Gray mold on grapes ⋆ 👨‍🌾 Farmer-online ⋆

Viticulture is a useful and exciting activity. Sunny berries on beautiful bunches are very tasty and healthy. They are a real storehouse of substances necessary for the body. But to grow such bunches, you need to spend a lot of effort and energy. Special efforts in the process of growing require the fight against numerous diseases of this plant. About what is gray rot, how it looks and with what means to deal with it, and will be discussed.

What it looks like: distinguishing features

Gray rot refers to fungal diseases of grape bushes. Most often it appears where the plants are heavily thickened. A prerequisite for the appearance of this sore is warm, humid weather. The disease is quite serious, it leads to a decrease in the growth and development of the bush, preventing photosynthesis.

If urgent measures are not taken in time, the disease will lead to the death of the crop. Often the appearance of a fungus leads to the death of the entire bush.

To start treatment on time, it is necessary to recognize the disease as early as possible.

There are the main signs of gray rot.

The appearance of brown spots and gray plaque on the foliage.
The appearance of brown stains and gray coating on the vine. In this case, often the bark from the vine begins to fall off.
Drying and falling of leaves.
Slowing down the vegetation of bushes and the development of inflorescences. If the infection occurs during the period when the plant should bloom, the inflorescences that have not yet formed dry out.
Drying of some berries and peduncles. The appearance of brown spots on the berries. Partial fall of the ovary.
Mummification of fruits, the formation of a gray fluff on rotten berries, the appearance of an unpleasant odor.

These signs do not always cover the entire bush completely. If only individual vines and some clusters are affected, the bush can still be saved. But if the plant becomes completely ill, it will die.

Harm done

One of the main tasks of the grower during the fruiting season is to protect plants from numerous ailments. A particularly common disease in the vineyard is gray rot. This fungal disease causes irreparable damage to the crop, because the infected fruits are not suitable for eating or processing.

Gray rot causes the following harm:

leads to the death of inflorescences, fruits and leaves of the plant;
negatively affects the vegetation process, significantly reduces turgor;
interferes with the normal development of the bush, disrupts the growth of the vegetative part;
disrupts the normal process of photosynthesis;
leads to wilting, dying off, rotting and death of plants, which contributes to the death of the crop.

If the rot-infected vineyard is in a zone of high humidity, the disease progresses faster, forming a powerful mycelium. Fungal spores scatter over great distances and quickly infect plants in neighboring, and often distant, areas.

Of particular danger is gray rot for ripening berries. With an excess of moisture, the skin of the fruit bursts, creating ideal conditions for the development of a fungal disease. Often the defeat can be associated with hail, which mechanically damages the skin of the berries. Even wasps, damaging the clusters, contribute to infection with gray rot.

How to cure grapes?

Weather conditions and proper agricultural practices have a huge impact on the normal development of the vineyard and the quality of the fruits. If the grapes begin to hurt, intervention is necessary. The key to success is early detection of the disease. Only in this case is it possible to preserve both the bush itself and the crop.

If signs of disease are found, it is necessary to carefully inspect the entire vineyard and remove infected fragments. Places of cut of infected vines are treated with a special compound. If infected berries are found, the entire bunch is removed.

After such a procedure, vegetative bushes are treated with medicinal preparations.

On small bushes, folk remedies are successfully used.

Baking soda. It is absolutely harmless to humans and does not impair the taste of the fruit. According to many experts, it contributes to the accumulation of more sugars. To obtain a working solution, 80 g of soda is diluted in one bucket of water.

A solution of potassium permanganate. Treatment with this solution is carried out 2 times with an interval of 2 weeks.

Iodine solution. Take 10 drops of iodine in a bucket of water.

Soap solution. Spraying is carried out in cloudy weather. For 10 liters of water, take 100 g of laundry soap.

A solution of mustard powder, prepared at the rate of 50 g of powder per 5 liters of water, also works quite effectively. Good results are obtained by using an aqueous solution of kefir or milk at a concentration of 1 liter of dairy product per 5 liters of water.

Overview of effective drugs

Fungicides are also used to control gray mold. Bordeaux liquid gives good results. Means containing thiophanate-methyl or penconazole are considered quite effective. These drugs are quite harmful to humans, but gray rot is effectively destroyed.

Experts also recommend using Euparen, Sumilex, Rovral, Ronilan, considering them to be unambiguously the best. Treatment with these drugs is carried out no more than 2 times a month. Very convenient are complex fungicides that have a wider range of effects on diseases.

The following agents are considered the most effective drugs.

“Mikal”. It can be used both for preventive treatments and for direct control of gray rot.

“Shavit”. This drug is highly toxic, therefore, when processing, it is necessary to use personal protective equipment. But he easily copes with all types of rot, infectious drying and powdery mildew.

“Flint”. An effective fungicide against a wide range of diseases. This is a low-toxic preparation, which allows it to be sprayed with a vineyard up to 3 times per season.

However, it is not worth using the same drug often, even the most effective one. Over time, fungi develop adaptation to it, and the remedy stops working. In this regard, it is recommended to alternate the fungicides used.

Which varieties are more susceptible to the disease?

The selection does not stand still. Through the efforts of scientists, resistant grape varieties have been created that can withstand a number of ailments, including gray rot. The most susceptible to diseases are old, often loved and tasty grape varieties. Among the particularly vulnerable plants, it is worth noting the varieties of early ripening:

“Pearl Sabo”;

“Muscat Tairov”.

Riesling, Rkatsiteli, Hungarian Muscat, Italy, White Chasselas, Cabernet Sauvignon, Aligote, Alimshak are also quite painful. Such varieties are especially demanding on growing conditions and agricultural technology. Working with such grapes, it is impossible to do without regular treatments with special preparations. Among fungicides, copper-containing agents are used.

When the slightest signs of disease appear on these varieties, it is necessary first of all to remove the infected areas of the bushes, and then immediately proceed to the treatment of plants.

Tips and Prevention

Experienced growers know that it is much easier to prevent plant diseases than to treat them later. Before planting a vineyard, it is necessary to select stable, zoned varieties that will best suit their growing conditions. The health of bushes and their productivity directly depend on proper planting, care, pruning, green procedures, top dressing and soil treatment.

Proper agricultural practices are very important.

Plants must be adequately provided with lighting.
Pruning should be done correctly and in a timely manner.
Fertilizers must be properly selected and applied on time.
Top dressing should be carried out according to the schedule, while pouring liquid organic matter under the bushes is not recommended.
There should be no weeds, dry leaves or rotten berries under the bush.
The vineyard should be well ventilated.
Bushes need to be watered regularly. Loosen the soil regularly after watering.
You should regularly inspect the condition of the bushes in order to identify diseases.

Even if no diseases are detected, it is necessary to carry out preventive spraying of the vineyard according to the recommended schedule. The vines must be tied up in a timely manner, to prevent their contact with the soil in order to avoid the appearance of fungal diseases.