Identifying and Treating Common Strawberry Plant Diseases

Strawberries, the “queen” of berries, are not only enticing for their juicy red color and sweet aroma but also for their excellent nutritional value. However, the journey of cultivating this “demanding” plant is not easy, especially when it comes to pest and disease control.

Today, “Nongnghiepvietnam.org” will guide you through identifying and effectively treating common strawberry plant diseases. Let’s explore!

About Strawberry Plants

Strawberries are temperate plants that thrive in cool climates year-round. In Vietnam, famous strawberry farms are often concentrated in areas such as Da Lat (Lam Dong), Moc Chau (Son La), and Sapa (Lao Cai).

Not only visually appealing, strawberries are also packed with nutrients, rich in Vitamins A, B, C, E, folic acid, calcium, potassium, and more, providing numerous health benefits. Therefore, strawberries are always ranked among the high-value fruits, with prices ranging from 200,000 to 700,000 VND/kg, depending on the variety and farming methods.

Common Strawberry Plant Diseases

Achieving a bountiful harvest of plump, red, and high-quality strawberries requires significant effort and dedication from farmers, especially in preventing and controlling pests and diseases. Below are some common strawberry plant diseases and effective solutions from “Nongnghiepvietnam.org”.

Causes of Strawberry Plant Diseases

Many factors can lead to strawberry plant diseases, with the primary causes including:

1. Weather:

  • Temperature: Excessively low temperatures can cause flower pistils to die, turning flowers brown, and even causing wilting and deformation. Conversely, high temperatures can “burn” plant cells, resulting in circular spots on the leaf surface.
  • Hail: Direct impact from hailstones can bruise leaves, flowers, and fruits, creating entry points for fungal diseases, damaging the plant, and causing brown spots on the leaves.

2. Light Intensity:

Excessive light intensity can cause cell death, leading to circular marks on the leaves.

3. Nutrient Imbalance:

  • Nitrogen Deficiency: Poor growth, small leaves and fruits, fewer runners, older leaves turning orange or red, and young leaves being small and pale green.
  • Excess Nitrogen: Increased susceptibility to diseases and reduced fruit quality.
  • Potassium Deficiency: Wilting, drying of older leaves, and fruit rot.
  • Boron Deficiency: Small, deformed, and shrunken fruits with a near-normal taste but lacking economic value.
  • Calcium Deficiency: Necrosis and drying of the tips of young leaves, twisting of mature leaves, and stunted growth.

4. Herbicides:

Incorrect herbicide type or dosage can kill the plants.

Common Strawberry Plant Diseases

1. Thrips (Thrip Tabaci)

  • Characteristics:
    • Small, grayish-yellow adults.
    • Eggs laid within the tissue of young plant parts.
    • Pale yellow nymphs.
    • Life cycle of 17-20 days, with about 20 generations per year.
  • Damage:
    • Primarily affects flowers, causing small, deformed, and brown fruits.
    • Damages leaves, buds, and stems by sucking sap, weakening the plant and reducing yield.
  • Control:
    • Cultural Practices: Balanced fertilization, pruning old leaves, and removing plant debris.
    • Chemical Control: Consider using products containing active ingredients like Abamectin; Abamectin + Chlorfluazuron; Abamectin + Emamectin benzoate; Abamectin 1.8% + Matrine 0.2%.

2. Snails and Slugs (Helix Aspersa)

  • Characteristics:
    • Thin shell with 4-5 whorls, varying in color (light chestnut gray, brown with yellow streaks or spots).
    • Soft and slimy body, grayish-brown.
  • Damage:
    • Feed at night or on rainy days.
    • Eat leaves and fruits, creating holes and reducing market value, creating entry points for fungal diseases.
  • Control:
    • Maintain good ventilation and avoid high humidity in the strawberry field.
    • Regularly inspect and collect snails and slugs.
    • Remove bricks, stones, etc. from the field to limit their habitat.
    • Use plastic containers with beer or yogurt bait to trap them.

Snails and slugs damaging strawberry leaves and fruitsSnails and slugs damaging strawberry leaves and fruits

3. Powdery Mildew (Sphaerotheca Macularis)

  • Symptoms:
    • White powdery coating on the underside of leaves, later spreading throughout the plant (leaves, stems, flowers, and fruits).
    • Infected leaves tend to curl upwards.
    • Affected areas wither, dry, and die.
  • Damage:
    • Spreads rapidly through wind.
    • Thrives in dry conditions.
    • Causes severe damage during flowering and fruiting, significantly impacting yield and quality.
  • Control:
    • Field sanitation, collecting and destroying infected leaves.
    • Use disease-free planting material.
    • Raised beds and well-ventilated trellises.
    • Avoid overcrowding.
    • Increase potassium fertilization.

4. Leather Rot (Phytophthora Cactorum)

  • Symptoms:
    • Both young and ripe fruits discolor.
    • Green fruits harden and turn brown.
    • Ripe fruits turn pale white, red, or slightly brown and become soft.
    • Affected fruits dry, shrink, become leathery, lose their flavor, and develop an oily or bitter taste.
  • Damage:
    • Spreads rapidly during rainy seasons and high humidity.
  • Control:
    • Manage irrigation.
    • Use mulch (dry grass, straw) to prevent fruit contact with soil and splashing water.

Strawberry fruit affected by leather rot, dry and shrunkenStrawberry fruit affected by leather rot, dry and shrunken

5. Anthracnose (Colletotrichum Acutatum)

  • Symptoms:
    • Circular brown spots appear on ripe fruits, later turning completely black.
    • Fruits infected before ripening turn black and wither.
    • The disease continues to spread during transportation and storage.
  • Damage:
    • Spreads through splashing water during irrigation or rain, and during plant care and harvesting.
    • Plants with excess nitrogen are more susceptible.
  • Control:
    • Choose disease-free varieties.
    • Proper cultivation, care, and harvesting techniques.
    • Balanced fertilization.

6. Gray Mold (Botrytis Cinerea)

  • Symptoms:
    • Appears on ripe fruits (light brown spots that spread and become covered with gray mold).
    • Infected flowers and young fruits dry out.
    • Pathogen spreads rapidly during storage at high temperatures.
  • Damage:
    • Thrives in high humidity and wet bed surfaces.
  • Control:
    • Field sanitation, removing infected plant debris.
    • Use mulch.
    • Choose well-drained soil and raised beds.
    • Balanced fertilization, increasing potassium during the rainy season.
    • Crop rotation and soil treatment before planting.
    • Avoid overhead irrigation, especially during midday; water in the late afternoon.
    • Store fruits at 2-4°C.
    • Use appropriate pesticides if necessary.

7. Black Root Rot of Strawberry

  • Symptoms:
    • Stunted growth, weak plants lacking vigor.
    • Leaves turn red from the edges inwards, then dry, wilt, and the plant dies.
    • Roots turn dark brown and rot spreads.
    • The affected stem turns yellowish-brown, then spreads and becomes dark brown.
  • Damage:
    • Can appear in the first fruiting year.
    • Creates conditions for other fungal diseases to develop and cause harm.
  • Control:
    • Choose disease-free varieties and suitable soil.
    • Thorough soil treatment before planting.
    • Balanced fertilization, supplementing with organic matter.
    • Regular field inspections for early detection and treatment.

8. Two-Spotted Spider Mite (Tetranycus Urticae)

  • Symptoms:
    • Young leaves turn yellow and dry.
    • Flower pistils die, preventing fruit set.
    • Mottled yellowing on the upper leaf surface, with a fine web appearing on the underside.
    • Fruits become yellow, dark, and cracked.
    • Flowers wither and fall off.
  • Characteristics:
    • Adult mites are 0.5-1mm long, pink or light red.
    • Eggs are round, pinkish-white, later turning pink.
    • Larvae are pale green.
  • Damage:
    • Thrives in hot, dry seasons or during drought periods.
    • Spreads through wind, silk threads, and webs.
  • Control:
    • Use natural predators.
    • Use miticides such as Nissorun, Comite, Ortus, Oramite, etc.

Two-spotted spider mites damaging strawberry plants, yellow leaves with webbingTwo-spotted spider mites damaging strawberry plants, yellow leaves with webbing

Conclusion

These are the insights from “Nongnghiepvietnam.org” on common strawberry plant diseases. We hope this helpful information will boost your confidence in cultivating the “queen” of berries.

Start planting and share your results with “Nongnghiepvietnam.org”! Don’t forget to leave your comments and follow our upcoming articles!

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