cope with this disease is almost impossible. Quite clearly, it manifests itself only when the disease has gone too far. The best prevention is competent agricultural technology. Before planting, the roots of new bushes are recommended to hold for 2-3 minutes in hot (40-45ºС) water or 10-15 minutes in a solution of Fitosporin, Maxim, Previkur.

Symptoms characteristic of the development of root rot on the aerial part of the plant appear when the process has already gone far enough

If root rot has affected only a few plants, they are immediately dug up and destroyed. The soil in this place is shed with a 3% solution of copper sulfate or Bordeaux fluid. The bed is well loosened, while at the same time introducing Alirin-B and Trichodermin pellets into the soil. Overly plentiful watering is strictly contraindicated. It is better to replace the water with a pale pink solution of potassium permanganate.

Powdery mildew

The disease is easy to recognize, but coping with the fungus is quite difficult. On the leaves, petioles, berries, stalks, a white coating appears, similar to spilled flour. Gradually, these areas grow, the plaque “thickens” and darkens, changing color to brown-brown with purple tint. Affected berries crack, leaves dry. You can’t eat such a strawberry.

The development of the disease contributes to cool damp weather, sharp fluctuations in temperature, thickening of plantings, an excess of nitrogen in the soil, improper watering (both moisture deficit and its excess). Varieties Olivia, Polka, Pandora, Ruby pendant, Sparkle, Galichanka are resistant to the pathogenic fungus.

Powdery mildew seems to be a harmless coating that is easy to wipe from the leaves, but in fact it is a dangerous disease

To prevent the development of powdery mildew, strawberries are dusted with colloidal sulfur 3-4 times during the growing season, the soil on the bed is shed with 1% solution of copper sulfate or Bordeaux fluid. The procedure is carried out as soon as the first leaves appear, before flowering, immediately after it and 15-20 days after the end of fruiting. During the growing season, you can use folk remedies, spraying strawberries every 10-15 days with a solution of soda ash (40 g per 10 liters of water), wood ash or household foam, green potash soap. Foliar fertilizing with boric acid, copper sulfate and zinc sulfate, which positively affect the immunity of plants, is also useful.

To cope with the disease, use any copper-containing drugs - fungicides. The most effective are Topaz, Bayleton, Kuproksat, Horus. When loosening, Euparen, Karatan are introduced into the soil.

Video: how to get rid of powdery mildew on strawberries

Fusarium

Almost any culture in the garden can suffer from this fungus. The development of the disease contributes to hot, dry weather. As a result, the aerial part of the plant completely dries up. First, small brownish spots appear on the leaves, then petioles, shoots ("mustaches") and "horns" turn brown. The leaves dry and curl, the bush "breaks up", the rosette as if falls into the ground. The whole process takes 4-6 weeks. There are strawberry varieties resistant to Fusarium - Bohemia, Capri, Flamenco, Christine, Sonata, Florence, Omsk early, Alice.

Folk remedies in the fight against fusariosis are absolutely useless

Folk remedies against a fungus are useless. Effective prevention of the development of fusarium is fungicides of biological origin (Agat-25K, Trichodermin, Phytosporin, PhytoDoctor). The bed and plants are sprayed with a frequency of once every 1.5-2 weeks. In a solution of the same preparations, the roots of new bushes are soaked before planting.

In cases of mass damage, Fundazol, Benorad, Horus are used to combat fusarium. If it was not possible to cope with the problem, the garden bed is thoroughly cleaned, plant waste is burnt, the soil for disinfection is shed with a 2% Nitrafen solution. You can re-plant strawberries in this area at least 5-6 years later.

White spotting (ramularis)

Leaves are covered with small purple-scarlet roundish spots. Gradually they grow, in the middle they become whitish, grayish or light beige. The disease spreads to the petioles and fruits. As a result, the affected tissue dies, holes form on the leaves. They wither and wither. Brownish spots appear on the berries, spores penetrate the strawberry pulp, greatly spoiling its taste. The fungus spreads very quickly, especially with high humidity. Most often, the disease develops closer to the middle of the vegetative season.

White spotting rarely leads to plant death, but significantly reduces yield

For the prevention of soil in the garden, plants in the budding phase and about a month after harvesting are sprayed with a 1% solution of Bordeaux fluid or with Tsineb, Falcon preparations. Particular attention should be paid to the treatment of the underside of leaves. For mass lesions, Horus, Bayleton, and Strobi are used.

Brown spotting

Most often, the disease develops during fruiting. On all parts of the plant, primarily on young leaves, blurry dark brown spots appear, cast in purple. Fruits grow smaller and brown, leaves and "mustaches" dry up. The bush may lose 60-70% of the green mass. The fungus pathogen successfully hibernates in plant debris; It also spreads in direct contact with water drops.

The brown spotting pathogen most often hibernates in plant debris or in the soil, preserving viability even in severe frosts

Folk remedies in the fight against brown spotting are ineffective. For prevention, the first emerging leaves, as well as buds, are sprayed with 1% Bordeaux fluid or HOM. In the event of a mass lesion, Oksikhom, Kuprozan, Skor, Ridomil-Gold are used.

Anthracnose

The most susceptible to the disease are plants suffering from a nutrient deficiency, as well as those on which there are even slight mechanical damage. Spores of a pathogenic fungus are carried by the wind, insects, raindrops. Strawberry Pelican, Idea, Pegan, Daver does not get anthracnose.

Leaves and fruits are covered with spots of brick color with a brown or yellowish-beige border. Gradually, they grow, merge with each other. Then the spots turn into depressed "ulcers" bordered by purple, their surface crackes, droplets of a cloudy pinkish-yellow liquid stand out. The leaves dry, the petioles become very fragile, the entire aerial part of the plant dries and dies.

Anthracnose is easily recognizable by its “sunken” spots on berries, petioles and leaves

The most effective drugs for combating anthracnosis are Acrobat-MTs, Skor, Fundazol. For prevention, strawberries and soil in the garden 3-4 times per season are sprayed with Fitosporin, Topsin-M or Gamair. It is useful to add any biostimulant to the solution (Epin, Zircon, potassium humate).

Verticillosis

The pathogenic fungus primarily affects the roots. Symptoms on the aerial parts of the plant appear only when the process has already gone far enough. Strawberry bushes grow smaller, stop in development. Petioles turn red, berries turn brown and deformed, leaves from the lowest dry.

The best prevention of verticillosis is following the recommendations for growing strawberries, in the first place, proper feeding. If the disease has already gone too far, the affected bushes are dug up and burned, the disinfectant bed is shed with any fungicide. In the early stages of verticillosis, you can use the drug Maxim, Fundazol, Fitosporin, Fitodoctor.

It is quite difficult to cope with verticillosis, so special attention should be paid to the prevention of this disease

There are varieties of strawberries that have genetically integrated immunity to this disease - Lambada, Figaro, Gourmand, Tsarskoye Selo, Favorit. Most of them are not affected by gray rot.

Video: The Most Common Strawberry Disease

Common pests: how to identify and deal with them

Strawberries taste not only to people, but also to many pests. Moreover, most of them are dangerous not only on their own, but also as carriers of pathogenic fungi, viruses, and bacteria.

Raspberry and strawberry weevil

Not only strawberries and raspberries suffer from it, but also most of the plants from the Pink family. Adults (small black bugs) and larvae also harm plantings. The first eat leaf juice. Then the females lay their eggs in flower buds, gnawing at the peduncle. Hatched larvae eat them from the inside, destroying fruit ovaries. Buds turn black, fall off.

Adults and the larvae of raspberry-strawberry weevil cause harm to strawberries

For prevention, onions, garlic, marigolds, nasturtiums are planted between the rows of strawberries or along the perimeter of the bed. Crops that may be affected by the weevil are, if possible, placed away from each other. It helps to prevent the appearance of weevil and folk remedies - infusion of wormwood, tansy, hellebore, walnut shell, mustard powder, onion peel. Strawberries are sprayed about once every one and a half weeks, and in the phase of budding and flowering every 2-3 days.

In the case of a mass pest invasion regularly early in the morning, the bushes are shaken vigorously, after having spread a newspaper, oilcloth, covering material under them. Homemade traps also give a good effect - bottles filled with sugar syrup with yeast. The inside of the neck is lubricated with vegetable oil so that the pests cannot get out. The bushes and the soil beneath them are sprayed with Novaktion, Iskra-M, Kinmiks. Processing is necessarily carried out after harvest to destroy the larvae wintering in the soil.

Strawberry mite

One of the most common and dangerous pests for culture. It is impossible to see with the naked eye. Leaves are covered with small brown dots, acquire an unnatural yellowish tint. Their surface becomes corrugated, young leaves generally do not unfold to the end. From this strawberry, most likely, will not die, but the yield will significantly (by 50-60%) decrease.

Strawberry Mite - One of the Most Common Strawberry Pests

For prophylaxis after harvesting, plants are necessarily sprayed with Karbofos. During the growing season, the soil is dusted 3-4 times with colloidal sulfur. From it, you can prepare a solution for processing bushes. Folk remedies - infusion of onion or garlic gruel, dandelion leaves. Seedling roots before planting for 2-3 minutes are immersed first in hot (40-45 ° C), then in cool (15-20 ° C) water.

If the pest has bred in large quantities, Fufanon, Kemifos, Novaktion, Actellik are used. Varieties of Zenga-Zengan, Torpedo, Vityaz, Zarya are resistant to defeat by strawberry mites.

Strawberry leaf beetle

Small brown bugs settle mainly on the inside of the leaves. They feed on leaf tissues, gnawing them from the inside. Females lay eggs on petioles. Hatched larvae also feed on leaf tissues. They become thin, translucent, sometimes holes appear. As a result, the bushes stop in development, fruiting ceases.

The main harm to strawberries is caused by the strawberry leaf beetle larvae

To scare away a pest from a bed, in the early spring the soil is sprinkled with tobacco dust or dry leaves ground into crumbs. But this should not be abused so that the taste of the berries does not deteriorate. Before flowering, strawberries are treated with Karbofos or Karate. Regular weeding is required. Especially carefully you need to destroy the meadowsweet and cinquefoil goose. Strawberry leaf beetle eats these plants too.

Strawberry Whitefly

Very small white moth-like butterflies cling to the inside of the leaves. Any touch of the bush is enough for them to rise into the air. The leaves are covered with a sticky coating and a layer of soot fungus. Whiteflies feed on the juice of the plant, so the tissues gradually discolor, then the leaves turn black and die.

For some reason, strawberry whitefly is especially indifferent to yellow; this feature is used in the manufacture of traps.

A good effect in the fight against whitefly is given by homemade traps made of pieces of yellow cardboard, greased with something sticky (long-drying glue, sugar syrup, jam, honey, petroleum jelly). In the event of a mass invasion, Aktaru, Rovikurt, Confidor are used. Folk remedy - any flea shampoo or spray that contains fipronide. For prevention, onions and garlic are planted between the rows of strawberries, plants are sprayed with infusion of arrows or pulp every 10-12 days.

Strawberry Nematode

Nematodes are tiny filamentous worms that feed on the juice of young leaves. They settle in their sinuses, therefore they are almost invisible. Females lay eggs on the roots - they are covered with spherical bulges about the size of a poppy seed. In the process of nutrition, nematodes infect tissues with a substance that interferes with the normal metabolism. As a result, the leaves turn yellow and deformed, the veins on them thicken, the number of buds decreases sharply, the berries are smaller.

Strawberry nematode is almost impossible to see with the naked eye

Nematodes do not tolerate heat at all. Therefore, the roots of the bushes before planting in the ground for several minutes immersed in hot water. She is watered a bed in early spring. The first young leaves are sprayed with 1% Bordeaux fluid. The pest affects not only strawberries, but also potatoes, peas, onions. They need to be planted as far as possible from each other.

Strawberry nematode larvae hatching from eggs damage strawberry roots by eating them from the inside

To combat the nematode use Phosphamide, Vitaros, Carbation, Heterophos. After harvesting, strawberries are treated with Scor, Fundazole. A folk remedy is an infusion of nettles, but it does not always give an effect.

Aphid

One of the most "universal" pests, affecting both garden and indoor plants. These small insects of various shades (from greenish-yellow to black-brown) settle on them in whole colonies, clinging to the underside of young leaves, buds, fruit ovaries. Aphids feed on the sap of the plant, so the affected areas are covered with small beige dots, the leaves are deformed and curled. At the same time, a sticky transparent coating appears. It is worth noting that most often aphids live in a stable symbiosis with ants, and they also have to fight.

Aphid is a pest that does not disdain almost any garden crops, strawberries are no exception

The pest is effectively deterred by any pungent odors. It is useful to plant any spicy herbs next to a bed of strawberries, as well as wormwood, marigolds, fennel, lavender, and chamomile. Many of these plants attract aphids — ladybugs — to their natural enemies. All this greens, as well as the tops of tomatoes, potatoes, arrows of onions and garlic, lemon peels, hot peppers, tobacco chips can be used as raw materials for the preparation of infusions. To prevent the appearance of aphids, it is enough to spray strawberries every 8-10 days, if insects are found, 3-4 times daily.

Chemicals are used only in case of mass invasion of the pest. Usually quite enough folk remedies. Any general-acting insecticide can be used - Aktara, Iskra-Bio, Inta-Vir, Confidor and so on.

Video: folk remedies for fighting aphids

Chafer

The main harm to strawberries, like other garden crops, is caused by larvae of the May beetle, which eat plant roots. As a result, the bushes die quickly.

Effective pest prevention - annual deep loosening of the soil in spring and autumn. White clover is planted in the aisles, saturating the soil with substances that repel larvae. In early spring, before the leaves bloom, the substrate on the bed can be poured with diluted water with ammonia (2 ml per liter) or several deep grooves can be made by filling granules of Decis and Karbofos in them. A folk remedy is an infusion of onion peels. During the spring, it is poured 3-4 times under the roots of each bush.

May beetle larvae eat the roots of the plant and can destroy the entire bed of strawberries in a short time

To combat larvae, Nemabakt, Pochin, Zemlin preparations are used. Adult individuals from strawberry plantings are deterred by elderberry, lupine, turnip planted next to the bed.

Spider mite

It is easy to identify the pest by entwining leaves, buds and fruit ovaries with thin, translucent threads, similar to cobwebs. It feeds on the juice of the plant, the affected tissue areas gradually turn yellow and dry. It settles mainly on the inside of the sheet, it is gradually tightened with a thin whitish film. Resistant to damage by spider mite varieties First-grader, Anastasia, Sunrise, Cinderella Kuban.

The spider mite is not an insect, therefore, the desired effect in the fight against it is given only by special preparations - acaricides

For prevention between strawberry bushes, onions, garlic, calendula, marigolds are planted. The bushes themselves are sprayed with infusion of onion or garlic gruel, a decoction of cyclamen tubers. But such folk remedies do not always give an effect. If a significant part of the bushes on the bed has suffered from a tick, it is better not to waste time and immediately apply specialized drugs - acaricides (Actofit, Akarin, Vertimek, Neoron, Apollo). They need to be changed with each new treatment - the pest extremely quickly develops immunity.

Slug

Another omnivorous garden pest. The slugs are like shellless snails. They feed on the flesh of strawberries and leaf tissues, making holes or through passages in it. On the surface of fruits and leaves, their traces are visible - strips of sticky silver coating.

The speed of movement and the ability to mask slugs do not differ. Therefore, a good effect is the manual collection of pests. It is best to spend it in the early morning. At this time, the slugs gather under the leaves and are the least active. You can also use traps - cabbage leaves, halves of grapefruit, filled with beer, sugar syrup, jam containers, dug in the soil.

Slugs are unable to destroy strawberry bushes, but greatly spoil the presentation of berries

Bushes for pest protection are surrounded by a “barrier” of powdered eggs or nutshells, sand, pine or spruce needles. The soil is sprinkled with tobacco chips, wood ash, mustard. Along the perimeter of the beds, any sharply smelling spicy herbs are planted. You can also try to attract slugs to the site of natural enemies - hedgehogs, frogs and birds. Ordinary chickens do a good job.

Insecticides are used only in case of a massive invasion of slugs, which is quite rare. The best effect is given by preparations of metaldehyde, thunderstorm, slug.

Video: how to deal with slugs in the garden

Preventative measures

Any problem is much easier to prevent than to deal with the consequences later. This also applies to diseases and pests of strawberries. Bushes that are properly looked after are much less likely to suffer from fungi, viruses, bacteria, and are attacked by insects. There is nothing complicated in prevention:

• Keeping the beds clean. Strawberries need to be weeded regularly, in autumn - to remove all plant debris. Dry leaves are removed from the bushes during the growing season. To save time on weeding help mulching. But the mulch layer also needs to be updated from time to time, otherwise it will cause more harm than good.
• Deep loosening of the soil. Ideally, this should be done every time after watering. Or at least in early spring and mid-autumn. This helps to destroy the eggs and larvae of pests wintering in the soil, spores of pathogenic fungi.
• Compliance with crop rotation. At the same place, strawberries can be grown for a maximum of 3-4 years. Then the bed is cleaned, the soil is disinfected, spilling it with Bordeaux liquid or copper sulphate. Again, strawberries can be returned to it in 5-6 years, not earlier.
• Competent selection of seedlings. It is recommended to buy it only in trustworthy nurseries or from other trusted suppliers.
• Preplant preparation. For disinfection, the roots can be soaked in hot water, a pale pink solution of potassium permanganate, any fungicide of biological origin. Copper-containing drugs destroy most pathogenic fungi.
• Compliance with the landing pattern. If the plants are located too densely, a closed humid environment is created, ideal for the development of many diseases and pests. Also, planting density contributes to their rapid transfer from diseased to healthy bushes.
• Timely and proper feeding. Do not get too carried away with nitrogen-containing fertilizers. Their excess in the soil weakens the immunity of the plant. But potassium and phosphorus in the right doses, on the contrary, strengthen it. It is not recommended to use fresh manure as a top dressing. It is an ideal breeding ground for the larvae and eggs of most pests.
• Proper watering. Strawberry is a rather moisture-loving plant, but waterlogged soil creates the conditions for the development of many pathogenic fungi. Therefore, it is necessary to water it only when the top layer of the soil dries out.

Compliance with agricultural practices is the best way to get a plentiful strawberry crop and protect it from disease and pest attacks.

Strawberries are grown not only in open ground, but also in the greenhouse. An enclosed environment where moist stagnant air stagnates is very suitable for the development of diseases and pests. If plantings are thickened, any problem spreads much faster than in open ground.

To avoid this, the greenhouse should be regularly ventilated. At the end of the growing season, the soil is disinfected by spilling boiling water or a saturated pink solution of potassium permanganate. All surfaces are wiped with hydrated lime diluted with water or 5% copper sulfate. When the doors are tightly closed, it is fumigated with tobacco smoke or a piece of sulfuric bomb is burned. After applying any insecticides, the greenhouse must be well ventilated. You need to choose drugs that decompose in the ground, otherwise there is a real risk of poisoning the soil for a long time.

Growing strawberries is not a big deal. Even a novice gardener can get a crop. Subject to certain rules and recommendations regarding agricultural technology, the availability of competent prevention, the risk of diseases and pests is minimized. Nevertheless, plantings should be regularly examined for suspicious symptoms. Having found them, you need to correctly identify the problem and know what to do in each case.