Guava wilt disease branch drooping drying soil borne fusarium nematode amrood diagnosis manage drainage
2 Answers
Branches wilting one side at a time, with leaves turning light, drooping and drying while the rest of the tree still looks alive, and slow decline over a season or two, point most likely to guava wilt. It is a soil-borne complex involving fungi such as Fusarium, often made worse by root damage, nematodes and waterlogging. It is hard to cure once a tree is well affected. Confirm with your KVK, since waterlogging or root damage alone can mimic it. Management is mainly about prevention and keeping trees healthy. Improve drainage, since waterlogging strongly favours wilt, and avoid injuring the roots and collar during intercultivation. Keep soil organic matter high and the tree well nourished, as healthy vigorous trees resist better, and your KVK may advise soil application of bio-control agents such as Trichoderma along with organic manure. Remove and destroy severely affected trees and avoid replanting guava immediately in the same spot. Use healthy planting material and tolerant rootstocks where available. There is no reliable spray cure, so rely on drainage, soil health and sanitation. Please get a field diagnosis before acting, as the steps are long-term.
Our wilt was worst in the low waterlogged part of the orchard. Better drainage and adding lots of farmyard manure with Trichoderma helped the healthy trees hold on.