The Utah State University Extension has released detailed information regarding the various pests and diseases that affect common vegetable crops, including potatoes, onions, garlic, root vegetables, and cucurbits. The data identifies a broad spectrum of threats ranging from insect infestations like aphids and armyworms to complex diseases such as late blight and various mosaic viruses.
Threats to Potato Crops
For potato cultivation, the Utah State University Extension identifies several significant insect threats. Pests affecting potato crops include aphids, the Colorado potato beetle, flea beetles, potato psyllids, and thrips. Other identified insects include armyworms, cutworms, grasshoppers, the tarnished plant bug, whiteflies, blister beetles, the false chinch bug, the potato leafhopper, the three-lined potato beetle, and wireworms.
In addition to insect pressure, potato crops face numerous diseases. These include the Alfalfa Mosaic Virus, blackleg, corky ringspot, early blight, and late blight. Other documented diseases are leaf roll virus, pink rot, potato virus Y, powdery mildew, powdery scab, pythium leak, scab, tomato spotted wilt virus, tuber dry rot, verticillium wilt, white mold, and zebra chip disease.
Onion and Garlic Vulnerabilities
Onion and garlic crops are susceptible to a specific group of pests and diseases. Identified insects include armyworms, the false chinch bug, maggots, bulb mites, grasshoppers, spider mites, cutworms, leafminers, and thrips.
Disease threats for onions and garlic include bacterial soft rot, fusarium basal rot, purple blotch, black mold, iris yellow spot virus (IYSV), stemphylium leaf blight, botrytis neck rot, and pink root.
Risks to Root Vegetables
Root crops—including carrots, parsnips, turnips, radishes, and beets—face a diverse array of insect and disease challenges. Insects documented in these crops include aphids, armyworms, the aster leafhopper, the beet leafhopper, blister beetles, the carrot rust fly, cutworms, the false chinch bug, flea beetles, garden symphylan, grasshoppers, leafminers, sowbugs, pillbugs, spider mites, springtails, whiteflies, and wireworms.
These root crops are also vulnerable to several diseases, such as alternaria leaf blight, aster yellows, bacterial leaf blight, bacterial soft rot, beet curly top virus, cavity spot, cercospora leaf spot, cottony soft rot (white mold), crater rot, damping-off, itersonilia canker, nematodes, phoma leaf spots and root rot, powdery mildew, and scab.
Cucurbit Pest and Disease Profiles
Cucurbit crops, which encompass cucumbers, melons, pumpkins, and squash, are subject to various insect and disease pressures. Identified insects include aphids, the bumble flower beetle, European earwig, garden symphylan, slugs, snails, the squash bug, whiteflies, armyworms, cucumber beetles, the false chinch bug, grasshoppers, sowbugs, pillbugs, stink bugs, wireworms, leafhoppers, flea beetles, sap beetles, spider mites, and thrips.
Diseases affecting these cucurbits include alternaria leaf spot, angular leaf spot, bacterial wilt, beet curly top virus, cucumber mosaic virus, damping-off, downy mildew, fusarium crown/root rot, fusarium wilt, gummy stem blight/black rot, nematodes, powdery mildew, pythium root/fruit rot, scab, verticillium wilt, watermelon mosaic virus, and zucchini yellow mosaic virus.
Resource Overview
The Utah State University Extension continues to update its plant health resources to assist with integrated pest management. The current documentation provides a comprehensive overview of the biological and pathological threats facing different vegetable categories, from staple root crops to various cucurbits and alliums.
