Anthracnose (Colletotrichum spp.) is a common fungal disease known to infect plants in the Solanaceae family of plants.

This disease is one of the more easily identifiable diseases affecting Capsicum and can be managed and treated if caught early. Unfortunately, once present in the grow area, it can be difficult to eradicate as it survives for many years in plant material, debris and the soil. It also spreads like wild fire in the pepper patch if not treated immediately.

Antracnose can be transmitted from infected seeds, other infected plant material, plant debris, soil, water, insects and touch. Although water/irrigation is probably the main culprit in the pepper patch.

Anthracnose favours hot and moist conditions. The spores infect foliage and/or fruit mid to late season. On leaves ringed patterns will appear on leaf surfaces. These will start out small and yellow in appearance first and grow in size and darken to brown and black once advanced.

Overhead and foliar watering should be avoided to control the spread of Anthracnose. Water running over infected leaves will in turn transmit fungal spores to other foliage and any fruit that it touches. We would recommend drip irrigation as the best way to combat this.

The most destructive side to Anthracnose is the damage to the fruit of the plant. The site of infection on fruit will appear as a sunken dimple in the fruit’s skin. This will soften and darken over time. This lesion will grow in size and display a ringed effect as it grows. On closer inspection you can see a matting of pink spores in the centre of the fruit rot. Lesions will darken to brown and black. These lesions will eventually end up rotting the entire pod. Rotting pods are also often infected with white mold from secondary infections on the pods.

Infected pods transported to market will infect and spoil other healthy pods in a batch.

Copper based fungicides are best to prevent Anthracnose from infecting plants. Once infected, fungicides can be used to manage the disease on plants. But, at this stage, can be difficult to eradicate.

The fungal spores can survive in the soil and plant debris from season to season. Crop rotation with crops that are not hosts to Anthracnose is recommended for 2-3 years.

Prevention & Management of Antracnose in the field would be as follows:

• Use Anthracnose free seeds or Anthracnose resistant cultivars. Clean seeds before planting.
• Spray plants with Copper based fungicide to prevent infection.
• Avoid foliar and overhead irrigation. It is best to use drip irrigation.
• Plastic sheeting and weeding to combat transmission from infected soil, debris and infected weeds.
• Scout the field for signs of infection. Remove infected foliage and fruit as soon as you see signs of infection.
• Crop rotation to a crop that does not host Anthracnose for 2-3 years in instances where Anthracnose has infected a field.
• Destroy all infected plant material immediately. Do not return infected plant material to the garden or compost heaps.

On a side note to the buyer: Look out for signs of Anthracnote on fresh produce. Bulk orders of chillies will spoil rapidly in the case of Anthracnose. Buying infected produce will result in your throwing away lots of produce you have paid good money for.