sick courgette

I went away for a week and when I came back my best courgette plant was looking all yellow and sickly (i'll try and post a pic later). It had been watered while I was away so I thought it needed a feed but that didn't help. Now it seems to have stopped producing corgettes, all the tiny flower heads are shriveling/rotting at about 1.5cm.

Someone who came round and saw it said it was a virus. It was grown in a pot in new compost so no idea how it got sick. Is that the end of the plant? Should I bin it incase it affects the other plants?

 

If it is a virus then don't compost it, take it directly to the bin. I'm guessing as it's in a pot rather than the ground it won't affect other plants unless it comes into contact with them, but if you do your own compost and you put a virus ridden plant in it then that could be a problem in the future.

Difficult to know what could be wrong without the photo - actually difficult with it unless you know a lot more than I do, but I've got a book somewhere that might help if I can see a pic?

 

Thanks for your tip about not composting Deserter - that's definitely saved me messing up future years crops!

I still haven't got round to taking a photo but I will ASAP.

The plant seems to have come back to life a bit this week and has developed some larger flowers so maybe all is not lost.

 

You didn't entrust the watering to some teenage offspring or something did you? "Yes Mum/Dad, I did water the courgettes just like you said..."

 

he he he I left it to my sister who should be well qualified as she went to horticultural college! Maybe she's trying to sabotage my crops though.

 

pics:





the plant has party answered my question for me by producing a courgette for my dinner

 

Looks a bit like a virus to me I'm afraid. :(
Top pic that is.

 

hi sparkle,fine silky webbing over the leaves and stems?the foilage appears speckled and bleached.Red Spider Mite.the tiny mites can be found on the underside.growth is retarded and the shoots are thin and weak.the mites are GREEN in summer and RED in winter.spray with derris or malathion at the first signs. maintain a damp atmosphere in the greenhouse.

 

I have not seen any evidence of red spider mite. I sprayed with fatty acids when I first noticed the problem because I thought maybe it was whitefly (had problems with them when the plants were young). So that may have killed them off if there were any but the leaves continued yellowing.

I should have added that it's growing outside.

 

oh,....maybe vericillium wilt?tell tale signs are brown streakes inside the stem tissue.young plants in cold wet conditions are most susceptible. lower leaves turn yellow then it moves upwards.mulch around the stem so new roots can form.i know you probably wont want to do this but if you cut open the lower stem the signs of wilt are there.brown streaks run through the stem tissue. :(

 

My courgettes have always had leaves like that and I have never had a problem with the tasty courgettes I get off my plants.

 

I think leaf no 2 looks fine, its no 1 that looks like a virus to me.
Although it is early in the season, its spread by aphids. When it gets bad the fruits are deformed.

 

this sounds very likely actually, the lower leaves have all but died off and the ones higher up and starting to turn yellow and there are brown streaks on the stems. Is it a fungal disease?