Common crops affected
- Tomatoes
Why it matters
Septoria defoliates tomatoes from the lower canopy up in warm wet weather, exposing fruit to sunscald.
When it appears
Preventively as warm wet conditions arrive and at first lower-leaf spots.
How to identify it
- Numerous small (2-5 mm) circular spots with pale tan/grey centres and darker margins.
- Tiny black pycnidia (fruiting bodies) speckling the spot centres — diagnostic under a hand lens.
- Lower, older leaves affected first, yellowing and dropping as the disease moves upward.
How to manage it
- Apply Spore Control preventively with thorough lower-canopy coverage;
- combine with airflow, drip irrigation and sanitation.
- Monitor early, treat at the right window above, and use cultural measures (sanitation, airflow/drainage or resistance/rotation as relevant).
Recommended Vegalab program
| Role | Product | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Primary control | Spore Control | Apply Spore Control preventively with thorough lower-canopy coverage; |
Integrated management. This is a bacterial / no-cure or indirect problem — Vegalab products play a supporting role in an integrated program (plant health, prevention, protection) and are not a cure. Combine with sanitation, clean material, rotation and cultural controls.
Product claims, rates, and availability vary by jurisdiction; always follow the applicable label.