Phytophthora, or crown rot, in fruit trees
Phytophthora, or crown rot, is a serious problem for agriculture worldwide, because beyond the crop it destroys the planting itself, which in tree fruit takes years to build again.
Archive
September 2020
A survey of leaf analyses in sweet cherry
Ten paired leaf and soil analyses on holdings in three districts, over 10 July to 20 August 2020. In seven of the ten orchards the leaves showed nitrogen deficiency while every soil analysis reported sufficiency. The sufficiency thresholds, the trace-element findings, why soil and leaf disagreed, and what the survey cannot show.
Peach fungal gummosis, Botryosphaeria dothidea
An endophyte, not an invader: it enters early and waits for stress. Why water stress two to six months after infection is what decides the damage, why the water-only control matched every fungicide in the 2008 trial, and what actually works, pruning, post-harvest irrigation and cultivar choice.
Cherry leaf spot (Blumeriella jaapii): diagnosis, cycle and timing
Ascospore release starts at petal fall and lasts six to eight weeks. Five hours of wetness at 17-20 C are enough. Why the programme does not begin after harvest.