Dirty Staff spoil PYO Crops

PICK-YOUR-OWN strawberry producers should make sure staff wash their jeans regularly to limit the spread of disease, an expert has advised.

Blackspot, a growing disease threat with no complete fungicide solution, can remain viable on denim jeans for up to five weeks, said Dr Angela Berrie of HRI (Horticulture Research International).

"Spore masses are sticky and slimy, aiding their spread," she said.

"Staff visiting fields should pay particular attention to hygiene and equipment should be clean and disinfected regularly."

The advice is part of good hygiene practice to keep blackspot out of PYO plots this summer.

"It is a disease of ripe fruit and can show no symptoms until harvest when, under warm wet favourable conditions, as much as 80% of fruit can be infected," she explained.

Weeds can also be a problem and should be dealt with pre-emergence, she advised.

There are many UK weed species that can symptomlessly be infected with the blackspot fungus.

Herbicides such as paraquat and glyphosate encourage the fungus to sporulate as it's displaced from the former weed host.

But a pre-emergence residual herbicide, such as Dacthal (chlorthal-dimethyl), provides good control of a broad spectrum of weeds from before they even emerge, right through the season.