This unpleasant disease worries many gardeners, because under unfavorable conditions, for example - in a rainy and cool summer, it comes to almost every site.
Powdery mildew is a disease of fungal etiology. It causes the appearance of a white or red coating on the back of the leaves, leading to their drying. In a neglected case, the fungus infects stems, flowers and fruits of cucumbers. To prevent such vegetables from getting to this state, you need to know in advance how to deal with powdery mildew in cucumbers.
Treatment of cucumbers from powdery mildew
It is very important at the very beginning of the disease to stop its spread. At this stage, people's means of struggle can be used:
- tincture of marigolds - crushed flowers (half a bucket) should be insisted in warm water (fill the bucket to the brim) within 2 days and add the laundry soap (40 g) to the strained solution;
- decoction of horsetail - dried (100 g) or fresh (1 kg) horsetail with water (10 l) for a day, then boil for 1-2 hours, cool, strain and use at a concentration of 1: 5;
- mullein - in a ratio of 1: 3 dilute with water, insist 3 days and three times diluted with water before use.
All these means need to carefully spray the cucumber once a week until the symptoms disappear. But if powdery mildew on cucumber has already developed enough, and natural preparations do not help, chemical means of struggle are used. It:
- solution of soda ash (0.5%) with soap;
- solution of Bordeaux liquid (1%);
- solution of ferrous sulfate (5%).
Completely neglected powdery mildew of cucumbers is treated with poisonous chemicals. Only they can be applied provided that there is still no ovary of fruit. Among the new drugs, the "Karatan" solution diluted in 10 liters of water copes well. You need to process every week or two.