When and how can gooseberry bushes be treated for the prevention and treatment of common diseases?

Gooseberries are not only tasty, but also very healthy. Therefore, its bushes can be found in many garden plots. But the culture has a significant drawback - it enjoys special love from harmful insects, as well as pathogenic fungi. Since any problem is easier to prevent than to deal with it later, the main attention should be paid to preventive measures. If it was still not possible to save the bush from the disease, it is important to be able to identify it in time and know what to do in this case.

Best time for gooseberry processing

Gooseberries are more susceptible to disease than many other berry bushes. Therefore, for the first time, preventive treatment is carried out in early spring, combining it with sanitary pruning. Leaf buds and soil around the bush ready to bloom are sprayed with any fungicide - these drugs kill many pathogenic fungi. The procedure must be repeated after flowering, preferably even twice, with an interval of 10-12 days.

In spring, preventive measures must be taken before the leaves bloom on the gooseberry bushes.

Throughout the entire period of active vegetation, the bushes are sprayed in order to protect against powdery mildew, one of the most common and dangerous for culture diseases. The first treatment is carried out in April, the last - in September. The interval between them is 10-12 days.

In autumn, one should not forget about prevention, this is an obligatory procedure along with pruning a bush and cleaning a tree trunk of a foliage, broken branches, fallen berries, weeds and other plant debris. Processing is best done 2-3 weeks after the entire crop is harvested.

Gooseberry bushes delight the gardener with a crop, but at the same time they are regularly attacked by harmful insects and often suffer from diseases

When spraying gooseberries, it is worth remembering that any treatment with chemicals is carried out no later than 30 days before the expected harvest, with preparations of biological origin - for 15-20 days. Also, their use is limited during flowering. This also applies to fungicides.

How to handle: popular remedies among gardeners

Most often, gardeners use the most affordable, time-tested tools that have proven their effectiveness to process gooseberries. Many of them, without reason, do not trust new-fangled chemistry.

Boiling water

Watering gooseberries with boiling water is a common measure that helps to "remove" the bush from the winter "hibernation" and increase its resistance to fungal diseases typical of the culture. The procedure is carried out in the last decade of February or early March, when the leaves have not yet blossomed.

Normal water is boiled, a watering can with a divider or a spray bottle is filled (during this time it cools to a temperature of 80-90ºС) and the bushes are poured from a distance of 60-70 cm, trying to process all branches more or less evenly. To facilitate your work, you can pre-connect (or even in the fall) several shoots each. You need to act quickly - from the water that has cooled to 60-70ºС, there’s no sense anymore. The norm for one plant is 3-5 liters.

Gooseberries are poured with boiling water at the same time as pruning - in early spring or late winter

Then with water of the same temperature you need to shed the soil in the near-stem circle and cover it with plastic film for 2-3 days, pieces of roofing felt. This will help to destroy the larvae wintering under the bush, as well as eggs laid by harmful insects, and spores of pathogenic fungi. Boiling water is especially effective against a kidney tick, which is the main distributor of a dangerous leaf double virus. At the same time, do not pour it directly under the roots, you can burn them severely.

Watering with boiling water promotes the "awakening" of the plant and increases its immunity, while hot water destroys the spores of pathogenic fungi and eggs of pests

Practice shows that the gooseberry bushes annually processed in this way better tolerate the vagaries of weather during the summer and winter cold, and are less likely to be affected by pests. The leaves on them are larger, more berries, they branch more intensively.

For a greater effect, you can add potassium permanganate to the water (to a pale pink shade of the solution) or ordinary table salt (50-70 g per 10 l).

Video: spring treatment of berry bushes with boiling water

Blue vitriol

Copper sulfate (also known as copper sulfate or copper sulfate) is one of the most common fungicides, widely used by gardeners to protect fruit trees and berry bushes from various pathogenic fungi. This beautiful sky blue powder prevents the germination of their spores. To treat gooseberries with copper sulfate, a 1% solution is prepared (100 g of powder per 10 liters of water), iron - 3%. This concentration is completely safe for the bush, but effectively destroys fungal spores.

Copper sulfate is one of the most common and affordable fungicides, its effectiveness is due to the fact that many pathogenic fungi do not tolerate copper compounds.

Copper sulfate does not penetrate into the plant tissue, acts exclusively at the point of contact. The solution is washed off the bush the first rain. If the fungus has already formed a mycelium in the tissues, it cannot destroy its agent, however, it slightly inhibits its development.

The liquid is prepared exclusively in glass, plastic or enamelled containers (without chips) in order to exclude the reaction with ions of iron, aluminum, zinc. It is impossible to store it longer than 10-12 hours, the effectiveness of the drug is lost. Powder dissolves better in warm water than in cold water. At an air temperature of 30 ° C and above, it makes no sense to carry out processing. The finished solution should never be mixed with other drugs, insecticides or fungicides.

A solution of copper sulfate cannot be prepared in containers of any metal

Plants are sprayed in early spring. It is desirable that the temperature in the street does not exceed 8-10 ° C. This is a guarantee that the leaf buds have not yet “woken up”. Processing is carried out in the early morning or evening, after sunset. The drops remaining on the bush play the role of lenses, you can burn the shoots very much. In addition to fungal diseases, this procedure helps to protect the bushes from many dangerous pests - bud mites, gall midges, aphids, and mucous sawflies.

Immediately after the bushes fade, the treatment is repeated. The best time for her is the early morning of a calm day. It is desirable that the street was warm enough - 16-20ºС.

The last treatment with copper sulfate is carried out in the fall. The concentration of the drug is increased to 2%. If in summer the plant is badly affected by diseases and pests, the soil around the bush is shed with a 5% solution. But such treatment is not recommended for chernozem - it negatively affects soil fertility.

Copper sulfate can be used not only as a means for the prevention of diseases and the fight against them, but also as a fertilizer. Copper, like many other trace elements, is necessary for the normal development of plants. Once every 5-6 years in autumn or spring, the powder is applied to the soil in the process of deep loosening of the soil at the rate of 1 g / m². You can judge a copper deficiency during the active growing season by the following signs:

• unnatural dark green shade of leaves, sharply contrasting with a yellowish-white border at the edges;
• the rigidity of the sheet plate and the tip bending down;
• metallic luster or bluish-purple tint, clearly visible in the sun.

Copper deficiency on the leaves of berry shrubs manifests itself very brightly

In this case, the bushes are sprayed with a weak solution of copper sulfate - 1-2 g per 10 liters of water.

This drug can also be used for disinfection. Slices left after removing dry, broken, diseased branches are the “gateway” for all kinds of infections. Therefore, before covering them with garden varieties, it is useful to rinse the “wounds” with a 2% solution.

Video: application of copper sulfate in the garden

Bordeaux fluid

Bordeaux liquid gardeners have been using it since the mid-19th century. It was then that the French botanist Pierre-Marie Millardde discovered that the mixture he prepared very effectively destroys mold fungi on grape leaves and shoots.

Bordeaux liquid - a tool known to gardeners for more than a century, its effectiveness is time-tested

Gooseberries are treated with Bordeaux liquid to protect against rust, scab, anthracnose and all kinds of spotting. You can’t overdo it with it - this negatively affects the taste of the fruit and inhibits the growth of new shoots.

Quicklime for the preparation of Bordeaux liquid must be fresh, otherwise it will not dissolve, but solidify with lumps

Bordeaux liquid (one percent) is easy to prepare yourself. This will require only water, copper sulfate and quicklime:

1. 100 g of copper sulfate is diluted in a glass of hot water, then add 5 l of boiling water. The container should not be metal.
2. In another container with a volume of 10 l, 150 g of quicklime is poured into 5 l of cold water, mixed well.
3. Very carefully, in a thin stream, the contents of the first container are poured into the second (in no case, not vice versa).
4. Using litmus paper, check how suitable the solution is for spraying plants. If it turns blue, then there is too much lime, the remedy is ineffective. Red color indicates an excess of copper sulfate - such a solution will destroy not only the spores of fungi, but also gooseberry leaves. Errors are corrected by the gradual addition of lime “milk”. As an “indicator”, you can use a regular nail - a plaque of the corresponding shade will appear on it.

The components of Bordeaux liquid are diluted with water in separate containers and mixed only by adding a solution of copper sulfate in milk of lime

The maximum concentration of Bordeaux liquid is 3% (300 g of copper sulfate and 400 g of lime). With such a solution, gooseberry bushes are sprayed in early spring or late autumn. On the shoots after the procedure, a bluish coating remains for a long time, this is normal. If in the spring the buds have already “woken up”, turning into green cones, the optimal concentration is 1%. The consumption rate per bush is 1.5-2 liters.

Spraying is carried out in dry cool, calm weather, until 10:00 or after 18:00. It is advisable that the solution gets into the soil in a minimal amount. It is best to pre-cover it with plastic wrap, roofing felt, slate sheets, and so on.

The effect of processing Bordeaux liquid lasts about a month

Bordeaux liquid is an alternative to copper sulfate, so the treatment is carried out at the same time. The period of its action is longer - 25-30 days, it is not washed off by rain. It is also a source of calcium for gooseberry bushes. However, the solution is more toxic, not only for plants, but also for humans, pets, therefore, in the process of its preparation and spraying, the use of rubber gloves, a respirator, and other personal protective equipment is mandatory.

Video: how to prepare Bordeaux liquid

How to protect gooseberries from common diseases

Diseases, especially fungal diseases, are a real scourge of gooseberries. Some gardeners do not even risk planting bushes on the site. But competent prevention can minimize the risk of infection.

Scab

Gooseberry scab first appears on the leaves. They are visible small as if velvety spots of olive color. Gradually they increase in size, change color to dark brown, the leaves themselves turn completely yellow. Then the disease spreads to the berries. The spots on them are vague, beige, reminiscent of a film. Over time, their surface cracks, the fruits shrink, turn black and rot. The risk of contracting scab is especially great if the summer is cold and rainy.

First of all, scab appears on gooseberry leaves

Often the gardener himself is to blame for the spread of the disease. This is facilitated by the thickening of plantings, the choice of an inappropriate place (lowlands, where cold humid air stagnates for a long time or a site where groundwater comes too close to the surface), the introduction of excessive nitrogen-containing fertilizers.

Gooseberry-affected scab quickly begins to rot

Since the fungus that causes scab overwinters in fallen leaves, in autumn the soil under the bush must be cleaned of plant debris and deeply loosened. Heavily affected branches should be cut off and burned as quickly as possible. There are also varieties resistant to fungus - Houghton, Date, African, Bottle green, Chernysh.

The gooseberry variety Phenicus, in addition to other undoubted advantages, also has resistance to scab

The best drugs for fighting scab are fungicides. For prevention, the bushes are sprayed in early spring. If Bordeaux liquid or copper sulfate is used, the treatment is carried out on unopened buds, other means (HOM, Oksikhom, Abiga-Peak, Kuprozan, Oleokuprit) - on freshly blossomed leaves. The second procedure is carried out 7-12 days after the first, the last - in the fall.

A solution of Kuprozan, like other fungicides, is prepared in strict accordance with the instructions given by the manufacturer in the instructions

Folk remedies are mainly used for the prevention of scab. They are not able to stop the spread of the disease and destroy the fungus. Validity - approximately 7-12 days (or until the first rain). Then the processing will need to be repeated.

• Salt solution (100 g per liter of water). He must not be allowed to hit the ground. Nothing will grow on such beds at all.
• Infusion of horsetail rhizomes. Finely chopped raw materials fill a third of the volume of a 10-liter bucket, the rest is added with warm water. The tool is infused for 3-4 days, filtered before use.

Horsetail - a plant familiar to many, whose rhizomes are used to prepare infusion for the prevention of scab

Powdery mildew

Powdery mildew is the most dangerous disease for gooseberries, from which this culture suffers very often. Spores of a pathogenic fungus are carried by wind or insects. The leaves affected by the disease are covered with a grayish-white coating, similar to powdered powder or flour, after a few weeks it turns brown and “thickens”, turning into solid spots. The leaf plates are curled and dried. Then the fungus spreads to shoots and fruits. The peel of these berries turns brown and coarser, they fall off, you can’t eat them.

It is very easy to identify powdery mildew, but getting rid of it is quite difficult

It contributes to the spread of the fungus in warm weather and high humidity. Most often the bushes suffer from the disease.

Eating gooseberries infected with powdery mildew is strongly discouraged.

As a rule, the first signs of powdery mildew development are noticeable already in late spring. The fungus spreads from the bottom up, so you need to inspect the lower shoots and young shoots most carefully. There are also disease-resistant varieties - Mashenka, Grushenka, Harlequin, Kolobok, Senator, African, Ural grape, Finnish, Yubileiny.

Gooseberry Grushenka is not only very beautiful and tasty, it also has "innate" immunity to powdery mildew

You also need to be careful with top dressing - potassium and phosphorus increase the resistance of powdery mildew, nitrogen, on the contrary, slows down the development of young shoots, making them more susceptible to it. During the summer, it is useful to spray the bushes 2-3 times with a solution of simple superphosphate (50 g) and potassium sulfate (20 g) in 10 l of water.To enhance the effect, potassium permanganate (3-5 g) is added.

For the prevention of powdery mildew, leaf buds that have just begun to swell are poured with boiling water or a solution of potassium permanganate (15 g per 10 l of water). The soil under the bush is dusted with Haupsin, Glyocladin or Trichodermin, shed with Fitosporin solution. Then, before flowering and immediately after it, Topaz, Tiovit, Vectra, and HOM preparations are used. Last treatment - after another 7-10 days.

The drug Topaz, along with some others, is used to prevent powdery mildew on gooseberries.

Gooseberries are treated with folk remedies, starting from mid-April to autumn with an interval of 10-12 days:

• A solution of soda ash (50 g per 10 l of water). To better stick to the leaves and shoots, you can add a little laundry or green potash soap grated on a fine grater. To enhance the effect - 2-3 aspirin tablets crushed into powder.
• Infusion of wood ash (1 liter can of 3 liters of boiling water). The tool is insisted for 2-3 days, filtered before use. It is also an effective foliar supplement containing potassium and phosphorus.
• Kefir or sour milk. It is diluted with water in a ratio of 1: 8. The acidic environment of the spores of the fungus and mycelium does not tolerate at all.

Kefir is an acidic environment, and its spores of most pathogenic fungi do not like very much

At the first signs of the disease, the bushes are treated with Nitrafen (200 g per 10 liters of water). Then, twice with an interval of 10-12 days, Cumulus, Scor. Heavily affected by powdery mildew bushes can only be uprooted and burned. The soil in this place and nearby bushes are treated with the same solution.

Gooseberry bushes and the soil beneath them should be treated with nitrafen as soon as possible, upon detection of the first suspicious symptoms

Video: how to deal with powdery mildew on gooseberries

Lichen

Lichens look like rough spots of yellow-green, silver, pinkish, yellowish-cream, dark gray or almost white. They appear on the shoots, sometimes covering them almost completely. Up to 8-10 species can coexist quite peacefully on one branch. Lichen is not a parasite, it only uses the bush as a habitat, but you still need to deal with it, because of these neoplasms, moisture stagnates, the bark often exfoliates, spores of pathogenic fungi and other pathogenic microorganisms accumulate on their surface, under them pest eggs “hide”, the bush reacts more strongly to adverse weather conditions, and normal air exchange is hampered.

Lichen is not a parasite, but you still need to fight it

The presence of a large number of lichens on the gooseberry bush, as a rule, indicates its aging, uncontrolled growth of the crown or that the shoots were frozen in the winter or received sunburn. Another possible reason is the wrong choice of place for planting (meltwater stands for a long time under the bush, groundwater comes close to the surface).

The best prevention of the appearance of lichen on gooseberries is competent and regular pruning. The crown should be evenly lit by the sun, it is important to ensure good aeration. Every five years, it is advisable to rejuvenate the bush, cutting off all shoots older than this age to the point of growth. In early spring, gooseberries are sprayed with a solution of iron sulfate (350-400 g per 10 liters of water).

Iron sulfate spraying is a rather effective prevention of lichen on berry bushes and fruit trees.

Discovered lichens are cleaned from the bush with an ordinary plastic washcloth. You can also use a clothes brush, a wire “sponge” for dishes, a coarse cloth like a mat, or a simple sliver (but nothing sharp so as not to injure the wood). It is best to do this after rain. Lichens absorb moisture, soften, becoming like a sponge.

The cleaned areas of the bark are disinfected by washing with soap and foam, 2% solution of copper sulfate, or by rubbing with sorrel from sorrel leaves. The exfoliated bark is carefully removed, the existing cracks are cleaned with fine sandpaper. "Wounds" are covered with garden varieties, a mixture of fresh cow manure, powder clay and wood ash, or covered with oil paint in several layers.

Video: how to get rid of moss and lichens on bushes and trees

Folk remedies for the prevention of diseases and pest attacks

Folk remedies are also useful, but rather for the prevention of diseases. By the way, they help scare away from bushes and many harmful insects, which for some reason have a special love for gooseberries. At the first signs of the development of the disease, it makes no sense to use them. You can only waste your time when the bush could still be saved.

But in comparison with chemicals they have one definite advantage. Folk remedies do not harm the plant and man in any way. Accordingly, during the season, bushes can be processed an unlimited number of times. The effect of the treatment lasts for 7-12 days (or until the first rain).

As practice shows, the following tools are most effective:

• Garlic infusion. It is used to prevent scab, rust, repelling aphids and buds. Approximately 0.5 kg of arrows and / or garlic cloves are crushed, pour 3 l of hot water. After 3-4 days, the infusion is filtered, thickened at the bottom, squeezed, before use it is diluted with water, bringing its volume to 10 liters.
• A decoction of wormwood leaves. Helps to protect bushes from attacks of caterpillars of a tinnitus, aphid, gooseberry flare. 100 g of dry leaves are boiled in a water bath for 25-30 minutes, add fresh chicken manure infusion (1 kg per 3-4 liters of water), mix well, add water, bringing the total volume to 10 liters.
• Infusion of mustard powder. It scares away sawflies and all kinds of caterpillars. 100 g of powder is poured with a liter of water, insist 2-3 days. Before use, filter and dilute with water 1: 2.
• Tobacco infusion. It destroys the spores of most pathogenic fungi, repels the kidney mite, gooseberry fire. About 250 g of dried leaves (preferably grown independently) or tobacco dust is poured into 10 liters of water, insisted for 2-3 hours, filtered before use. The effect is only freshly prepared product, it can not be stored, even for several hours. You can just dust the flowering and frustrated bushes with tobacco dust.
• The infusion is celandine. Leaves and stems (3-4 kg) are crushed, pour 10 liters of water. The product is ready in 1.5-2 days. The dry leaves of this plant can be crushed into powder and dusted with gooseberry bushes, the soil under them.
• Infusion of onion husks. Particularly effective against aphids. 200 g of raw material is poured 10 l of warm water, insist 10-14 hours. More than a day, the product is not stored.
• Decoction of tops of tomatoes. Almost all pests dislike its pungent smell. 2-3 kg of chopped raw material is poured into 5 liters of water, insisted for several hours. Then add the same amount of water, and boil for half an hour in a water bath. The finished product is cooled and diluted with water 1: 4. If necessary, in a hermetically sealed container, it can be stored for 4-6 months. Similarly, a tansy decoction is prepared to help protect the bushes from the gooseberry fire.
• Infusion of fine hay. A third of the 10-liter bucket is filled with raw materials, the rest is filled with water. Insist 3-4 days. Before use, filter and dilute with water 1: 3.

Photo gallery: what folk remedies can I treat gooseberry bushes

Attacking gooseberry bushes of the disease cause a significant decrease in productivity, and can even lead to the death of the bush. Therefore, preventive treatments in spring and autumn, as well as regular examinations for suspicious symptoms for this crop, are a must. For prevention, you can use folk remedies. But if the infection has already spread en masse, only insecticides or drugs of biological origin can help.