The summer brassica crop could fall foul of downy mildew and white blister this season, according to experts, but fungicide Signum could be the answer to growers’ prayers.
Specialist agronomist Martin Christopher, who advises brassica growers in Kent for UAP, believes that weather conditions so far this year could cause the two disfiguring diseases to flourish.
“Downy mildew can escalate when the weather is appropriate, which it has been so far this year,” he said. “White blister is also becoming much more widespread, particularly in the South East, and can spoil both yield and quality of summer cauliflowers and summer sprouting broccoli. These two diseases flourish under the same conditions as potato blight, so I would expect both to become significant problems this season.”
Ring spot, which is caused by the fungus Mycosphaerella brassicola, can be a particularly disfiguring disease in sprouts and cabbages and also poses a threat for growers, according to Christopher.
“But the fungicide Signum has a role to play in reducing the impact of these diseases in brassica crops, for which it is recommended,” he said. “In particular, it is a much more benign material when it comes to crop safety and will naturally fall into the early slot when the crop can often be heat stressed. You want to avoid using aggressive fungicides which could dewax the crop. Later in the season, when some curative activity is needed or intervals are being stretched, it can be tank-mixed or alternated with a triazole or metalaxyl-containing product.”
Signum, developed by BASF, has a label recommendation in Brussels sprouts, cabbages and cauliflowers. There are also a number of SOLAs from which growers can benefit, including protected and outdoor leafy brassica crops grown for baby leaf production, outdoor and protected Chinese cabbage and outdoor collards including spring greens and outdoor kale.
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