Any changes in the appearance of plants are signals of problems. If the cabbage begins to turn yellow, is it dangerous, what can be done about it. This is not an idle question, because there are many reasons for this phenomenon. Some vegetable diseases are too dangerous to ignore. If cabbage leaves turn yellow, you should take immediate action. First of all, you need to find out why the cabbage leaves turn yellow, what the plant lacks. If the cause is a disease, what to do and is it possible to save the crop?
Adverse environmental conditions
The plant reacts sensitively to any disturbances during the growth process.The question of why cabbage leaves turn yellow often arises. The cause may be either a lack of nutrition or a serious fungal disease.
When a cabbage leaf turns yellow and withers, this may indicate the influence of the following factors.
- Lack of nitrogen in the soil. Depletion may be due to a violation of crop rotation, when the soil was cultivated by the same crop. If you cultivate cabbage for a long time in one area, the soil will become poor and subsequent plantings will degrade, during which the crop may simply dry out. Elevated temperatures or if there is not enough light in the beds can lead to similar consequences.
- Unsuitable soil type. Not all types of soil are suitable for growing cabbage. For example, when trying to cultivate on sandstone, the plant will sprout, but the shoots quickly become sick and weak. The leaves wither, turn yellow and fall off.
- Insufficient watering leads to drying and death of the roots. The leaves begin to turn yellow, the plant gradually weakens and dies. If the summer is hot and the sun beats down mercilessly, plants may also begin to turn an unhealthy yellow color.
- Excessive watering is also harmful to the plant. The roots begin to rot, microelements from the soil cease to flow into the leaves. The edges of the leaves turn yellow and begin to curl and then dry out.
Any of the above factors causes partial loss of cabbage yield. Measures to improve soil health and change the irrigation regime must be carried out as quickly as possible. After discovering the fact of yellowing of the leaves, you need to use all means so that the crop has time to recover and produce a harvest before the onset of winter.
Important! To prevent fungal diseases, crop rotation should be observed, returning plants of the same type to their original planting site no earlier than after three years.
The influence of viruses and pests
In addition to the external environment, yellowing of leaves is also affected by microorganisms and pests. The most common reasons are the following.
- Fusarium wilt through roots or jaundice. The fungus enters the plant's vascular system and clogs it, causing wilting. Green leaves begin to turn yellow and fall off. It begins to appear through yellow spots between the veins, then the lower leaves turn yellow and the plant begins to die. Brown spots of fungus are visible on the cut of the shoot. The established heads of cabbage are small and irregular in shape.
- Downy mildew or powdery mildew. It is a parasitic fungus. It appears through yellow spots on the leaves. On the reverse side, the leaves turn white due to the formation of a fungal coating. Plant growth slows down, then the leaves turn pale and gradually die.
- Pests eat the roots, limiting the plant’s access to microelements from the soil. Parts of the plant begin to dry out and growth stops. Such parasites include the cutworm, the mole cricket, and the cockchafer. The presence of pests is one of the reasons why cabbage seedlings turn yellow.
Due to the infestation of crops by pests or infection, changes appear on the shoots; cabbage leaves turn yellow. Often after treatment, plants continue their normal growth in the garden and produce a harvest. But it is necessary to take it seriously and promptly monitor for signs of the disease when yellowness appears on the plants.
Important! To obtain a guaranteed harvest, you should plant hybrid varieties that are immune to common diseases of cruciferous plants.
How to cure cabbage from yellowing
If the leaves turn yellow and limp, this is a serious problem.The plant is giving you a signal that its life processes are under threat. It is important to identify the causes and deal with them using the right methods. The following steps need to be taken.
- First you need to carefully examine the soil and cabbage for uncharacteristic deviations. To more accurately determine the cause of the disease, remove one of the plants from the soil, pay special attention to the condition of its roots and examine the edge of the leaf. Check the temperature conditions, observe whether the plants are illuminated by the sun.
- Cabbage turns yellow if there are signs of depleted soil, or if crop rotation rules have not been followed. In this case, you need to add chicken manure. It contains nitrogen and microelements important for cruciferous vegetables. After enriching the soil, the cabbage, whose leaves turn yellow and dry, begins to produce fresh green shoots.
- If the soil dries out, you need to arrange regular watering. If the soil is oversaturated with moisture, it is necessary, on the contrary, to limit watering and ensure regular loosening so that the soil dries out faster.
- Against fungal diseases kale, such as powdery mildew, you need to use the drugs Phytophtorin and Ridomil Gold. A less aggressive method is suitable for other infections; you can water the crops with a 1% solution of Bordeaux mixture.
- If pests are present, plants must be treated with systemic fungicides. The drugs Benomil, Tecto, Topsin-M are suitable for this purpose. It may also be helpful to sprinkle yellow leaves with ash or charcoal to prevent further pest attacks.
Following the above tips will help you quickly solve the problem of yellowing leaves and preserve your harvest.
Recommendations
In order to prevent crop loss in the future, you need to follow the following popular recommendations when cultivating cabbage.
- Do not plant diseased seedlings to avoid contaminating the soil. Remove yellowed plant debris from the soil, as the fungus can remain viable in the soil for several years.
- Treat the soil with lime at the rate of 1 kg per 4 square meters. m to enrich its composition.
- Regulate soil moisture. Do not let the soil dry out and do not allow the soil to become waterlogged. Try not to water the plants with cold water, which can cause re-infection with fungal infections. Green cabbage requires using mostly warm water for watering.
- Regularly disinfect the soil and planting material residues to prevent re-infection or proliferation of pests and the appearance of yellow-green shoots.
- Maintain crop rotation, do not plant cabbage in the same beds in the garden. It is better to plant the crop after cucumbers, potatoes, and beans.
Following these tips will allow you to effectively fight infection and harvest a good cabbage harvest in the future.
