Pacific Pests, Pathogens & Weeds - Mini Fact Sheet Edition

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Capsicum Phoma blight (239)

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Photo 1. Small, irregular spots 1-2 mm, on a capsicum leaf, brown at first, later maturing to light grey with brown border.

Photo 2. Close-up of a single spot showing the pycnidia (black dots) which contain large numbers of spores.

Photo 3. Large expanding spots on a mature capsicum fruit showing showing masses of spores that have discharged from the round spore-containing pycnidia.

Photo 4. A single fruit body (pycnidium) under the microscope that has been squashed to release the large number of small oval spores (seen at the top of the photograph).

Summary

• Worldwide distribution. On capsicum, cotton, cowpea, eggplant, okra, soybean, tomato, and more. A minor disease when plants are wounded by weather or insects.
• Spots, irregular, 1-2 mm, pale brown with brown borders, on leaves and stems. Large spots on fruits with black tiny fruiting bodies.
• Spread in rain splash and wind; possibly, seed.
• Cultural control: care during cultural operations; weed; control fruit flies; handle fruit with care; collect and burn trash after harvest; crop rotation.
• Chemical control: not recommended for this disease; if required use copper or chlorothalonil.

Common Name

Capsicum blight

Scientific Name

Phoma species; commonly Phoma exigua. It was previously known as Ascochyta phaseolorum. It has been renamed Boeremia exigua var. exigua.

This mini fact sheet is a part of the app Pacific Pests, Pathogens & Weeds

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