What does eggplant blight look like and how to easily treat it?

Eggplant is a delicate crop that requires special care, as it's more susceptible to various diseases than other plants. But the most devastating is late blight. Learn how to detect and combat the disease early.

Causes of the disease

Late blight is a fungal disease. It came to us from Europe through infected potato tubers. Causes of eggplant late blight include:

• close proximity to infected crops;
• damp weather with frequent thunderstorms and heavy rains;
• Violation of crop rotation and care of eggplants.

The following mistakes, even made by experienced gardeners, can also lead to the spread of the disease:

• Planting eggplants too closely together. This means planting the plants too closely together. This prevents proper ventilation but promotes the spread of fungus;
• Excess nitrogen nutrition. Nitrogen promotes the formation of delicate plant leaves that are unable to resist fungal diseases.

Symptoms of late blight

It is quite difficult to confuse the infection of Phytophthora fungus with other diseases, since diseased crops have a number of distinctive symptoms:

• eggplant leaves become covered with reddish spots with a light green or yellow-green edge;
• the infection is not fixed on the leaves, then it spreads to the stem of the plant;
• In damp weather, a soft white coating forms on the undersides of the leaves—a symptom of fungal sporulation. In dry weather, the coating does not appear, but the leaves turn black and dry out;
• On unripe vegetables the disease has the appearance of hard rot;
• as the fetus grows, it most often becomes deformed;
• Brown spots appear on ripe fruits, and if the weather is damp, a white coating also appears.

Treatment

Numerous chemical preparations have been developed and numerous folk remedies have been tried to combat this dangerous disease. We share each of them.

Chemicals

There are three types of preparations that can protect plants from fungal diseases:

• Protective preparations. Ineffective if the plant is already affected;
• Curative agents. They are used in the early stages of plant disease;
• Eradicating. They get rid of the fungus at the sporulation stage.

Each of these medications is used depending on the intended purpose. Below is a table of drug compatibility.

The use of Fitosporin is also permitted. It is a biological, not chemical, substance. Its mechanism of action is that beneficial bacteria consume the fungus.

Folk remedies

Seasoned gardeners also recommend folk remedies that have stood the test of time. Here are some recipes:

Brine

To prepare it, dissolve 1 cup of rock salt in 10 liters of clean water. Then spray the eggplants with the mixture;

Garlic infusion

Chop 100 grams of garlic and mix with 10 liters of clean water. Let it steep for 24 hours. Spray the plants once a week;

Kefir solution

Dilute a liter of stale kefir in 10 liters of clean water. Spray once a week;

Milk whey with iodine

Add 30 drops of iodine and 10 liters of water to 2 liters of whey. Spray the plant;

Copper wire

Wrap the plant stem with copper wire in a spiral.

Disease prevention

To prevent the spread of the disease, pay attention to preventative measures. While they won't completely prevent late blight, they will reduce the risk of crop infection:

• Every year after each harvest, dispose of the tops and remains of plants, as they may be carriers of fungus;
• For preventative purposes, spray plants with fungicides.

Resistant eggplant varieties

One measure to prevent the development of the disease is also choosing seeds resistant to fungal parasites. These include:

• Dream;
• Robin Hood;
• Giselle;
• King;
• Maria;
• Salamander.

Adviсe

To preserve the culture and avoid its infection by fungus, use a number of tips:

• Be sure to choose eggplant seeds that are resistant to the spread of the disease;
• Dispose of the tops and remains of old plants after harvesting, and also cultivate the soil. This will ensure that the soil is not contaminated;
• Treat plants regularly to prevent diseases.

Following these simple guidelines will definitely keep your vegetables healthy. Have a good harvest!