1. Saurbh Soni
Ph. D. Entomology 1st Year
Department of Entomology
CSK HPKV Palampur – 176062, H.P.
E-mail: saurbhsoni@gmail.com
Diseases and Pests of Leafy
Vegetables
2. Important leafy vegetables and their botanical
names
S. No. Common
Name
Scientific name Family
1 Amaranthus Amaranthus spp. Amaranthaceae
2 Spinach beet Beta vulgaris var.
bengalensis Roxb.
Chenopodiaceae
3 Spinach Spinacia oleracea Chenopodiaceae
4 Fenugreek Trigonella foenum Leguminosae
5 Indian Spinach Basella rubra var. alba Basellaceae
6 Portulaca Portulaca oleracea Portulacaceae
7 Drumstick Moringa oleifera Moringaceae
8 Curry leaf Murraya koenigii Rutaceae
9. Lettuce Lactuca sativa
4. Insect Pests
1. Aphids (Aphis spp.)
Symptoms: Minute insects
suck the sap from the
foliage resulting in twisting
of leaves
Control: Spray the crop
with Malathion (0.1%) or
methyl demeton (0.03%)
and harvest after 7 days.
5. Cont…
2. Leaf eating caterpillar
(Laphygma exigua)
Symptoms: Caterpillars
make holes in the leaves and
deteriorate the quality of
produce.
Control: Spray malathion
(0.1%). Leaves should not
be consumed before a week
of spray.
6. Cont…
3. Stink bugs (Nezara
viridula)
Symptoms: Bugs suck the
sap from leaves and stems
leading to vigor loss.
Control: Spray dimethoate
(0.03 %) or quinalphos
(0.05 %).
7. Cont…
4. Whitefly (Bemisia tabaci)
Symptoms: This pest sucks
the sap from plants and
causes loss in vigor.
Control: Spray neem oil
(0.5 %) or methyl demeton
(0.03 %).
8. Diseases
1. Damping off (Pythium spp.)
Symptoms: Fungus attacks
the plant just after
emergence. The affected
seedlings fall on the ground
and die.
Control: Provide good
drainage, seed treatment
with Captan or Thiram @
2g/ kg seed.
9. 2. Leaf spot diseases
(Cercospora beticola)
Symptoms: Small circular-
sub circular spots with grey
centers surrounded by red
margins appear on the
leaves.
Control: Spray Bavistin or
DM-45 @ 0.2 % at 15 days
interval starting from the
appearance of symptoms.
Cont…
10. 3. Downy mildew
(Peronospora spinaciae)
Symptoms: Grey brown
spots of mould appear on
the under surface of leaves.
Control: crop rotation,
removal of crop debris, seed
treatment with Captan or
Thiram @ 2 g/kg seed
before sowing or spray crop
with DM- 45 @ 0.2 %.
Cont…
11. 4. White rust (Albugo
occidentalis)
Symptoms: The appearance of
white blisters on the lower
surface of leaves and on the
upper surface opposite to
blister, the development of
yellow patches are the
characteristic symptoms.
Control: Crop rotation,
removal of weeds and spray of
Bordaeux mixture (1 %) or
Diathane M-45 (0.2 %).
Cont…
12. 5. Root rot (Rhizoctonia
solani)
Symptoms: Symptoms include
varying degrees of rotting of
the root leading to foliage
yellowing in 30-45 days old
plants. Affected plants wither
and dry up.
Control: Seed dressing with
carbendazim (0.1 %) or two
soil drenchings with 0.1 %
carbendazim.
Cont…
13. 6. Powdery mildew (Erysiphe
polygoni, Laveillula taurica)
Symptoms: Symptoms
include the appearance of
whitish fungal growth on
leaves.
Control: 2 Sprays of
sulphur (0.2 %) or
Karathane (0.05 %).
Cont…
14. 7. Rust (Uromyces anthyllidis)
Symptoms: Disease is
observed in the form of minute
brown pustules on both the
surfaces of leaves.
Control: Spraying the plants
with Benomyl, Mancozeb and
Maneb has been suggested as
the effective chemical control
measures.
Cont…
15. References
1. Textbook of Vegetables, Tuber crops and
Spices- S Thamburaj and Narendra Singh
2. Vegetable Crops Production Technology (Vol
II)- M.S. Fageria
