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Chestnut is a very beautiful majestic tree that will decorate any summer cottage. However, many plant breeders are stopped from buying a seedling by the notorious chestnut disease - rust, which disfigures the curly leaves with scattering of unpleasant brown spots. But you should not give up the decision to plant a plant on your estate, because this and other diseases of this culture are quite treatable.
Chestnut diseases and their treatment
Although the chestnut is considered a rather unpretentious plant, its cultivation is associated with various diseases that affect different parts of the tree. Most often, the leaves serve as an indicator of the health of the chestnut, since the symptoms of the disease appear primarily on them. If the leaf plates turn yellow in the middle of summer, curl or acquire an unhealthy color, then the chestnut is affected by a certain disease.
Rust
Of all chestnut diseases, rust or mottling can be called the most common ailment. It not only spoils the aesthetic appearance of the plant, but also poses a serious threat to the health of the chestnut, often causing developmental abnormalities and even death of the tree. There are several types of the disease:
- perforated rust;
- rust is black;
- brown rust;
- rust reddish brown.
Each type of rust has its own symptoms and causes. Accordingly, the methods of dealing with these chestnut diseases also differ.
Rust is black.
A characteristic feature of this disease is that the chestnut leaves begin to turn black quickly and soon fall off. In the long term, rust causes various disturbances in the development of the plant, it gradually weakens. Flowers on chestnuts appear much later and in much smaller quantities. Some flowers do not open at all or fly around after a few hours. The flowering itself becomes more short-lived and scarce.
There are 2 reasons for this disease:
- excess moisture due to frequent watering or heavy rainfall;
- lack of a sufficient amount of potassium in the soil.
Based on the available reasons, choose a suitable method of treating chestnuts from black rust.
In the first case, it is necessary to reduce the number of watering the chestnut and water the plant as the earthen coma dries out. In regions where summer is often humid, watering can be carried out even less often or not at all - the chestnut will have enough water from precipitation.
The second case requires the introduction of mineral fertilizing into the soil. As a rule, a lack of potassium in the soil can be avoided by regularly applying fertilizers to the soil: in the fall - with nitroammophos at the rate of 15 g per 10 l of water, in the spring - 1 kg of mullein and 15 g of urea for the same amount of water.
Reddish brown rust
As the name suggests, this disease causes reddish-brown spots on the chestnut leaves. Most often, rust makes itself felt at the end of July or in August. If you do not interfere with the development of the disease, very soon rust spots grow and cover the chestnut leaves almost completely.
A large amount of moisture can provoke red-brown rust, so you should pay close attention to the chestnut watering regime.
The occurrence of a disease on a plant can also be affected by sudden temperature changes. If the plant grows in regions with an unstable climate, care should be taken to insulate the chestnut trunk circle, especially in the autumn. This can be done using mulch such as wood chips, peat, or a mixture of it with compost. Such a measure will not only protect the roots of the plant from freezing, but also serve as an additional fertilizer for the chestnut.
Brown rust
According to the symptoms, this ailment is very reminiscent of reddish-brown rust, and therefore even experienced plant breeders often confuse these 2 varieties of chestnut disease. Brown rust also appears closer to the middle of the summer season, however, in the first days of the disease, brown formations affect not only the front, but also the back side of the plant leaf.
Brown rust can occur for the same reasons as the reddish-brown variety of the disease, namely due to over-watering or sudden temperature jumps. In addition to mulch, the impact of the latter can be mitigated by making a shelter from tree stakes and cling film around the chestnut trunk.
Rust control measures
In addition to using the above measures, rust, regardless of the type, can be cured in the following ways:
- With the onset of spring, the chestnut crown should be sprayed with a weak solution of Bordeaux liquid once every 10 days. This must be done regularly until the beginning of the flowering period. As soon as the chestnut finishes blooming, it should be treated again with the composition or its substitutes - Azofos or Bayleton.
- If the rust has developed too much, from the beginning of the budding period of the plant and until the end of its flowering, the chestnut is treated with Bordeaux liquid - 1 time with an interval of 30 days during the season. To consolidate the effect obtained, the crown of the plant is sprayed with a 5% solution of urea for the winter, observing a dosage of 5 g of the composition per 1 liter of water. The soil around the chestnut is treated with a 7% solution using 7 g of the substance per 1 liter of water.
Powdery mildew
Besides rust, another disease affecting chestnuts is powdery mildew. This disease is caused by a special type of fungus. As soon as optimal temperature and humidity conditions arise for this, it begins to actively multiply. Also, its development can be caused by an imbalance of nitrogen and potash fertilizers in the soil. As a result of the lesion, a characteristic gray-white bloom forms on the leaves of the plant. In addition, dark brown spherical formations can be observed on the leaf plates of the chestnut - these are fungal spores. Long-term absence of treatment leads to the fact that the leaves of the plant eventually turn brown and die off.
Powdery mildew is infectious in nature, and chestnuts can become infected with this disease through air and water or through contact with infected plants. Therefore, if a disease is detected in one plant, you should immediately isolate it from healthy chestnuts and start urgent treatment.
First of all, it is required to remove all damaged leaves from the infected plant and burn them. If the cause of the appearance of the fungus lies in the lack of minerals, their reserves should be replenished with potassium-phosphorus feeding. It will be useful to treat chestnuts with various fungicides such as Fitosporin-M, Topsin, Fundazol or Skora. Fans of environmentally friendly products are advised to use a composition based on wood ash:
- 500 g of ash is poured into 1 liter of water and infused for 48 hours.
- A mixture of 5 g of laundry soap and water is added to the solution.
- The obtained composition is used to treat the trunk, branches and leaves of the chestnut 2 times with an interval of 1 week.
Along with this remedy, experienced plant breeders are advised to process chestnuts with an infusion of weeds and water, in a ratio of 1: 2.
Necrosis
Chestnuts often undergo various forms of necrosis:
- stem;
- phomopsis;
- septomix;
- krifonektrievuyu.
The symptoms of these diseases are very similar. All three forms of necrosis imply a gradual dying off of the chestnut bark: it begins to crack and become covered with black or brown seals with a diameter of 2 - 3 mm, which can be seen with the naked eye. In the case of stem necrosis, the seals can also be pale pink in color. Septomyx necrosis of the plant can be recognized by how the bark takes on a gray-white hue.
Although this disease is not dangerous for adult chestnuts, it severely damages the ornamental appearance of the plant. Young trees can die if the disease is ignored for a long time.
To get rid of the disease, you first need to thoroughly clean the affected area of the trunk with a well-sharpened garden knife. Then the infected area is treated with bactericidal preparations and covered with garden varnish. It will also be helpful to spray the chestnut with Bordeaux liquid or antifungal medicines.
Chestnut pests and control
In addition to diseases, illiterate chestnut care can provoke the appearance of pests. Among them, the most dangerous plant breeders rightly consider the mining moth.
Miner moth
The miner, or chestnut moth resembles a butterfly and reaches a length of 4 mm. The first mentions of this pest date back to the 80s of the last century, but today it is not known for certain where it came from. In recent years, this seemingly harmless insect, which harms millions of plants, has become a real punishment for gardeners around the world. The fact is that the chestnut moth lays its eggs on the chestnut leaves. As soon as the caterpillars hatch from the eggs, they begin to eat the leaf plate from the inside, gnawing tunnels in it. This damages the structure of the leaves, causing them to wither and quickly crumble. The situation is further complicated by the fact that the miner moth is very fertile and capable of producing offspring of hundreds of larvae several times per season. In addition, it is unpretentious to conditions, which allows it to expand its habitat from year to year and damage all new farms.
At the moment, there is no way to get rid of this pest once and for all. Researchers are looking for drugs against it, but the only option currently available is internal injections. Despite their high price, such injections are very effective, and often even single sessions lead to the healing of the plant.
Nevertheless, this method of treatment has a significant drawback - the drug for administration is very toxic not only for moths, but also for the environment as a whole. Therefore, when choosing a medicine for injection, one should give preference to formulations of the 1st and 2nd class, because they do not have such a harsh effect on the environment. It is strongly discouraged to use injections in populated areas.
Alternatively, hormonal agents such as Insegar can be used. This composition should be sprayed on chestnut leaves before the moth has time to lay on them.
Chafer
May beetles are classified as root pests, although in reality the root system of chestnuts is attacked by the larvae of these insects. Adults feed mainly on the leaves of the plant. May beetles are not as dangerous as the chestnut moth, but they can significantly weaken the plant.
You can cope with these pests with the help of chemical insecticides and folk remedies. So, a weekly infusion of onions on water in a ratio of 1: 2 has proven itself well.It is bred in half with water and watered with a chestnut tree circle instead of regular water.
Shield
The scale insect is a representative of sucking pests, which feeds on the sap of leaves and shoots. The scale is very small - about 5 mm. She has on her body a strong wax shield, from which she got her name. Young individuals of this pest are born without it. The layer is formed after the insects are fixed on the leaf and begin to eat hard.
In addition to insecticides, such as Fitoverm and Metaphos, you can deal with these pests by using an infusion of onions, garlic and pepper or a weak vinegar solution. A powdery preparation against Colorado beetles diluted with water is also suitable.
Ilm leaf beetle
Ilm leaf beetle is one of the many species of the genus of leaf beetles. This insect has two wings with rigid elytra and a bright yellow coloration with black longitudinal stripes. The pest feeds on the leaves of chestnuts, moreover, mature individuals gnaw holes in them, and the larvae eat the leaf plate completely, leaving only the skeleton.
As a rule, leaf beetles are sensitive to any insecticide, so periodic processing of the chestnut will soon help rid the plant of the problem. Spraying with infusions of tomato tops or pharmacy chamomile will not harm him.
Mealybugs
Mealybugs are also considered sucking insects, as they feed, like scale insects, deciduous juices. These small pests are white or light pink in color with transverse stripes on the surface of the body. In the process of vital activity, they secrete a slimy substance that sticks insect eggs to the leaf plate. Because of the worms, the leaves and other parts of the chestnut grow many times slower and turn yellow quickly, and the mucus of the pests serves as a breeding ground for dangerous fungi.
Chemical preparations - Aktellik, Aktara and others are good means of fighting the worm. Connoisseurs of folk compositions use garlic infusion.
Prevention of diseases and pests of chestnut
The best remedy for diseases and pests of chestnut has been and remains prevention. Proper care and timely action will help prevent ailment and facilitate further treatment of the plant:
- You should regularly examine the chestnut, noting the slightest changes in its condition.
- It is necessary to prune on time, get rid of dry and damaged plant branches.
- Wounds and splits that appear on the bark of the plant are subject to immediate examination and treatment.
- It is necessary to adhere to the recommendations for feeding and watering chestnuts.
- It is strongly not recommended to use the leaves of even a healthy plant when mulching, as they may contain pathogens. Fallen chestnut leaves should be burned immediately.
Conclusion
Despite the fact that the most common chestnut disease is rust, there are many other ailments and pests that affect this plant. To get rid of some of them, it will take considerable effort, so it is important not to bring the chestnut to a deplorable state, but to recognize the threat in time and eliminate it.
