Diseases

Gray Mold of Garden Strawberry

Fragaria x ananassa Duchesne ex Rozier

The most dangerous fungal disease of garden strawberry caused by Botrytis cinerea. It is capable of destroying up to 94% of the yield, affecting all above-ground parts of the plant, but manifesting most intensely on ripening berries.

In the reference 160 varieties crop Garden strawberry, where this is mentioned in the description.

The pathogen is a facultative parasite, Botrytis cinerea, which overwinters as sclerotia and mycelium on plant debris and in the soil. The infection often penetrates the plant during the flowering phase through flower elements, transitioning into a latent form until the fruit reaches maturity.

Typical symptoms on berries include watery brown spots that expand rapidly and become covered with a dense ash-gray coating of sporulation. Affected tissues lose flavor, become bitter, and subsequently mummify. Infestation of peduncles and fruit stalks often leads to complete desiccation of the ovaries.

On leaves, the disease manifests as large, diffuse spots which, under humid conditions, are also covered with a gray coating. Specialized races of the pathogen for strawberries have not been identified, and cultivar resistance is considered a polygenic trait associated with the morphological characteristics of the fruits and peduncles.

General information about the subject — on the page Grey mold.

Sources8

Varieties of Garden strawberry mentioned in the description

Selection based on the description text, not on official evaluation: these data are absent from registers. For specific variety details, please refer to its profile.