Dr. Phyto

parsnip

Pastinaca sativa

Diseases & pests on this plant

• parsnip cankerItersonilia perplexans

  Rough, cracked black-brown cankers develop on the shoulder and crown of the root (the part nearest the surface), sometimes spreading down the side; the rot lets in secondary organisms and the root becomes inedible at the top. Orange-brown and black canker forms also occur. Leaves may show small orange-to-brown spots, often ringed by a pale-green halo.

• Powdery mildew of parsnipErysiphe heraclei

  A dry, white-to-greyish powdery or floury coating develops on the upper and lower surfaces of the parsnip leaves and along the leaf stalks (petioles). The patches start as small, dust-like spots that spread and merge until whole leaflets look as if dusted with flour. Heavily affected foliage turns yellow, then brown, becomes brittle and dies back prematurely, and tiny black dots (chasmothecia) may appear within the older white felt late in the season.

• sclerotinia stem rotSclerotinia sclerotiorum

  White cottony growth on stems at flowering height, stems split open to show black sclerotia (1–5 mm) embedded in pith, premature ripening of affected plants.