Nauni: With widespread rainfall creating favourable conditions for the spread of fungal and soil-borne diseases in apple orchards, the Department of Plant Pathology at Dr. Y.S. Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry (UHF), Nauni, has issued a comprehensive advisory urging apple growers to take timely preventive and management measures.
The university said that the prevailing weather conditions, including high humidity, moderate temperatures and prolonged leaf wetness, are highly conducive for the occurrence and spread of leaf blight, leaf spots, Marssonina leaf blotch and soil-borne diseases in apple orchards.
The advisory stated that orchards where these diseases were prevalent during the previous season should strictly follow the fungicide spray schedule recommended by the university and the Directorate of Horticulture. Farmers have also been advised to regularly monitor orchards for symptoms of leaf spots, blights, blotch, white root rot and collar rot and apply fungicides on a need basis as per the recommended schedule.
As part of preventive orchard management, growers have been advised to remove weeds growing in and around orchards to reduce disease incidence and improve orchard hygiene.
For the management of Alternaria leaf spot, leaf blight and Marssonina leaf blotch, the university has recommended spraying Metiram at 600 grams per 200 litres of water as a protective fungicide wherever required. In orchards with severe disease incidence, growers have been advised to alternately use formulations such as Lustre 5% SE (160 ml/200 litres of water), Cabrio Top 60 WG (200 grams/200 litres), Shamir (500 ml/200 litres), Luna Experience (126 ml/200 litres) or Avtaar (500 grams/200 litres).
To manage white root rot, the advisory recommends drenching the tree basin area three to four times with carbendazim (200 grams per 200 litres of water) from the onset of the rainy season, ensuring the solution penetrates to a depth of 15–20 centimetres.
For collar rot, farmers have been advised to drench the entire tree basin approximately 30 centimetres away from the tree trunk with mancozeb (600 grams per 200 litres of water) during the rainy season.
The university has also recommended that growers spray Cuprofix DISPRESS (1,200 grams per 200 litres of water) within 24 hours after harvest for the management of silver leaf canker and other canker diseases.
The Department of Plant Pathology has cautioned farmers against mixing any other pesticides, chemicals, micronutrients, growth regulators or hormones with the recommended fungicides, as such combinations may lead to phytotoxicity, fruit russeting and other physiological disorders. If required, these products should be applied separately.
The university has further requested farmers to report disease symptoms along with photographs and seek technical guidance by emailing [email protected], enabling experts to provide timely recommendations for effective disease management.
