AVRDC International Cooperators'
Fact Sheet

Tomato Diseases


Leaf Mold
Fulvia fulva, formerly Cladosporium fulvum

Found in tropical and subtropical areas; greenhouses worldwide

symptoms on upper and lower leaf surfaces


     

Damage Symptoms

Symptoms begin on lower leaves. On the upper leaf surface, pale green spots appear that later turn yellow. On the lower leaf surface, an olive green growth occurs which consists of masses of conidia and conidiophores.

As lesions coalesce, foliage dries and drops. Green fruit occasionally develop a dark leathery lesion.

 

blighted lower foliage

Blighted lower foliage
     
Conditions for Development

High relative humidity and warm to high temperatures are required. The fungus survives on crop residues. Its conidia and sclerotia survive in the soil. Conidia are dispersed by rain or wind and can survive for one year.


Control

Remove and destroy infected crop residues. Provide good ventilation to reduce the relative humidity in greenhouses. Use fungicides. Resistant cultivars have been developed, but the pathogen continues to develop new races.
 
 


Last updated: 2001. 
Information from:
Vegetable Diseases: A Practical Guide. Lowell L. Black, AVRDC.
 

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