It is also important to avoid wetting the flowers when watering and crowding plants. Adequate spacing between the plants can promote good air circulation. Control can also be achieved with the use of fungicide sprays applied as soon as symptoms are visible. Among the compounds registered for use in Connecticut are benomyl and thiophanate-methyl. Consult the label for dosage rates and safety precautions.
Symptoms appear as a distinct stunting of individual branches or the entire plant.
Leaves on infected branches may be smaller than normal and flowers are small and have a washed-out color. Infected plants often produce flowers earlier than their healthy counterparts. Control is very difficult so symptomatic plants should be promptly removed. Foliar nematodes, Aphelenchoides. Black to brown V-shaped areas appear in the lower leaves, showing first at the bottom of the plant and working their way up the plant.