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View Full Version : I hate sigatoka


Nicolas Naranja
07-23-2014, 08:26 AM
We have had perfect weather for it lately. And this is what it is like even with 34 different varieties.

http://i1182.photobucket.com/albums/x455/NicolasNaranja/20140723_080938_zpsc7b6dde4.jpg (http://s1182.photobucket.com/user/NicolasNaranja/media/20140723_080938_zpsc7b6dde4.jpg.html)

:2710:

from the sea
07-23-2014, 05:10 PM
man that sucks

siege2050
07-23-2014, 10:49 PM
Is sigatoka fatal?

PR-Giants
07-24-2014, 07:18 AM
Sigatoka is a serious problem, but can be mitigated by some basic maintenance and your weather reports.

Do not leave the leaves on the ground.

Prune infected leaves before it spreads.

It's best to prune before long rains.

Do not let infected leaves come in contact with other leaves.

Nicolas Naranja
07-24-2014, 08:26 AM
I have read numerous places that you should place cut leaves upside down. On the home farm, I'll take the leaves and put them into the burn pit. On the other farm there aren't really any options like that.


Sigatoka is a serious problem, but can be mitigated by some basic maintenance and your weather reports.

Do not leave the leaves on the ground.

Prune infected leaves before it spreads.

It's best to prune before long rains.

Do not let infected leaves come in contact with other leaves.

PR-Giants
07-26-2014, 10:59 AM
I have read numerous places that you should place cut leaves upside down.

Post a link, but that does not seem like a very good solution.

Simple cultural practices will be effective and you do not need chemical control unless you are exporting and need the extended green life.

Stay away from RP, DB, and others that are very susceptible.

When I prune a leaf, I remove the blades from the midrib.

It takes about an actual second to remove both blades and bag them using only your hands.

The midrib is the heavy bulky part of the leaf and it is left in the field.

The blades are fed to millipedes.


Tropical Research Center, University of Florida (http://www.apsnet.org/publications/apsnetfeatures/Pages/BlackSigatoka.aspx)

Black Sigatoka is caused by the ascomycete, Mycosphaerella fijiensis Morelet [anamorph: Paracercospora fijiensis (Morelet) Deighton] (a variant of the pathogen, M. fijiensis var. difformis, that was previously reported in tropical America, is no longer recognized). The pathogen produces conidia and ascospores, both of which are infective. They are formed under high moisture conditions, and are disseminated by wind, and in the case of conidia, also by rain and irrigation water. Due to their greater abundance and small size, ascospores are more important than conidia in spreading the disease within plants and plantations. In contrast, infected planting material and leaves, which are used often in the developing world as packing materials, are usually responsible for the long-distance spread of the disease. The recent outbreak of black Sigatoka in South Florida almost certainly resulted from the importation of infected germplasm by local growers

Nicolas Naranja
07-26-2014, 01:10 PM
Black Sigatoka continues to spread | Dominica News Online (http://dominicanewsonline.com/news/homepage/news/agriculture/black-sigatoka-continues-spread/)

This one says there is some scientific uncertainty
Deleafing | Promusa - Mobilizing banana science for sustainable livelihoods (http://www.promusa.org/Deleafing)


I think the guy I met from Fyffes is the one that told me about putting the leaves upside down.