by Madison Briggs

Created on: January 11, 2009

Cucumber mosaic virus invades cells of healthy seedling plants as well as matured plantings. This virus does not limit itself to only cucumbers as the name implies. This disease affects many different vegetable and herb varieties as well as ornamental flower groups. Tomatoes, peppers, melons, squash, beets, celery, parsley, dill, parsnip as well as petunias, hyacinth, geraniums, marigolds, tulips, and snapdragons are all examples of a wide range of susceptible Cucumber mosaic virus victims.

Plants may become infected at any point during their growing season from emergence to maturity. The first signs of the disease will be evident by downward curling and twisting leaves. Many leaves will develop a mottling or mosaic pattern of light and dark green or yellow designs. The fruit produced will be stunted and covered with bumpy skins. In cucumbers, the skins could appear white. As the virus invades the cells of the plant, growth will be greatly reduced with very few flowers, runners or fruit. What little fruit is produced may have a very bitter taste.

Cucumber mosaic virus is passed on from plant to plant mostly due to aphids which feed on infected plants, travel to healthy plants and transfer the virus when they munch the leaves, stems or flowers. Gardeners themselves can unknowingly enable the virus to spread by their hands or garden utensils after coming in contact with a diseased plant. While the virus cannot survive in soil without plants to feed on, it latches on to weeds especially perennial weeds and continues to thrive even over winter until the next crops of healthy plantings emerge.

Once a plant has been affected by this disease, there is nothing to be done to save the plant. At the first sign of the virus, the plant needs to be pulled up and destroyed to try to break the cycle of other plantings being at risk. Good garden hygiene is basically your greatest defense against this virus. While it is virtually impossible to get rid of aphids or all weeds in surrounding areas of your garden to prevent this virus from entering your garden space, there are a few tips you may want to try.

* Remove infected plants at the first sign of infection and destroy. Do not compost these plants. Wash hands with soap and water after handling diseased plants. Clean your garden utensils thoroughly with bleach.

* Do not plant near hedges, ditch banks, weedy, brushy or wooded areas. Try to have a distance of at least 100 yards between your planting and surrounding woods or weeds. Clover, catnip, dandelions, milkweed, chickweeds as well as other perennial weeds provide feeding grounds for the virus.

* Try to eliminate all weeds surrounding your garden beds. Also try to not plant vegetables close to plants susceptible to aphid populations, like shrubs or flower beds.

* Planting early in the season may help before aphid populations emerge. Also if possible plant susceptible vegetables close to corn plants which grow taller and are generally aphid resistant. Wheat, on the other hand, attracts aphids so planting a border crop of wheat around your garden could stave off the virus while feeding the hungry aphids.

* Fungicides do not control this virus. Weekly applications of mineral oil could help control the aphid population. Crop rotation which is a good practice for other garden problems will not prevent the infection of this virus without using other suggested means.

* Seeds are not affected, but try to purchase seedling plants from greenhouses that isolate their vegetable plants from flower seedling plants.

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