Experts of the supervisor told the residents of the Kemerovo region how to deal with an unpleasant disease of potatoes.
The Kuzbass department of the Rospotrebnadzor warned residents that with improper care of potatoes sores appear on the tubers. The department explained that it was a quarantine disease - potato scab.
Fungal disease is divided into ordinary, powdery, silver and black (rhizoctonia), the latter form being the most dangerous. It develops during a cold lingering spring and sometimes reduces the yield by 15-20%.
- It is quite easy to isolate tubers affected by black scab. On their surface, convex black scabs are visible, like lumps of earth. This is the dormant stage of the fungus - sclerotia, which germinate in the spring with high humidity. If brown ulcers and necrotic spots appear on the sprouts, it means that rhizoctoniasis is rampant on the plantings, - said the experts.
Cultivars with thin or red skin are prone to common scab, which produces dry sores. The source of infection is soil, especially with an alkaline reaction. Alkalization occurs when there is an excess of manure and ash as fertilizer. Manure should be applied rotted and together with green fertilizers; it is also worth doing a crop rotation (planting potatoes in the same place after four to five years). It is better to plant healthy tubers, and after setting, they should be watered regularly to maintain high soil moisture. You can also sow resistant varieties, but none of them are completely protected from fungus.
Source: https://news.vse42.ru/