What are the early signs of Verticillium infection?

The treatment of Verticillium wilt disease depends on catching the infections before the vascular damage becomes irreversible. The earliest symptoms could resemble drought stress, but signs of wilting will continue even after the plant receives water. I noticed the signs of one-sided wilting while diagnosing a client's Japanese maple tree. This is one of the sign indications of wilt most gardeners would miss at first.

Brown vascular streaks below the bark are indicative of infection. To check, cut stems diagonally with a knife; healthy plants yield creamy-white colored wood. A client observed faint brown lines throughout their eggplant crop a few weeks before wilting. The early observation allowed leftover plants to be isolated to save them.

Keep an eye out for stunted growth in your plants receiving sufficient water and nutrients. Verticillium causes the water to stop flowing, later starving the upper branches. I like to measure annual shoot growth, as a 30% decrease is often announced before visual symptoms appear. You can keep track by utilizing photographs and horticultural dated notes of the garden.

To prevent misdiagnosis, pests, and drought should be ruled out first. Spider mites cause similar yellowing, but they also leave weblike spiders. Soil moisture can be checked using probes - Verticillium symptoms can persist even when moisture levels reach 60%. If unsure, send plant tissue samples to diagnostic service labs. The sooner you catch climate issues, the better chance of rooting agroecosystem contamination and other biotic contaminants in the soil.

Read the full article: Verticillium Wilt Treatment: Complete Management Guide