Is this cucumber blight

by Kerwin
(Richmond,Va,USA)

Recently I've noticed some white/tan/brown splotches on some of the leaves of my cucumber plant which is also accompanied by some of the cucumbers' turning brown and shriveling before they start to grow. What is it...what causes it...what can I do to solve it?

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Sep 05, 2010

Cucumber blight
by: Megan

Cucumbers and other cucurbits can get a number of fungus type diseases, but without a photo, it's hard to know exactly what's going on. Blight is a name given to a disease from fungi, virus or bacteria that attacks a plant, and causes wilting, rot and sometimes dying.

With cucumbers, powdery mildew is the most common problem, which usually strikes once the plants are well established and the weather is hot.

It's important not to splash water on the leaves or even walk amongst the vines when there is moisture around that could get onto the plants. All watering should be done by soaking the roots and ground only. Cucumbers do need lots of water and are prone to diseases if they become dry and miss out on water for more than a few days.

Sometimes botrytis, called grey mould will arrive, especially if powdery mildew has weakened the vines. Botrytis is more likely to also affect the actual cucumbers.

Whatever you have, it's best you rotate these crops next season. For now, it's too late to stop the fungus, but you can try and control it by applying milk every few days, chamomile tea, compost teas, especially seaweed, or a baking soda solution of 1 teaspoon to one litre of water or milk. Add a few drops of dishwashing liquid to help the spray adhere to the leaves.

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