Outdoor treatment of pumpkin diseases and pest control

It is useful to know how to protect pumpkin outdoors from diseases and pests. The culture has good immunity, but in the presence of negative factors it suffers from infections and pests. Early detection of the disease and proper treatment can save the plant and crop from dying.

Powdery mildew

Poor farming practices are the main cause of powdery mildew on pumpkin. Damp, cool weather accelerates its development. Powdery mildew is a fungal disease spread by spores. Weeds and plant debris in the garden become breeding grounds for infection. An excess of nitrogen in the soil and rare watering provoke the onset of the disease.

You can find out about the onset of the disease by the symptoms - a small round white spot on the leaves. With the progression of the disease, a white bloom appears on the petioles and stems. The affected areas of the plant turn brown and dry out. In a sick plant, the process of photosynthesis is disrupted, which slows down the formation of ovaries (fruits), worsens their quality (taste, shape).

Control measures for pumpkin powdery mildew:

• removal and destruction of plant areas affected by the fungus;
• treatment of bushes with a solution of colloidal sulfur - 20 g per 10 liters;
• spraying with sodium phosphate - 50 g per 10 l;
• for 3 days, the mullein is insisted (1: 3) and the bushes are treated with a solution prepared from 3 liters of water and 1 liter of mullein infusion;
• in exceptional cases, they resort to chemistry - they treat pumpkin bushes with Topaz.

You can choose for planting modern varieties of pumpkin that are resistant to powdery mildew.

Peronosporosis or downy mildew

A disease that looks like powdery mildew in appearance. The difference in the shade of plaque, if with powdery mildew it is grayish, then with peronosporosis the spots have a purple tint and it is located on the back of the leaf. On the front side of the sheet plate, yellow spots are visible, which quickly darken and dry.

The intensive course of the disease is observed with high humidity and moderate temperatures (17-22 ° C). Dew and fog intensify the symptoms of the disease in plants; their treatment is reduced not only to spraying pumpkin bushes with copper chloride. It is imperative to cultivate the soil around diseased bushes. For 10 liters of water you need 40 g of the drug. One liter of solution is enough to process 10 m² of soil.

Anthracnose

You can understand that your pumpkin is sick with anthracnose when signs of the disease appear - yellow-brown spots on the leaves. They have a rounded shape and gradually change color, acquiring a pink tint. The most unpleasant thing about this disease is the unsuitability of the fruit for human consumption. The taste of the pulp becomes bitter.

With a strong infection, the disease, affecting the root system, leads the plant to death. This pumpkin disease occurs due to a fungus, the fight against it includes a set of measures:

• processing of seeds before sowing with ash infusion (20 g per 1 liter of water), they are soaked for 5 hours;
• alternation of cultures;
• tillage before planting with fungicide;
• removal of all plant residues in autumn.

Bacteriosis

Bacteriosis of all pumpkin diseases causes the greatest damage, symptoms of the disease: leaf infection - angular brown spots and brown ulcers on the cotyledons. Ulcers also appear on the bark of fruits, because of this, they become ugly.

Bacteriosis infection affects pumpkin seeds, they become sources of infection.

The root system and stems suffer. In places where there were spots, holes appear. Bacteriosis is treated with a white liquid obtained by mixing lime (10 g) and copper sulfate (10 g) in water. This mixture should be treated with a sick pumpkin bush when the first symptoms appear. It is better to destroy the plants affected by the disease. Experienced gardeners advise this.

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White rot or sclerotinosis

White rot (sclerotinosis) is considered a common disease that pumpkins suffer from outdoors during fruiting. The marsupial fungus affects the fruits and other parts of the plant, its spores winter in the soil, are carried by the wind, and are activated when the soil and air are humid.

A white bloom first appears on the surface of infected fruits, under the influence of infection, the pulp and peel of the fruit softens, they lose their nutritional value. Treatment consists in removing the leaves and fruits affected by the fungus. During an outbreak of infection, pumpkin is sprayed with copper sulfate (5%). To prevent white rot, the bushes are sprayed with a urea solution (10 g per 10 l of water) and watered only with warm water.

How to deal with aphids on a pumpkin?

Aphids weakens young plants, as they multiply intensively in a short time. On pumpkin, aphids form whole colonies, settling on the back of the leaves. The melon aphid is clearly visible with the naked eye. Rolled leaves on a pumpkin are one of the hallmarks of aphids. These small insects suck out the juice, spoil not only the leaves, but also the buds, and already formed ovaries.

Adult insects are carriers of many diseases. Weakened plants lag behind in growth, with severe infection they die, the fruits do not ripen. Gardeners fight against aphids using folk methods. Use:

• onion peel;
• wormwood and celandine;
• laundry soap.

To prepare the onion infusion, take 200 g of husk, pour it with 10 liters of hot water, insist. Laundry soap, crushed on a grater, is added before use.

Wormwood and celandine are infused in a similar way. They take 2 kg of crushed raw materials, pour it with a bucket of hot water, insist for a day, add soapy water and spray pumpkin leaves from all sides. After a few days, the treatment is repeated.

In severe cases, they resort to chemistry. Use:

• Actellic.
• Tryphos.
• Karbofos.

Disease prevention

The main diseases of pumpkin are caused by fungi that hibernate in the soil or remain on plant debris. Weakened plants are especially susceptible to disease. The list of reasons provoking diseases:

• planting seeds infected with spores of the fungus;
• densely planted plants;
• frequent, abundant watering, high humidity in the root zone;
• lack of crop rotation, accumulation of infection in the soil;
• the presence of weeds in the garden;
• overdose of nitrogen fertilizers.

For the prevention of diseases of melons, there is a set of agrotechnical measures that have been tested over the years. First of all, crop rotation. Correct planning of planting involves the return of the pumpkin culture to its original place no more than 1 time in 3-4 years.

Cleanliness of the site: no weeds during the growing season, complete harvesting of all plant residues in the fall after harvest. Burning diseased plants. Autumn digging of soil with the obligatory introduction of organic matter (manure, humus, compost).

The right choice of neighbors. Do not plant melons, watermelons, or zucchini near pumpkins. Find more useful neighbors: corn, beans. Adherence to recommended planting patterns plays a big role in pumpkin health. A tight planting leads to excessive moisture in the root zone and provokes the growth of the fungus.

Presowing seed treatment is the main preventive measure. By planting seeds contaminated with the fungus, you are guaranteed to lose crops, infect the soil and other crops that are sensitive to this type of infection. There are special preparations for dressing pumpkin seeds:

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• Potassium permanganate.
• Fentiuram.
• Zinc sulfate 0.02%.

Top dressing is the basis of the health of any plant. It is thanks to root and foliar application of fertilizers (organic, mineral) that gardeners provide plants with the necessary set of nutrients, which allows them to cope with infections of any kind.

Fighting disease

It should not be ruled out that in the summer you will notice symptoms of a particular disease or pest on the plants. You can accurately determine the name of the pumpkin disease in the open field by looking at the photo with its signs. It remains to choose the correct method of dealing with it - how and how to cultivate the soil and the diseased bush.

Pumpkin suffers not only from diseases, but also from pests. You need to be able to help the plant in time, a large number of pests lead to the death of the plant, especially in the early stages of their development. Folk methods of struggle are considered safe for fruits; they are effective in the early stages of infection.

To combat aphids and spider mites, you need to have an infusion of onion husks, you can spray the bushes for prevention and in the first days after infection. It is easy to prepare the infusion: pour 200 g of dry husk with 10 liters of water, and insist for several days. Spraying the bushes with onion husks is especially effective in hot, dry weather.

Ordinary soapy water helps with aphids. Add one 200-gram piece of laundry soap to a bucket of water (cut with a knife or grated on a coarse grater). With a massive defeat of the bushes, you have to resort to chemistry. You can use Karbofos. The solution is prepared from water (10 L) and Karbofos (60 g).

One conclusion can be drawn. If you want to eat the healthy fruits of pumpkin without using chemicals when growing it, do not neglect preventive measures:

• process the seed before planting;
• do not forget about the annual autumn cultivation of the soil, which consists not only in removing garbage, it implies the introduction of organic and mineral fertilizers;
• feed the pumpkin with complex mineral fertilizers during the season;
• destroy weeds.

Using these simple tips, you will always have a good harvest of useful fruits that will be well stored even in a city apartment.