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near Rochester, NY

For the second year in a row my green squash plant and fruit went down. Do these symptoms look familiar to anyone?

Yellow mottled leaves, tiny dots on leaves, sweating fruit, yellowing fruit, etc.

--> Please check out the pics under my diary from this year at http://www.bigpumpkins.com/Diary/DiaryView.asp?season=2020&grower=3475

10/11/2020 8:57:05 AM

Westmoreland, KS

So you probably had yellow vine disease or another disease doesn't really matter what matters is how you plan and how you try to prevent all diseases. First you need way more space for your plant if you want to grow a large pumpkin. At minimum a 20 foot by 20 foot area. 30 foot by 30 foot would be better. Second you have the pumpkin planted right by the edge of your area it is best to plant it in the middle to allow the roots to grow. 3rd you have what looks like hard soil you need to make that softer and try not to walk on it use walking boards.

10/16/2020 9:43:49 PM

Westmoreland, KS

Now as far as the disease is concerned maybe talk to a local college they can tell you about diseases in your area and when they first appear. They will also tell you about bugs and when they first appear bugs carry disease. So what you need to do is start spraying a couple of weeks before the bugs and disease come to prevent the disease from happening. If you wait until the disease is noticeable then you are too late you need to prevent not react.

10/16/2020 9:46:25 PM

Central NY

How much did you water w that soaker hose?

10/17/2020 8:28:28 AM

Western NY

Hi Rick - good to see you're still around.

It could be a couple different diseases, maybe something held over from a random bug that missed a spraying, or it could be some soil disease.

Let me know if you want to try some different seed.

10/17/2020 8:46:12 AM

near Rochester, NY

Yeah, by the time the pix were taken I realized the plant/fruit had a hopeless problem so I didn't bother watering or weeding, and I'd started walking a lot on that end of the garden to check on the oddly sweating fruit. Soil here is nice and loose and no clay (former orchard) if I don't walk on it. That's good advice to start spraying *before* the bugs come out. This year I indeed started spraying AFTER I saw (lots of!) cuke beetles. I've never seen fruit "sweat" like that. I'll see if I can find a person at Cornell to share this issue with.

10/22/2020 7:57:43 PM

near Rochester, NY

Hi, Andy! I see you nearly cracked 2,000 this year, *HOLY COW*!!!! I'm not sure I'll grow squash in 2021 in case this is something in the soil; it's 2 yrs in a row I've had the plant go down & thought I'd grow sunflowers or something totally different to give it a chance to go away. Unless I get a definitive answer from Cornell or somewhere that I'll be ok that is. :)

10/22/2020 7:58:29 PM