How to deal with phytophthora on potatoes? Preparations from phytophthora
Long since the most terrible disease of potatoesis considered late blight. It was previously thought that this dangerous fungal infection only spreads along with the planting material and is unable to tolerate an extreme decrease in the temperature of the environment in the winter. However, in our days, late blight, which infects potatoes, has undergone mutations and acquired new properties. Therefore, the fight against disease gardener has to be conducted throughout the year.
How to deal with phytophthora on potatoes? What drugs and folk methods should I use to kill the infection? Are there potato varieties that are resistant to phytophthora? The answers to these and other questions can be found in our article.
What is late blight?
Phytophthorosis is a dangerous disease that affectsCultural plants, called by the people brown rot. Usually, the infection begins to destroy garden plantations in late summer. In the absence of targeted actions aimed at combating the disease, about 80% of the crop may suffer.
The causative agent of the disease is fungalinfection of Phytophthora infestans. Microscopic spores have the ability to reproduce rapidly under favorable conditions. First of all, the phytophthora is formed on the leaves of potatoes. Then the infection passes to the shoots and gets to the tubers. With high humidity plants are covered with brown spots. The inside of such lesions is covered with a white coating formed by spores of the fungus. In the case of proliferation of dew in the epicenters of infection, rot is formed. With the onset of heat, the plants begin to dry up.
If the potato is infected with phytophthora, the surfacetubers are covered with dark areas. The infection spreads deep, and the yield gradually decays. It is noteworthy that even healthy tubers after being moved to the cellar can be infected and begin to decompose.
Pathways of potato infection with late blight
To understand how to deal with phytophthora on potatoes, you need to know the ways in which fungal spores spread. So, the disease can affect the plants:
- In cases of application of "sick" seedlings. Infected tubers are able to carry on their own spores, which fall into the soil. When favorable conditions come, the infection will definitely make itself felt.
- When harvesting, when the tubers are in direct contact with the infested blight of the late blight.
- When spores of a fungal infection are washed into the ground from plant shoots precipitation. Infection penetrates the soil and affects healthy tubers.
What is the insidiousness of the disease?
The main feature of late blight is gradualuneven infection of cultivated plants. Absence of signs of disease in most bushes does not allow truck farmers to identify the problem in time and prevent a catastrophe at the stage of shoot ripening. Disputes unnoticed by the eye are thrown by the wind to neighboring landings and along with the rain they leave in the upper layers of the soil. Potato shoots, infected with phytophthora, can acquire a brown shade within just a few days. When the humidity of the environment increases, the leaves begin to curl and dry up. As a result, gardener has to observe instead of lush bushes just protruding stems. If the site owner can not decide what to treat the potato from the phytophthora, soon the brown spots are also covered by the tubers that turn into rot. Infection affects the still not fully ripened potatoes in neighboring areas.
Use of quality seedlings
How to deal with phytophthora on potatoes? One of the most effective solutions is the selection of planting material. It is important not only to choose quality seedlings, but also to resort to its germination in greenhouse conditions before being placed in the soil. The decision reduces the time of ripening of the crop and accordingly gives an opportunity to collect it before the onset of the "riot" phytophthora, which is observed around mid-August.
Potato varieties resistant to phytophthora
One of the most rational solutions for combatingfungal infection - the choice of seedlings, which is not exposed to infection. How to deal with phytophthora on potatoes in this way? Preference should be given to the following grades:
- Good luck - differs early ripening of tubers. The variety perfectly tolerates not only serious frosts, but also high soil moisture, in which conditions the phytophthora itself actually activates.
- Reserve - characterized by the formation of branched rhizomes with an abundance of tubers. It is an intermediate-born variety. Such potatoes are not afraid of drought and excessive moistening of the soil.
- Dawn - early maturing potatoes. In addition to late blight, the variety is practically immune to widespread bacterial and viral infections.
- Nevsky - a variety that is distinguished by excellenttaste qualities. A small amount of waste is observed when harvesting. Tubers of such potatoes are able to withstand high humidity, droughts and a significant drop in temperature. The variety is perfectly preserved in the cellar.
- Blue - for such potatoes are characterized by average maturation of tubers. Shoots, like the crop, are resistant to the effects of fungal infections.
- Lugovskoy - a popular middle-aged variety. Tubers are perfectly stored in almost any conditions. To prevent a fungal infection, the cultivation of the variety requires regular loosening of the soil.
- Nida is a potato variety that does not undergo infection with phytophthora and nematodes. However, tubers do not tolerate excessive moistening of the soil and drought.
- Tim - early variety of high yield. The tubers are not afraid of late blight spores, because they fully ripen until the infection spreads.
Choosing the right site for planting potatoes
To prevent infection of the crop with late blightallows the choice of a site for planting potatoes. Preference should be given to sites without pronounced lowlands. As noted earlier in our material, phytophthora prefers moisture. And the water after precipitation concentrates just in every possible deepening of the soil. To fungal spores are not affected adjacent areas, when planting potatoes, it is important to make wide aisles.
Hilling
If it is found that the phytophthora on potatoes is thatdo? Avoid the loss of crops potentially allows the application of the method of hilling bushes. When the shoots begin to expand and close in the rows, they need a high ground under them. The solution will open the infected leaves. Direct sunlight will also be accessed to the soil, which will lower its moisture level.
Proper Harvesting
To prevent the spread of unpleasantdisease, before you place tubers in the cellar, you must carefully dry them. If there is a drought, you can lay out the crop directly on the land. When there are deposits, drying should be done under the canopies. Place potatoes for long-term storage is recommended only after sorting. It is mandatory to eliminate tubers, which have obvious traces of defeat by blight. Indeed, with the beginning of the next season with such a sprout, the fungal infection will again move into the soil and infection of healthy plants will occur.
Chemistry for spraying potatoes
For the purpose of spraying, the following preparations are used from phytophthora:
- "Agat-25K" is an effective preparation of biologicalorigin, which is used for the treatment of seedlings. It increases the protective properties of plants and stimulates the growth of crops.
- "Fitosporin M" - is an effective fungicide. Suitable for processing planting material in order to combat the development of fungal infections.
- "Ridomilla Gold MC" - is used for the prevention of late blight. During the season, it is necessary to process potatoes at least 3-4 times.
- "Thanos" - the active substances of the drugcymoxanil and famoxadone are capable of destroying spores of a pathogenic fungus for several seconds. The agent is not washed off from shoots of plants even at strong deposits.
- "Maxim 025 FS" - used for processing seedlings. It is effective in case of complex application along with other chemical means.
The causative agent of late blight can be exposedmutations and develop resistance to the effects of certain substances in the composition of preparations for processing cultivated plants. Therefore, it is important to periodically alternate the above funds and resort to their combination.
Preparations for soil treatment
Than to process the ground after potato phytophthora? The following chemicals will help:
- "Gliokladin" - is available in the form of tablets. Lay out one dragee in each hole when potatoes are planted. The active ingredients in the composition prevent the formation of fungal infections and prevent the spread of rot.
- "Baikal M" - looks like a liquid solution. It is based on a useful microflora that destroys the mycelium of phytophthora, and also effectively fights against the development of other fungal infections. The soil is irrigated a few weeks before the expected planting of potatoes.
- "Apirin B" - the preparation contains the bacterium Bacillus subtilis. Microorganisms of this category have the ability to slow down the processes of vital activity of fungi, which leads to their destruction.
Even than to treat the soil after phytophthorapotatoes? Efficiency is also demonstrated by substances such as the Bordeaux mixture, copper sulfate. These compositions should saturate the soil during the digging of the site.
Prevention
So we examined how the phytophthora is destroyedpotato, methods to combat this fungal infection. Finally, I would like to highlight a number of preventive measures that will prevent the return of the disease.
If there is no possibility to purchase seedlings of varieties,that are not exposed to late blight, in this case it is necessary to resort to a full-fledged crop rotation. At least a year the potato should not be cultivated on the site. Instead, you must sow mustard or radish. It is recommended to cut off sprouts of such plants periodically and dig in the ground. As practice shows, the solution makes it possible to reduce the probability of returning the phytophthora several times with the advent of the next season.
Before planting the potatoidentify the infected material. For these purposes, the tubers are removed from the cellar and left for a few weeks under a well-ventilated canopy. The temperature should remain at the level of 15-18aboutC. As soon as some tubers turn white, they must be urgently removed and the remaining seedlings treated with fungicides.
In the period of a set of tubers, the mass is partially cut off the potato tops and loosened the soil. The preventive measure will accelerate the ripening of the crop and lead to the build-up of dense peels by potatoes.
If after harvesting a phytophthora was observedon potatoes, what to do in similar situations? It is necessary to collect all dry tops outside the land plot and burn it. With the approach of the next season, you need to water the potatoes as often as possible in cool weather, as such conditions are optimal for activating the spores of late blight.
Finally
Apparently, underestimate the seriousness of thisdisease, as late blight, in no case is not worth it. In the absence of a purposeful struggle against the spread of fungal spores, not only the yield of potatoes, but also other solanaceous cultures, can suffer. Therefore, it is necessary to timely treat plants and soil with appropriate chemical preparations, to dress and sort seedlings, to use resistant to infection varieties.