Pacific Pests, Pathogens & Weeds - Mini Fact Sheet Edition

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Coffee rust (141)

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Photo 1. Young yellowish leaf spots, 3-5 mm diameter, of coffee rust, Hemileia vastatrix, on the upper surface of a coffee leaf mostly between the veins. Some of the spots are starting to merge.

Photo 2. Yellow-orange spots on the underside of a coffee leaf caused by coffee rust, Hemileia vastatrix. The spots have started to form powdery spores.

Photo 3. Close-up of the powdery spore masses of coffee rust, Hemileia vastatrix, on the underside of a coffee leaf at a late stage of infection when many of the spots have merged.

Summary

• Worldwide distribution. On arabica and robusta coffee. An important disease.
• Spots, 2-3 mm, expanding to 15 mm, with yellow-orange powdery blotches on underside. Later, spots on top turn brown with yellow halos. Leaves may fall and shoots dieback. Over-bearing dieback may occur if rust epidemics occurs on high-yielding trees. Food reserves from the tree are diverted to the berries and stem dieback results.
• Spores spread by wind and insects, but need water to germinate. Possibly, new strain in Central America.
• Cultural control: critical factors are: spacing; soil nutrition; shade; resistant varieties (e.g., catimor).
• Chemical control: copper (protectant); triazoles (systemic). Usually, not needed above 1700 m.

Common Name

Coffee leaf rust

Scientific Name

Hemileia vastatrix

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