Courgette problem

[Muddypause]

Can anybody suggest what is causing this problem with my cougettes, please? At the moment it's only affecting a few leaves, but seems to be spreading to the nearby parsnips.



Someone suggested it might be simple under watering, which I suppose might be possible given the hot weather we've been having lately - though I haven't been stinting with the watering can.

[Wombat]

Dunno, mate, sorry....

Have you checked under the leaves with a magnifying glass for small bugs?

Nev

[Andy Hamilton]

Have you fed them much mate? Could it be that?

It might just be the sun although those brown patches, are they all over the plants too?

[Camile]

Good morning,

Doesn't look like underwatering to me as the leaves are standing right up.

Are their any courgettes growing on it ? and do they show the same symptoms ?

On my plant .. the first couple of courgettes always turns yellowish and falls of while they are still very small .. and after that they grow like mad ..

But no idea why ..
Camile

[Millymollymandy]

My rhubarb leaves go a bit like that and it looks like a kind of rust. But I don't know that courgettes or parsnips can get that - I'm only aware of the allium family getting rust.

I usually have leaves on lots of things (like tomatoes and pumpkins) that get that light green mottled look, but without the rusty look as well.

[Shirley]

My first thought was cucumber mosaic but that wouldn't explain the brown bits... were they wilted at any stage?? Maybe drought symptoms but the plants have now recovered?? Anyone been spraying anything nearby?? What are the courgettes like??

[Muddypause]

I think Nev might be onto it. There is some tiny tiny mite or something on the underside of the leaves. Dust particle-sized. This is the best magnification I could get with my camera:



The plants are still cropping far more than I can deal with (I'm finding it hard to get excited about another meal with courgettes in it, just now), and it's not affecting the whole plant by any means.

More concerning is what I found on the underside of the parsnip leaves, which seems to be a different type of mite, and seems to be swiftly killing off the green stuff. This is a worry, because these plants may have to be in the ground for another six months yet. This pic is similarly magnified:



Any ideas about this one?

[Andy Hamilton]

could it be Pseudomonas marginalis? Parsnip blight?