This drugstore remedy will help cure blackening and curling of pear tree leaves.

A favorite fruit tree among gardeners, the pear tree is often attacked by insects, pests, and diseases. The consequences of these negative factors include blackening and curling of the foliage.

There may be several causes for this problem. Before treating the plant, it's important to take the problem seriously, examining the symptoms and its source.

Reasons

Inexperienced gardeners, upon seeing blackened, dried-out foliage, immediately begin spraying their trees with chemicals. However, before treating pear trees, it's important to determine the exact cause of the disease outbreak.

Bacteriosis

A dangerous infectious disease of pome fruit trees. In just one or two years, this disease can destroy an entire fruit planting. The infection breaks out suddenly, spreading from one tree to another within one to two weeks, turning the orchard into a terrible state. The virus is most active during high temperatures and prolonged rainfall. Under favorable conditions, the first stage of infection affects the flower stalks. Under the influence of pathogens, the flower stalks wilt and fall off. The pears that have already set fruit turn a brownish-gray hue, wither, and hang shriveled until the very end of the season.

The virus is spread by a genus of bacteria called Erwinia, a member of the Enterobacteriaceae family, which are gram-negative, motile rods. The pathogens spread through the tissues of the affected plant along with the milky sap, and as the bacteria grow, the affected areas secrete a yellow-white mucus in which millions of Erwinia bacteria live and multiply. The main causes of the spread of the microbes are:

• parasitic insects;
• birds;
• contaminated garden tools;
• high air humidity;
• excess of nitrogen-containing fertilizers in the soil.

Symptoms

The main signs by which one can recognize the onset of tree infection are:

• wilting and falling of petals of flower brushes;
• change in the color of the peduncle from deep green to pale green;
• darkening and loss of kidney growth function;
• blackening of leaves and young branches;
• coloration of the bark in a gray-brown color, formation of dead areas on it;
• swelling, cracking of the bark and the formation of bizarre patterns on it;
• the appearance of wedge-shaped abrasions on the branches, spreading to the trunk.

Scab

This pathogenic ascomycete fungus, activated by high humidity, attacks flower stalks, leaves, young branches, and fruit. In early spring, the pathogen begins attacking young branches, spreading to other parts of the tree within two to three weeks. In advanced stages, it infects a significant portion of the crop, weakening the immunity of fruit trees. Pathogenic spores attack all pear varieties indiscriminately. However, the fungus thrives most in densely populated orchards, on both old and young trees. Seedlings growing in any region are susceptible to the disease. The fungus develops due to:

• low night temperatures and high humidity in early spring;
• instability of the variety to the disease.

Symptoms

The causes of infection with a pathogenic fungus are indicated by:

• the appearance of black spots with a moldy coating on the leaves;
• blackening of leaves, destruction of their tissues and falling off;
• branches covered with dark brown crust;
• the presence of black raised spots on the fruit.

Aspergillus

A common disease affecting sick or immunocompromised trees, black spot spores accumulate on pear trees, disrupting photosynthesis. The black coating that appears on the foliage as a result of the pathogen's infestation clogs the stomata, limiting ultraviolet light penetration. Over time, the spores spread throughout the plant, leading to necrosis in certain parts of the tree. Fruit affected by the disease loses its marketable appearance and flavor.

Factors that cause the development of Aspergillus spores are:

• dense planting of seedlings;
• poor air exchange;
• sanitary pruning of the crown was not carried out in time.

Symptoms

Signs that plants are infected with sooty mold spores can help you understand:

• the appearance of black spots on leaves and young branches;
• transformation of spots on branches, leaves and fruits into a continuous black film, similar to soot;
• stopping the growth of shoots.

Four-legged pear mite

Early spring. As soon as the air temperature warms up to 16 degrees Celsius, the insect pest begins attacking pear leaves. Brown-black, swollen growths begin to appear on them, where gall mites live and reproduce. Reproducing very rapidly in dry weather, galls form on the foliage, sucking out the milky sap. The plant then stops photosynthesis and becomes weakened. The foliage turns black, curls, and falls off.

The sources of spread of the parasite are:

• birds;
• animals;
• wind;
• insects;
• purchased infected seedling.

Symptoms

The foliage areas affected by the pest are distinguished by the following signs:

• the appearance of light green pimples above the leaf blade in mid-spring;
• the bumps acquire a brown-black color;
• blackening and falling of leaves.

Spotted copperhead

After winter, leafhoppers begin laying eggs on the woody shoots of the tree's fruit. During their life cycle, the parasite secretes a sticky fluid on the leaves and branches, which harbors pathogenic fungi. These fungi, in turn, cause phytoplasma-induced tree death. The insect causes significant damage to the garden by feeding on young shoots and foliage of the pear tree. As a result, the leaves turn black and die.

The reason for the pest's appearance is the failure to carry out preventative spraying with insecticides in early spring and late autumn.

Symptoms

Signs of attack by the spotted psyllid on fruit trees include:

• coating leaves and young branches with a sticky substance;
• blackening and falling of leaves and flowers.

Aphid

This inconspicuous insect, encountered by many gardeners, is found in every region, and its attacks last from the very beginning of the season until the onset of frost. Its destructive activity disrupts the tree's life cycle: it stops growing, loses fruit, and the foliage turns black and deformed. Furthermore, the pest's waste becomes a breeding ground for pathogenic spores.

In addition to sucking the milky sap from the leaves, the pest secretes a specific toxin that negatively impacts the health of the fruit tree. As a result of aphid infestation, the tree's buds fall off, the leaves become covered in a black, sticky coating and fall off, and fruit does not form.

The reason for the appearance of pests on trees is the untimely preventative treatment of the garden with chemicals.

Treatment

If the garden is affected by infectious diseases, spray with an antibiotic solution:

• Ofloxacin;
• Cephalosporin;
• Fitolavin;
• Ampicillin;
• Tetracycline.

Antibacterial agents with a broad spectrum of antimicrobial activity are used to treat pear trees affected by bacterial blight and aspergillus. The bactericide penetrates plant tissue, killing gram-negative bacteria. To prepare the working solution, you need:

• Dissolve 3 crushed tablets of any antibiotic in 9 liters of water and leave for 20 hours.
• Strain the liquid, add 3 tablespoons of sugar.
• Spray three times per season: the first time before the flowers begin to bloom, the second time during fruit ripening, and the third time 10 days before harvesting.

If trees are infected, treat them with Fitolavin, a specially formulated plant antibiotic, along with fungal spores. To prepare the working solution:

• dilute 25 ml of Fitolavin in 9 liters of water, add 1 cap of dishwashing detergent;
• Spray four times throughout the growing season: before bud break, at the time of fruit formation, during the fruit filling period, and seven days before harvesting.

If blackening of pear tree foliage occurs due to an attack by insect pests, spraying is carried out with the following preparations: Confidor Maxi, Aktara, Opperkot, Actellic.

Resistant varieties

To ensure a healthy and marketable fruit harvest, it's important to carefully select the right pear variety. The most disease-resistant varieties are:

• Sorceress;
• In memory of Yakovlev;
• Academic;
• Bashkir large;
• Tikhonovka;
• Chizhovskaya.

Prevention

To avoid contamination of the garden with infections, pathogens and pests, preventative measures should be carried out annually:

• carry out sanitary pruning of the crown;
• regularly get rid of weeds growing close to the garden;
• Use only disinfected tools for gardening;
• carry out preventative spraying of the garden against diseases and parasitic insects;
• carry out the necessary fertilization of trees with minerals and microelements.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4S6HWI1OmOE&t=95s

Adviсe

By following the recommendations of experienced gardeners, you can not only protect your garden from foliage turning black and dying, but also get a good pear harvest.

1. To prevent the development of infectious or fungal diseases, damaged fruits should be picked off and collected from the ground.
2. When spraying pears against bacterial blight and scab, there is no need to carry out treatment against other diseases.
3. The soil under the trees should be regularly loosened to ensure good air exchange for the root system, and the tree trunks should be whitewashed with quicklime in late autumn.

Pathogens, infections, and pests are unpleasant neighbors for pear trees. However, timely preventative measures will prolong fruiting and the lifespan of fruit trees.