Honeyberry leaf blight

Here is a portion of an article I had cut and pasted into my garden inbox. I’m sorry I don’t have the source. I suspect it may have been written several years back. It mentions a leaf blight common in the Midwest. Some of my blue belle or berry blue honeyberries look a bit tough by end of summer, but I have always assumed it was sunburn, drought, or just powdery mildew. I’ve not heard this particular problem mentioned much in discussions of haskaps or honeyberries. Might the newer varieties be resistant enough that it is no longer an issue?

Check this article, does it look like that?

The leaves on my honeyberries looked bad at the end of last season, but I didn’t notice and mildew (I agree with the grad student, looks like downy mildew in the pics to me too)

I just figures it was the end of the season and since it was so dry that the leaves were just burnt by the sun

Scott

I guess I forgot to attach the quote! Sorry. Here it is:

Trial plantings of blue honeysuckle in the mid-western United States were extremely susceptible to leaf blight, caused by Insolibasidium deformons C. J. Gould Oberwinkler and Bandoni formerly known as Herpobasidium deformons C. J. Gould (2). The host range of this disease is limited to members of the Caprifoliaceae, the honeysuckle family. This disease is widespread in 14 North Central and Northeastern States (7). Some Native American and Asian Lonicera are resistant to this disease, but most species of honeysuckle are suscept

What I plan to do is after harvest, I’ll spray them. I have to put fungicides on my stone fruit, so I’ll just catch these plants too. Harvest is very early even on the late ones, so it may help a bunch to spray. The fungicide Fruit Tree and Plant Guard is labeled for use on Honeysuckle, and it won’t be used until after harvest. It has an insecticide, but no flowers will be on it.

While looking this up I saw some trials on Japanese cultivars and they appear to be the better type, much sweeter according to the trials in Oregon.Some of the plants in the trial were probably Solo and Maxie!
And as far as the blight, were Japanese types tested? It appears some of the hybrids are resistant. Some are not! Like Indigo Gem (high flavor scores though).

I didn’t pay that much attention last year. I will have 11 varieties this year, so will have to watch them better and report back.

I have 7 cultivars, but split up, three at my cottage, 4 here in the city. Only one so far has shown leaf stress. They are not that old.