dying cucumbers

[regantheresa]

My cucumber plants were doing great and now dying. They are in a container with holes at bottom. They also have white on the leaves. I am in central Florida. HELP?

Thanks

Theresa

[imafan26]

Its mildew powdery most likely. All of my squash and cucumbers eventually succumb to it, but I still can get 20 or more good cucumbers from the plants before then. Squash, cucumber, and tomatoes need to be on a regular fungicide prevention program especially where we live as the air is humid most of the time. I spray within 3 days of rain. It is not so much the rain as the humidity from all the water vapor steaming up that promotes the fungal growth. It is much easier to prevent than to cure.

It helps to get a cultivar with some resistance to the diseases. I have grown Diva, Tasty green, General Lee, and Suyo. While not totally resistant, the vines live long enough to produce good fruit.

http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell. ... Table.html

[rainbowgardener]

Yup, bad case of powdery mildew fungus. As imafan noted it is easier to prevent than cure, especially when this advanced.

It is fostered by humid conditions, especially if air circulation is limited, so first prevention is just to give your plants plenty of room. After that, you can try spraying with some of the natural antifungals - milk diluted in water, baking soda solution, hydrogen peroxide. Only one at a time, but sometimes it helps to rotate them. You would need to reapply after any rain or every week or two anyway.

[regantheresa]

okay - so spray once a week with peroxide. how much do I spray? I also replanted. I took it out of the planter box and put it in the ground to give it more room. We'll see what happens!

Thanks for your help!

[Francis Barnswallow]

Fellow Floridian here. I had the same thing happen, not to mention all my cukes weren't pollinated properly and that resulted in tiny, curvy cukes that rotted where the blossoms were. SVB's and pickleworms then joined in the fun and destroyed half my cukes and cuke plants. Powdery mildew has been really bad for me this year. I just keep spraying Neem oil on the leaves and it helps, but not much. It's getting to be that time of year where I wait until late October to restart the garden again. As the heat and humidity rises, so does the number of diseases and pests that can destroy your garden.