Many summer residents who grow tomatoes in greenhouses or in open ground on household plots face the fact that the leaves are curled along the entire height of the plants, and the lower ones turn yellow and die. Seeing this picture, some decide that it is a lack of nutrition, others suggest the action of pests, and others - various diseases. Everyone is trying to do something so as not to lose the crop. In such a situation, it is important to establish the cause, and not to spray with what is at hand, hoping that the drug used will fix everything.
Recently, Fusarium wilting of tomatoes is widespread. The photographs presented in the article show how the results of the action of pathogenic fungi of the genus Fusarium that are the causative agents of this disease look like. On a section of a diseased plant near the root, a dark ring can be clearly seen. Sometimes a light gray or white fluffy coating appears at the base of the stem.
Previously, Fusarium wilting of tomatoes was observed only in areas with a hot summer, and now it is also manifested in temperate zones, since in these places conditions for its development are increasingly being created.
Sources and vectors of the disease are infected seeds, soil and perennial herbs. Spores of the fungus - the causative agent of the disease - persist for a long time in the soil and on the remains of dead plants. If the plant immunity is normal, then the disease does not occur. But unfavorable conditions and stressful situations (sharp changes in humidity and temperature of soil and air, excess moisture, frost, lack of soil nutrition, etc.) contribute to the development of a disease such as fusarium wilting of tomatoes.
The result of growing under stressful conditions is the penetration of previously noted pathogenic fungi into the root system, and from it into the adjacent part of the tomato stem. Spreading through the vascular system, the fungus affects not only the stems, but also the fruits. At the same time, the tops of the plants wilt, the leaves become flabby and yellow, wilt, and then dry. In some cases, general depression of plants with the formation of small fruits may be observed. Weakened plants subsequently infect bacteriosis, and they die.
Fusarium wilting of tomatoes can occur in any phase of development. On seedlings, it is accompanied by basal and root rot. Seedlings grown to the cotyledon phase begin to wilt. It happens that apparently healthy tomatoes have a latent infection. In this form, symptoms will appear at later stages of development. If the seedlings were healthy, and during the growing season there were signs of the disease, then we can assume that the soil is contaminated.
Before sowing seeds, the soil mixture should be decontaminated. For this, you need to use the biological product "Trichodermin." In a box measuring 30x50, it is necessary to add only 4 g to protect the seedlings from a disease such as fusarium wilting of tomatoes. Treatment at any stage will be ineffective, and prevention is always effective.
To prevent the disease during the growing season, plants should be poured 4 times per season with a solution of this drug, diluted in the ratio of 7 g of powder to 2 liters of water. 500 ml of the prepared solution must be poured under each plant. In addition, tomatoes can be sprayed on the leaves with Falcon at a concentration of 1 mg per 3.3 liters of water.
Fusarium wilting of tomatoes is a fungal disease, which is almost impossible to fight, and it is not difficult to prevent it. If you want to get good harvests - do not be lazy to carry out preventive measures.