Fruit FungicidesKate Downes2024-03-19T16:55:49+01:00
FRUIT FUNGICIDES
CERTIS BELCHIM FUNGICIDES. RESET YOUR THINKING
Certis Belchim fungicides enable you to switch your approach to disease control to one that advisors and growers increasingly accept is vital to ensure that crop production stays sustainable:
Lead programmes with non-SDHIs and keep your limited applications of SDHIs in reserve.
With Certis Belchim conventional and biorational products, you’ll tackle key fruit diseases including powdery mildew, Botrytis, apple scab and other surface pathogens right now.
You’ll rebalance your IPM efforts, ensure long-term resistance management and continue to deliver maximum marketable yield.
Cosine is the non-SDHI fungicide for early use on primary powdery mildew in apples and pears – when spores have overwintered in the buds. Effective control helps prevent disease spread and new infections in neighbouring plants.
At the same time, Cosine supports your IPM efforts with low impact on beneficials, and has a convenient 14-day PHI.
Works in two ways
You’ll discover that Cosine provides excellent curative action and lasting protection:
It acts on the plant with both penetrant and translaminar movement. Vapour phase activity ensures best results against secondary powdery mildew, usually from green cluster to July.
It acts on the fungus as a protectant and a curative.
Aerial conidia three hours after Cosine application
Mode of action
Cosine is invaluable as part of your resistance management strategy. Its active substance, cyflufenamid, gives you extra application options. It’s in the amidoxime chemical group (FRAC U6) and has no known cross-resistance with any chemical classes used against powdery mildew.
You’ll benefit from multi-stage disease control. Cyflufenamid is effective against the formation of haustoria, colonisation of plant tissue, growth of mycelium and the formation of conidiospores.
Proof
Trials show that Cosine gives excellent control of powdery mildew at key growth stages.
Easy tank-mixing
Cosine is flexible: you can mix it with Karma and a wide range of fungicides and insecticides in the table. It’s the strongest non-SDHI for top fruit and can be mixed with apple scab-only products such as Delan Pro.
To aid tank-mixing, Cosine is rain-fast after just one hour and stable at pH 4-7 (DT50 -288d pH9).
How Cosine and Karma work with secondary powdery mildew
Secondary powdery mildew on apple leaves, average severity on last 5 leaves. Var. GalaxyGala.
When to apply
Use from early green cluster to end of new growth, with two applications permitted each season. Curative vapour activity against secondary powdery mildew is best achieved at above 25°C. Your advisor will confirm what is appropriate.
BBCH 00
BBCH 07
BBCH 10
BBCH 39
BBCH 57
BBCH 65
BBCH 69
BBCH 71
BBCH 74
BBCH 79
Dormant
Bud burst
Mouse Ear
Green Cluster
Pink Bud
Flowering
Petal Fall
Early Fruit
Fruitlet
Harvest
Why Karma for top fruit and vines
Use Karma biorational fungicide for contact control of apple scab (Venturia inaequalis) and Botrytis cinerea in vines (EAMU 2016 1327).
Karma is ideal for ICM systems. It’s based on an approved food additive (potassium hydrogen carbonate), so there are no residues or MRLs, and just a one-day PHI.
Mode of action
Karma enhances resistance management through multi-stage activity.
It inhibits mycelial growth and causes total collapse of spores by dehydration, pH and specific bicarbonate/carbonate ion effects. What’s more, it helps prevent infection by disrupting the release of hydrolytic enzymes used by fungi to infect plants.
In addition, powerful built-in surfactants (wetters and stickers) promote efficacy, coverage and rain-fastness.
Untreated powdery mildew mycelium
Treated powdery mildew mycelium
Proof
Trials show that Karma is effective against both leaf and fruit scab.
When to apply
For best results apply preventatively at key times. Do not use during the flowering period, on fruit smaller than 10 mm or in the last five weeks before harvest. Applying when leaves are wet can maximise Karma’s efficacy. Your advisor will confirm what is appropriate.
Frupica will help prevent Botrytis in your outdoor and protected strawberries. But it does more than that. It’s the only fungicide in FRAC 9 to offer moderate powdery mildew control, giving you an additional resistance management option.
You’ll find using Frupica very flexible. It’s highly IPM compatible with low impact on beneficials and no flower damage. Five-day residual activity makes application manageable close to harvest.
Frupica will benefit your beneficials – IOBC Standard Classification (1-Harmless. 2-Slightly Harmful. 3-Moderately Harmful. 4-Harmful.)
Mode of action
Frupica’s active, mepanipyrim, is an anilinopyrimidine that works in contact with the plant. Its MoA reduces mycelium growth and sporulation of conidia.
This is achieved by preventing and disturbing the formation of haustoria and inhibiting:
Amino acid (methionine)
Production of hydrolytic enzymes (pectinase)
Transport of nutrients from plant to fungus
How Frupica prevents development of Botrytis and powdery mildew
Proof
Studies show the efficacy of Frupica in strawberry waiting beds (Rijsbergen 2009) – so you know you can rely on it.
Number of spots per 75 leaves
In-field results. Left – Untreated. Right – Frupica 0.9l/ha and Majestik 5l/ha
When to apply
For ever-bearers, apply at or before flowering to prevent diseased petals becoming colonised, and in September/October. For June bearers and outdoor crops, apply once . Your advisor will confirm what is appropriate.
Why Takumi
With an EAMU for strawberries (2055/2016), Takumi non-SDHI fungicide offers parallel powdery mildew protection to Cosine in top fruit, yet with an even shorter PHI – just three days. It’s adaptable: you’ll gain preventive or curative activity depending on pathogen pressure and the concentration used.
Takumi is crop-safe, with phytotoxic effects unlikely. The SC formulation is kind to strawberries and Takumi is proven on varieties including Buddy, Elsanta, Sweet Heart, Cambridge Favorite and Malling Centenary.
Takumi is also kind to your beneficials, helping preserve them. Its low impact makes the product highly IPM compatible.
You’ll discover that Takumi is easy to use. It’s rain-fast in one hour, stable at pH 4-7 (DT50 -288d pH9) and provides activity against further foliar diseases.
Takumi will benefit your beneficials – IOBC Standard Classification (1-Harmless. 2-Slightly Harmful. 3-Moderately Harmful. 4-Harmful.)
Mode of action
As with Cosine, Takumi acts on the plant and the fungus to protect against and cure powdery mildew. Penetrant and translaminar with vapour activity at higher temperatures, the multi-stage MoA helps supports resistance management.
The active, cyflufenamid, is in the amidoxime chemical group (FRAC U6) giving greater flexibility. And you can alternate or combine Takumi with products that use different modes of action, such as Karma.
Proof
Why Karma for soft fruit
Use Karma biorational fungicide to control powdery mildew and Botrytis in strawberries via its EAMU (0901/2015).
A contact eradicant, Karma is ideal for ICM systems and has just a one-day PHI. It’s based on potassium hydrogen carbonate (an approved food additive), so there are no residues or MRLs to worry about.
Mode of action
Karma enhances resistance management through multi-stage activity.
It inhibits mycelial growth and causes total collapse of spores. What’s more, it helps prevent infection by disrupting the release of hydrolytic enzymes used by fungi to infect plants.
In addition, powerful built-in surfactants promote efficacy, coverage and rain-fastness.
Untreated powdery mildew mycelium
Treated powdery mildew mycelium
Proof
Trials show how effective Karma is against powdery mildew and Botrytis.
When to apply
For best results apply preventatively. Do not use during flowering, on fruit smaller than 10 mm or in the last five weeks before harvest. Applying when leaves are wet can maximise Karma’s efficacy. Your advisor will confirm what is appropriate
Why Amylo-X
Amylo-X gives you a further biorational route to prevent Botrytis and powdery mildew. It’s based on a naturally-occurring bacterium, and so can be used on a wide range of permanently protected soft fruit crops, particularly strawberries.
Mode of action
Amylo-X contains Bacillus amyloliquefaciens subsp. plantarum strain D747. This offers a unique MoA that produces anti-fungal compounds, competes with the pathogen for space and prevents spore germination. As a result, it’s ideal for alternation with other Botrytis and powdery mildew products.
Proof
In trials, Amylo-X showed strong performance against Botrytis.
When to apply
Use Amylo-X early in the crop life-cycle. You can make six applications per crop with seven days between each. Your advisor will confirm what is appropriate.
Tom Deards is farm manager at Windmill Hill Fruits, owned by AJ & CI Snell, which produces high-quality berries on 450 acres of Hereford countryside. He does his own agronomy, with distributor assistance.
“Growers are facing even greater loss of pesticides. Customers frequently mention a reduction in the number of active substances they will allow to be detected in our fruit. This varies across customers of course but, together with timely applications, the bio-fungicide route is becoming more important than ever.
I’m seeing more growers and agronomists shifting to the view that non-SDHIs are the start point, rather than the other way round. They’re increasingly embracing the principle of limiting SDHI use and saving the chemistry for if and when it’s needed. Last year, in 2022, this model gave us great results.
We look at crop quality above all as integral to our strongly IPM-based approach. Here, Certis Belchim’s non-SDHI portfolio is absolutely super and enables us to stay on top of disease, preventively and curatively. We use Frupica SC and Takumi SC as part of our product mix for powdery mildew and Botrytis. Their short harvest intervals help with our increased use of everbearers.
Temperature and humidity can create the perfect storm for powdery mildew in polytunnels. You have to expect the worst and follow best practice, especially with residue management.
This means starting with cultural control (we remove the soft, young tissue from runners as this attracts powdery mildew as much as the fruit), hygiene and the right balance of fertilisers. Climate control is key: we use temperature and humidity loggers to assess risk during busy periods.”
A FRAC 9 preventative fungicide for controlling Botrytis and powdery mildew in strawberries. Contact MoA with five-day residual activity. Ideal for season-long use in everbearers, but also valuable early in 60-day varieties.
Matt Greep
One of Agrii’s youngest fruit agronomists, Matt Greep advises growers in the West Midlands and the South on top and soft fruit.
“Our increasingly unpredictable weather means that the old days of putting on 14-day PHI chemistry with long persistence and thinking ‘that’s it’ are gone. Plenty of SDHIs are available, of course, but life’s no longer easy, as only a maximum four applications are usually possible per season.
It’s time to avoid reliance on SDHIs and switch disease-control planning to non-SDHIs, including biologicals (or biorationals). Here, the Certis Belchim portfolio deals with most needs.
There are three key reasons why changing focus makes sense:
1. Climate change and demand:the clamour for produce to be on tap for longer has led to growing more produce under protected cover. This forces plants to develop early and continue cropping much later. While polytunnels help plants flourish, they provide ideal conditions for disease. High humidity leads to earlier Botrytis, for example; with more moisture on the crop, there are more sites in which disease can breed. Increased labour costs put higher pressure on fast planting which can sometimes lead to broken plant material at transplanting. This can be an initial infection point for early-season Botrytis.
2. The pressure for more actives: since growers have to maintain plant health against acute diseases for lengthy seasons, they can easily run out of actives. Consequently, growers have to consider all their options. Certis Belchim’s Amylo-X and Karma can help lengthen programmes, with zero- or one-day PHIs and the ability to make six or eight applications.
3. Greater flexibility: often, growers don’t appreciate all the advantages of using Certis Belchim non-SDHIs. Karma, for instance, can give a week’s protection from early in the season with just one application, making it more than a one-day PHI back-end treatment. As tunnels frequently stay humid overnight and are ventilated in the morning, the crystals in Karma are wet, dry out, then re-wet: this re-activates them repeatedly until spent.”
A preventative biorational that produces anti-fungal compounds to inhibit spore germination. Works by colonising leaves, roots and other plant surfaces. Activated by the plant’s natural defences, enhancing resistance and tolerance. For best control, apply before infection with good coverage.
Richard Killian
Richard Killian, Fruit Agronomist and Technical Coordinator, Agrii
“With the challenging environmental and commercial pressures fruit farmers face, building a robust programme to protect crops throughout the growing season is key to delivering high quality produce for consumers. To protect chemistry and prevent resistance developing, it’s important to break up the limit of 3 SDHI applications (or 4 in extended programmes of over 11 applications), and rotate FRAC groups to utilise non-SDHI chemistry.
Whilst UK growing conditions can be excellent for fruit production, they can also create a challenging environment for disease control in both top and soft fruit crops. The Certis Belchim portfolio offers a strong range of non-SDHI fungicide options registered for a range of fruit crops, delivering a range of useful non-SDHI options to fruit farmers, facilitating the delivery of high quality fruit for consumers.”
Alex Radu
Alex Radu, Technical Manager, Agrovista Fruit
“Primary powdery mildew is a problem as soon as temperatures pick up because sporulation accelerates at the same time as growth of new plant tissue develops more rapidly. While older leaves with thicker waxy cuticle are more resistant to new infections, new developing tissue is very susceptible.
Cosine has curative activity on both primary and secondary mildew – it reduces sporulation and also protects new tissue. This, in turn, helps reduce the risk of secondary powdery mildew infections.
As powdery mildew forecasting models estimate infection risk based on available weather data, such as temperature and moisture levels that drive sporulation, they are valuable tools to make best use of products like Cosine. When temperatures rise to approximately 25˚C, Cosine gives really good control through its vapour activity.
Growers have a good choice of SDHIs but, in order to preserve their efficacy, we should not make more than four applications in a growing season (as per FRAC guidelines). Therefore the use of non-SDHIs has to form an important part of any fungicide plan and Cosine plays a key role in that.”
Andy Taylor, Hutchinsons Horticultural Team.
“We all want a crop that’s clean and tidy at the start of the season, with no powdery mildew carry-over. But you can’t see disease, and our warmer, drier springs exacerbate the rapid growth of powdery mildew spores. Firefighting is therefore not an option – you have to control powdery mildew all the time.
As temperatures rise – and spores increase – fungicides such as Amylo-X type work best. Such conducive conditions mean they can out-compete disease pathogens and are really effective.
Having long depended on conventional chemistry to give us a balance of eradicant and curative protection, many of us were sceptical about new biorational products. But we like looking at new things and needed to move away from conventionals. So we tried them, cautiously at first, and over three years of trialling found they could hold out powdery mildew very nicely.
Of course, extreme disease pressures will mean conventional SDHIs still have a role, but when the conditions and applications are right, products like Amylo-X do a good job.”
Simon Warren
Simon Warren is a ‘career’ fruit agronomist at Agrovista. He provides a wealth of experience in soft fruit and covers the south of England from his Kent base.
“SDHIs do have limitations – we accept that.
Our method is to build programmes around a seven-day regime, with more persistent chemicals early on. We prefer to use non-SDHIs initially in a protectant role and alternate with SDHIs to prevent resistance.
We factor in three SDHI applications (four if applying 11+ sprays per season to meet FRAC guidelines), but hold them back for when disease pressure is high and picking intervals are tight to benefit from their eradicant properties.
Certis Belchim’s biorational Karma is also valuable in high-pressure situations: we find that we gain control faster and more effectively than with the commodity substance and need to spray less. This results in reduced leaf damage to the crop.
I’m an advocate of Karma for sure. If I see a bit of mildew, it’s my go-to, over and above the commodity. Not least because of its mixability – it simply gives us good results. Moreover, its one-day PHI gives flexibility at picking. We tank-mix or follow up with Frupica SC or Takumi SC for added protectant and/or eradicant activity.”
A biorational contact eradicant with a one-day PHI, no residues or MRLs. ‘Squeezes the life’ out of powdery mildew and all surface pathogens, so they wither and collapse. Formulated with double adjuvant system; mixes well with fungicides for Botrytis control.
In what can be a complex set of decisions and treatments, Certis non-SDHIs add valuable benefits to your disease control programme.
Here are five further reasons to consider Certis fungicides. Discover how they’ll help you grow great fruit, now and in future seasons.
1. Gain effective control
Depending on your choice of fungicide, you’ll get thorough curative and preventive activity beyond your SHDIs.
Cosine, for example, treats early powdery mildew, and the late secondary form of the disease, to reduce spread and persistence in top fruit. Takumi SC, with an EAMU and crop-safe formulation for strawberries, gives multi-stage disease control. It also has strong vapour activity to optimise systemic penetration.
2. Support resistance management
Being non-SDHIs, our fungicides offer alternative MoAs – that goes without saying. However, you benefit from unique FRAC codes – such as U6 and 9 – together with biorational options, to add variety to your resistance management strategy, short- and long-term.
3. Protect your beneficials
Predatory wasps, mites, midges, ladybirds – whatever species you use – will be able to carry on working.
Our fungicides are low impact and highly IPM compatible to safeguard your investment in beneficial organisms. See our IOBC ratings.
4. Make life easier
Application timings, water volumes, PHIs and crop-safe tank mix options. Everything’s designed to be flexible.
You’ll even find an established fungicide like Frupica SC is more adaptable than you may realise: it’s perfect for early use in 60-day strawberry varieties, with EAMUs for other crops.
And don’t forget: you’ve a selection of increasingly important biorationals to control powdery mildew, scab and Botrytis in top or soft fruit.
5. You’re brilliantly backed-up
In conjunction with your advisor or distributor, you can rely on the technical knowledge of Certis experts to help use our products and get the most from your whole fruit programme.
