Downy mildew has now been observed on butternut squash, jack-o-lantern pumpkins and cucumbers in Knox County. The list of cucurbits observed in Porter County has been updated to include butternut squash and giant pumpkin. All cucurbit growers should assume that downy mildew is present nearby and may attack any cucurbit crop. However, it is not clear what affect…Read more about Downy Mildew of Cucurbit Update[Read More]
Plant Disease Management
Several pumpkin growers have asked me when to stop managing for pumpkin diseases. That is, when should a pumpkin grower stop applying fungicides? I cannot provide a definitive answer for this question; every grower will have to make his or her own decision. Below, however, are some factors to consider. Estimate the crop yield – walk through the…Read more about Late Season Pumpkin Disease Management[Read More]
Late summer is a time when vegetable growers spend much of their time harvesting produce. Many growers, however, also find it is necessary to apply pesticides. All pesticides label state a preharvest interval (PHI) on the label. This is the amount of time, in days, between the time the fruit is sprayed with a pesticides and the time…Read more about Preharvest Intervals[Read More]
Cucurbit downy mildew has been observed on cucumber and cantaloupe near Wanatah, in La Porte County, Indiana. Downy mildew has also been confirmed on cucumber in St. Joseph County Michigan, just northeast of Elkhart, Indiana as well as on processing pumpkin in central Illinois. Downy mildew of cucurbits has also been reported in southern and…Read more about Cucurbit Downy Mildew Found in Indiana[Read More]
I have received several calls about pumpkins recently. This article will outline a few steps growers should think about to prevent diseases in pumpkins. Virus diseases – There are several virus diseases that affect pumpkins in the Midwest. The most important diseases include: papaya ring spot, watermelon mosaic and zucchini yellow mosaic virus. Aphids transmit all these…Read more about Pumpkin Disease Management Steps[Read More]
Southern blight of tomato thrives under hot, dry conditions. Usually, such conditions are more common in August than early July. However, 2016 has been relatively hot and dry in southwest Indiana. Perhaps for this reason, I have observed this disease in my own tomato plots. This article will discuss the symptoms, biology and management of southern blight of…Read more about Southern Blight of Tomato[Read More]
Below, I will briefly discuss four diseases that I have observed on tomatoes recently. White mold of tomato – Perhaps the most common symptom of white mold of tomato is the light brown area on the lower stem (Figure 1). This brown area is essentially dead and will result in the wilt and death of the…Read more about Tomato Disease Update[Read More]
I have observed leaf mold of tomato in greenhouses and high tunnels recently. This article will discuss this disease and management options. In the last issue of the Hotline, I discussed Botrytis gray mold. I noted how gray mold is favored by the cool, cloudy weather we experienced earlier this spring. The warmer and sunnier weather we have…Read more about Leaf Mold of Tomato[Read More]
We recently published an article in the Hotline about gray mold of tomato. That article and more details about this disease can be found here. In this short note, we want to share examples of the relationship of gray mold and tomato plant injury. In the figure 1 above, a pruning injury of tomato in a commercial…Read more about Plant Injury and Gray Mold[Read More]
Read more about Plant Injury and Gray Mold
White mold of watermelon – Usually when I write about a vegetable disease it is because the disease may cause important economic loss. Once in a while, however, a disease I find is more a curiosity than a real problem. So, go ahead and read this article about white mold of watermelon. But please don’t worry about…Read more about White Mold of Watermelon[Read More]
Read more about White Mold of Watermelon