Top Berry Problems and Solutions
As the peak of summer arises, so does the peak of berry season. Berries are nutrient-rich, juicy, round, soft-fleshed fruits that provide us with countless amounts of benefits. Berries also provide us with countless amounts of difficulties when growing them on your own. We’re here to help you with those issues by sharing expert knowledge on what you can do to keep your berry plants happy and healthy all year round.
In this blog post, we will be highlighting the common problems and solutions when growing your own berry plants this season and for many seasons to come. Let’s get growing!
Problems & Solutions
HERE ARE TOP PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS FOR YOUR BERRY PLANTS:
Downy Mildew
Downy mildew is a common problem in blackberries during cool, wet weather months. Downy mildew affects both the leaves and the fruit of the blackberry. Here are some top tips on how to protect and cure that nasty downy mildew:
- Remove any completely infected plants from the garden as they cannot be saved, and they will infect your other plants — We know, it’s heartbreaking!
- Remove all infected leaves from a plant that is not fully infected
- Thin out the garden to increase air circulation
- Spritz plant every 7-10 days with our Bio Fungicide to fight downy mildew on foliage and fruit
- For optimal results, continue using Bio Fungicide during regular watering cycle once disease has passed
Leaf Spots
Leaf spots are a common fungal leaf disease that affects both wild and cultivated strawberries throughout the world. Symptoms of leaf spots can occur on leaves, fruits, berry caps, petioles, and runners as small, brown spots on leaves with a white center. Here are some expert tricks on how to prevent leaf spots:
- Plant strawberries in full sunlight, in well-drained soils, and with proper spacing to optimize air circulation
- Avoid irrigating plants from overhead when they will not experience enough sunlight to dry the leaves, instead use a drip or soaker hose for watering your strawberries
- Spritz strawberries every 10-14 days with our Bio Protectant to boost plants' defenses and protect from leaf spots
Borers
If you're seeing just the tips of some of your raspberry canes wilting, you're probably dealing with the raspberry cane borer beetle. Raspberry cane borer insect is a small (1/2-inch), black long-horned beetle. It has yellow stripes on its wing covers and a yellow thorax with two black dots on it. Here are some tips on how to get rid of these pests and prevent pests from resurfacing:
- Keep an eye out for wilted tips on your plants as this will be the first indication that the pests have infiltrated your plant
- Prune back the damaged canes to a point at least 6 inches below where the wilting stops
- Destroy (don’t compost) any tips you’ve pruned out as the sections you’ve removed contains the troublesome larvae as well
- Spritz foliage and fruit with our Bio Insecticide every 7-10 days during the infestation and every 10-14 for general wellness
Root Rot
Root rot unfortunately happens to the best of us, especially common with blueberries in wet soils. No need to fear though, Arber is here to help you and your plants with top tips for root rot treatment:
- Remove the plant from the soil and break off the soil from the root ball
- Use sterilized scissors to trim away rotting roots
- Prune back the foliage at the same rate as you had to remove the roots. We know, it’s devastating!
- Spritz roots and soak soil with our Bio Fungicide
- Replant with A LOT of love
Want to know What’s Growing On with your plants? Send us your questions at support@growarber.com. For more gardening tips, follow along at @growarber. Together, we can grow a better world.