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How to Identify, Control, and Treat Anthracnose

Fungal anthracnose attacks these young grapevine leaves.

Photo Credit
Photo by CSIRO ScienceImage via Wikimedia Commons

Prevent This Fungal Disease in Your Garden

Written By: Catherine Boeckmann Executive Digital Editor and Master Gardener

Anthracnose is a fungal disease that affects many plants, including vegetables, fruits, and trees. It causes dark, sunken lesions on leaves, stems, flowers, and fruits. It also attacks developing shoots and expanding leaves. It can spread very quickly during rainy seasons. Learn how to treat plants affected by anthracnose and how to prevent it.

What is Anthracnose? 

Anthracnose is a general term for a variety of diseases that affect plants in similar ways. Anthracnose is especially known for the damage that it can cause to trees. Anthracnose is caused by a fungus, and among vegetables, it attacks cucurbits.

Anthracnose can survive on infected plant debris and is very easily spread. Like rust, it thrives under moist and warm conditions and is often spread by watering.

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Identification

How to Identify Anthracnose

  • On leaves, anthracnose generally appears first as small, irregular yellow or brown spots. These spots darken as they age and may also expand, covering the leaves.
  • On vegetables, it can affect any part of the plant.
  • On fruits, it produces small, dark, sunken spots, which may spread. In moist weather, pinkish spore masses form in the center of these spots. Eventually, the fruits will rot.
  • On trees, it can kill the tips of young twigs. It also attacks the young leaves, which develop brown spots and patches. It can also cause defoliation of the tree.
anthracnose-identification-disease.jpg
Anthracnose can affect many plants with its brown spots, including this cucumber leaf.
Photo Credit: Rutgers University. 

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Control and Prevention

How to Control Anthracnose

  • Remove and destroy any infected plants in your garden. For trees, prune out the dead wood and destroy the infected leaves.
  • You can try spraying your plants with a copper-based fungicide, though be careful because copper can build up to toxic levels in the soil for earthworms and microbes. For trees, try a dormant spray of bordeaux mix.

Prevent Anthracnose

  • Plant resistant plants, or buy healthy transplants.
  • Plant your plants in well-drained soil. You can also enrich the soil with compost to help plants resist diseases.
  • Water your plants with a drip sprinkler, as opposed to an overhead sprinkler. Don’t touch the plants when they are wet.
  • Keep ripening fruits from touching the soil.
  • Remember to rotate your plants every 2 to 3 years.

Plant Disease
About The Author
Catherine Boeckmann

Catherine Boeckmann

Executive Digital Editor and Master Gardener

Catherine Boeckmann is the Executive Digital Editor of Almanac.com, the website companion of The Old Farmer's Almanac. She covers gardening, plants, pest control, soil composition, seasonal and moon c...
Read More from Catherine Boeckmann

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Comments

<span>Debra Nelsen</span> Tue, 11/18/2014 - 02:24
I have white flies again. I turned on those undercounter lites up bright 24/7 and my house plants were growing so good until bingo,clay pots have that white stuff on them. What im concerned about is the white balls in soil and when i look at roots they have a sm. version that are grainey like . Do these hurt anything ? It seems to be sucking the roots more than leaves. There is also a lite brown coating that covrrs the stems . last time i us a general pesticide w/ o success. Then months later used a sour milk ,butter milk& flour mixture .That did the trick.I have moved since then but i think i brought them in from outside. Saw a few sm bug like flies in a plant i started from bulbs. Im worried about the soil. Has anyone else noticed this ???.Maybe i have a different bug ? I've had plants for 30+ yrs & only ever had was mealy bugs (that cotton stuff when i lived in Houston Tx. Very humid there . If anyone has an answer please help me. I have physical disability .This is really exhausting. I love my plants !!TY
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Tue, 11/18/2014 - 11:51

Hi Debra,

It's hard to tell what pest you have. It could be mealy bugs. The brown "coating" on the stems may be scale insects. We suggest that you spray the soil and plants with insecticidal soap or horticultural oil. Repeat two to three times. If this doesn't help replace the potting soil with new fresh soil.

www.almanac.com/topics/gardening/pests-and-problems?page=1

To see more information about white flies go to http://www.almanac.com/content/whiteflies

 

 <span>Martin Maughan</span> Mon, 03/24/2014 - 06:54
all my vegetables are coming up now,and here come the pests.my garden bean leaves are slowly getting munched,looks to me to be some sort of tiny fly.and the ants seem to have a path straight across my garden.north to south.tried the ecco friendly home defense,states its plant oils,but 98% other ingredients-not named.well it deters ants for the day,but always a new group comes through.they are different species day by day.they do not seem to be hassling the plants(cucumbers,tomato,bellpeper,lettuce,corn, and cilantro)the soil here in az is terrible,but I mixed with sand,and fertalizer.all my plants are up now from seed.marigolds is the only flower i planted and they are just starting,as i was told most pests do not come around,due to smell I assume.well enjoy everyone-may you all have a bountiful year.
<span>Rosangela De Azevedo</span> Mon, 07/01/2013 - 14:00
Any ideas on how to get rid of slugs? I an trying to get rid of them and I cannot have big expenses on it.
<span>Lyverne Miller</span> Mon, 06/29/2015 - 08:04
Ammonia will kill slugs and not hurt the plants. I believe the mix is 1 part to 6 water.
<span>Sher</span> Thu, 10/31/2013 - 01:34
Hi Rosangela, They don't like beer so if you put a container close to where your endangered plants are, they will be drawn to it, crawl in and drown (but what a way to go!). Also, they don't like copper at all and you can either put copper wire around your plants in a circle or I've seen copper tape at home and garden stores that does the same thing. Both of these ways are preferable to using strong chemicals and both work well but you will need to replenish the beer periodically. You could also try a big line of salt around your plants but this is rather unsightly and will need constant tending, especially in damp or wet weather. Good luck!
<span>Nancy Gasser</span> Wed, 08/28/2013 - 21:08
I just started using cornmeal the snails and slugs just love it. Place the cornmeal 2TBS into a glass jar laying on it's side and wait. We have eliminated both in our yard.
<span>Walter Kinser</span> Sat, 07/06/2013 - 10:10
they hate sand ,,,,,,put it around your plants kinserpumkinpatch@yahoo.com
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Tue, 07/02/2013 - 14:18
See our slug page for ideas--many are inexpensive solutions: http://www.almanac.com/content/slugs
<span>Brrenda Manning</span> Tue, 06/18/2013 - 09:35
I have had very good results using grits to get rid of fire ants. Just sprinkle the dry grits on the hills and the ants will eat them. When they take a drink of water the grits swell and burst the ants. The ants are usually gone by the next morning.