Fruitful Trees
Dealing with powdery mildew on Mango Fruit Trees
CORRECTION TO THE VIDEO, FOR POWDERY MILDEW PREVENTION IT'S BEST TO SPRAY SULFER. In the video, I made an error and said copper is the best thing to spray for powdery mildew.
Alex at Tropical Acres Farms website
https://www.tropicalacresfarms.com/
What Is Powdery Mildew?
Powdery mildew is a fungal disease that affects a wide variety of plants. There are many different species of powdery mildew, and each species attacks a range of different plants. In the garden, commonly affected plants include cucurbits (squash, pumpkins, cucumbers, melons), nightshades (tomatoes, eggplants, peppers), roses, and legumes (beans, peas).
When the fungus begins to take over one of your plants, a layer of mildew made up of many spores forms across the top of the leaves. These spores are then carried to other plants by the wind. Powdery mildew can slow down the growth of your plant and, if the infection is severe enough, will reduce fruit yield and quality.
How Does Powdery Mildew Spread?
Powdery mildew spores typically drift into your garden with the wind, but if you’ve had powdery mildew occur in the past, new outbreaks may also come from dormant spores in old vegetative material or weeds nearby.
Unlike many other fungal diseases, powdery mildew thrives in warm (60-80°F / 15-27°C), dry climates, though it does require fairly high relative humidity (i.e., humidity around the plant) to spread. In cooler, rainy areas, it does not spread as well, and it is also slowed down by temperatures higher than 90°F (32°C). It tends to affect plants in shady areas more than those in direct sun, too.
IDENTIFICATION
How to Identify Powdery Mildew
Plants infected with powdery mildew look as if they have been dusted with flour.
Powdery mildew usually starts off as circular, powdery white spots, which can appear on leaves, stems, and sometimes fruit.
Powdery mildew usually covers the upper part of the leaves, but may grow on the undersides as well.
Young foliage is most susceptible to damage. Leaves turn yellow and dry out.
The fungus might cause some leaves to twist, break, or become disfigured.
The white spots of powdery mildew will spread to cover most of the leaves or affected areas.
The leaves, buds, and growing tips will become disfigured as well. These symptoms usually appear late in the growing season.
Published Mar 2, 2023
