Scab on a pear: photo, description and treatment

Some fruit trees suffer from scab. Diseased pears and apple trees become weak, and this, in turn, adversely affects the yield and quality of the fruit. The disease affects all parts of plants. Description of pear scab, methods of prevention and treatment will be presented below.

What is scab

The causative agent of the disease is a marsupial fungus that overwinters in fallen leaves. In spring, spores begin to ripen in the fruiting body. This process can take up to 2 months depending on the weather. Then, when the rains begin, the fruiting bodies are freed from spores, scattering them on all parts of the fruit tree. In warm and humid weather, the scab pathogen germinates quickly.

You can notice scab on a pear by the following signs:

• flaky skin;
• the presence of spots;
• ulcers and warts on the trunk, leaves, flowers and fruits.

Causes and provoking factors

Scab on a pear does not appear just like that, there are reasons for that:

1. Too wet soil. In spring time – after the snow melts, in summer – due to fogs of dew and rain.
2. Thickening of landings, due to which scab spores move to a new place.
3. Planting varieties with weak immunity.
4. Close proximity of cultures affected by the same disease.

Development and symptoms of scab damage

The scab strike first falls on the young shoots of the pear:

• the bark is covered with swellings;
• changes color to olive;
• peeling appears.

When the scab is firmly settled on the pear shoots, it activates its harmful activity on the foliage. The lower part of the plate is covered with olive spots with a coating resembling velvet. These are the plantations on which scab spores develop.

The development of spores leads to the death of foliage, the fruit tree weakens, as the water balance is disturbed. The pear will bear fruit poorly for 2 years.

In rainy weather, the scab quickly moves to flowers and ovaries: dark specks with spores of marsupial fungus are a signal. The ovaries are not able to pour, they fall off.

If the development of the disease occurred after fruit set, then the scab settles on them and strikes. Pears are covered with gray-black spots. With a strong infection, sore spots can merge together. Fruits affected by scab do not grow, become ugly and eventually fall off.

How to deal with scab on a pear

Experienced gardeners inspect fruit trees throughout the growing season. At the slightest sign, scabs begin to fight it. But the disease, as a rule, is easier to prevent than to deal with it. So prevention should come first.

How to get rid of scab on a pear in autumn

Since the spores of the marsupial fungus survive the winter well, the treatment of scab on pears should be started in the fall:

1. First, you need to rake fallen leaves under the trees. If there were problems in the summer, then it is better to burn the collected foliage, and not lay it in a compost pit. Otherwise, you can provoke the reproduction of scab spores in the spring.
2. After that, trunk circles and aisles in the garden are dug up.
3. On a sunny day, after all the foliage has flown around, you need to spray all parts of the fruit tree with a solution of urea. 50 g of mineral fertilizer is dissolved in a liter container with water.

Fighting scab on a pear tree in summer

During the summer, thin out the crown of the pear tree if the crown is thickened.

Bordeaux liquid is used to treat scab. Since the effect of the drug is short-term, only 2 weeks, the treatments should be carried out up to 7 times during the growing season.

The first time the prevention of fruit trees is planned before the blooming of flower buds. A bucket of water requires 300 g of copper sulfate and 350 g of lime.

The next spraying is performed after 14 days. A solution of Bordeaux liquid is made a little weaker than the first time: 10 liters of slaked lime and copper sulfate are taken per 100 liters of water.

It is not necessary to prepare Bordeaux liquid; one vitriol is also suitable. In this case, scab pears are sprayed after flowering: 5 g of the substance per bucket of water.

• 90% copper oxychloride;
• 80% “Polycarbocin”;
• “Polyhom”;
• colloidal sulfur.

Fruit trees are sprayed with any of these drugs 3 times:

• when the buds separate;
• at the time of tying the ovaries;
• in 14 days.

For the prevention and treatment of pear scab in the summer, you can use drugs that act systemically:

1. “Speed”. Treatment with this drug is carried out 2 times in 20 days. The first time, while the buds have not yet blossomed. Add 10 ml of the product to 2 liters of water.
2. “Strobe”. Not only marsupial fungus spores, but also powdery mildew die from processing. Pears with “Strobi” must be sprayed 3 times with an interval of 14 days. The drug is valid for 35 days. This is one of the tools that can be combined with fungicides.

For the treatment of pear scab, mineral fertilizers are often used. They are not only sprayed, but also fed fruit trees under the root. You can take any mineral fertilizer from the list:

• 10% solution of ammonium nitrate or ammonium;
• 3-10% solution of potassium chloride or potassium sulfate;
• potassium nitrate or potassium salt.

Preparations for scab on a pear

And now you need to find out what other means you can fight marsupial fungus on a pear. Experienced gardeners first use folk remedies, if they do not solve the problem, they move on to more drastic measures – chemicals.

Folk remedies

In recent years, gardeners are abandoning chemistry in their summer cottages in order to receive healthy, environmentally friendly products. After all, many components of chemicals are eaten into finished products, even if all treatments are performed strictly according to the instructions.

What folk remedies can be used to treat pears from scab:

1. Dry mustard. For a 10 liter bucket of warm water, 80 g of powder is needed. Dilute mustard in a small amount of water, grind well to remove lumps. Then pour the mass into a 10 l bucket. Pears are sprayed with this composition 3 times: during the budding period, after fruit set, when the flowers fall off, and at the time of pouring the pears.
2. Horsetail. Cut green grass, put in a bucket (1/3) and pour water. After insisting for 3 days, you can spray pears against scab. The work is planned for early spring, when the leaves just bloom.
3. Salt. A solution of this substance is used to treat fruit trees in early spring, while the buds have not yet blossomed. A 10 liter bucket will require 1 kg of salt.
4. Potassium permanganate. For 10 liters of water, 5 g of the drug is required. They process pears several times during the summer. The first spraying is when the leaves open. The second time – when the flowers fall and the ovaries begin to form. The third treatment is left at the time of fruit ripening.

Chemicals

There are a number of remedies that can be used to get rid of scab – broad-spectrum drugs:

1. “Polyram DF” – non-toxic granules for plants and insects.
2. Tridex is a complex granular product that allows you to get rid of scab on pears and other fruit trees. The fungicide does not pose a danger to insects. The content of manganese and zinc allows not only to process pears from scab, but also to feed fruit trees at the same time.
3. “Merpan” – is not addictive in the fungus. In addition, the drug can be used with other systemic agents.
4. “Horus” is an active agent of a wide spectrum. Spraying can be carried out in any weather, even in the rain, if the temperature is not lower than +10 degrees. This means is safe, so that the bees can safely continue their work of pollinating pears.

Treatments with these fungicides are alternated, carried out several times during the growing season. Dissolve funds in accordance with the instructions.

Preventive measures to combat scab on a pear

So that the pears are not struck by the marsupial fungus, it is not necessary to use chemicals. You need to follow some recommendations:

1. Choose the right site for planting pear trees. The pear tree likes a sunny and well-ventilated place. If several seedlings are planted, then a distance of at least 2,5 m is left between them.
2. Timely carry out sanitary and formative pruning of pears to avoid scab disease.
3. Proper collection of fruits will help save them from infection. Slightly unripe pears are removed from the trees. Those fruits that lie under the trees are not recommended to be collected and sent for storage. They are suitable for processing: cooking jam, compote, dried fruits.
4. In autumn, you need to carry out a general cleaning of the garden. Collect all leaves and burn. In this case, the fungi will not have a place to overwinter.
5. If scab has affected 1 pear or apple tree on the site, it is necessary to carry out preventive treatment of all fruit trees and shrubs that have low immunity to this disease.

Varieties resistant to disease

Breeders involved in breeding new varieties of pears are trying to get plants with good immunity to many fungal diseases, including scab.

Therefore, before buying seedlings, you need to give preference to varieties that are resistant to scab, for example:

• Bere Gardi;
• Etude;
• Trembita;
• Bere Ardanpon;
• Vizhnitsa;
• Bere Bosk.

Conclusion

Knowing the description of pear scab, gardeners can easily deal with the problem. It is only necessary not to forget about preventive measures. In the event of a disease on fruit trees, the fight must be started without delay, otherwise you can be left without a pear crop.