Problems with Soil

• Biology
• Lower Secondary (Key Stage 3)

Problems with Soil

What soil problems do you know about in Horticulture?

What causes club root?

Clubroot has been known about since the 13th Century but wasn’t named until the 19th Century Woronin, a Russian scientist successfully identified the cause of club root as a “plasmodiophorous organism” in 1875. It is a soil-borne organism that infects members of the Brassica family, such as Cabbage and Broccoli. The organism produces cysts (zoospores) that remain in the soil until a suitable host is available to infect. It then develops and grows, producing more cysts and starting the cycle again.

How does club root spread?

Club-root is easily spread by transfer of the cyst in soil. Just walking from an infected plot to a clean patch of land with infected soil in the tread of your boots is enough to infect a plot. It is also spread by plants themselves, if the seedlings and plants come from soil with Club-root, it will spread to the new area of soil

Identifying Club Root

The first sign of club-root is a wilting of plants, especially in dry weather. As the season progresses, the plants fail to develop well and often fail to develop a crop. Club-root infected roots will be swollen and knobbly.

How long does club root last in the soil?

The cysts can live for up to 9 years in the soil. However, if a plant is infected towards the end of the period, it starts again. Remember it’s not just brassicas but also weeds that are members of the Crucifer family who can be infected. So once in the soil it can effectively remain a problem permanently with weeds carrying the infection cycle on, even if the plot does not grow brassicas and is well tended.

Treatment

There is no chemical cure for clubroot legally available to gardeners. Old tales of using pieces of rhubarb stalk or leaf in the planting hole to prevent the disease have been proven to be ineffective in trials. One way to limit it is to use crop rotation however because of the lifespan of the cysts, to be effective you would need a totally weed-free plot and a cycle of at least 10 years. If an infected root is left in the ground new cysts will be released as soil microorganisms decompose the root. As well as this ensure that you do not accept any plants or seedlings from areas that have had Clubroot previously.

How does Club Root spread?

1. Spread by animals
2. Transfer of cyst in soil
3. Spread by water
4. Spread by air

What is the first sign of clubroot?

1. Stunted growth
2. Yellowing of leaves
3. Wilting of plants
4. Excessive flowering

How long can clubroot cysts live in the soil?

1. Up to 9 years
2. Up to 12 years
3. Up to 15 years
4. Up to 5 years

What is the cure for clubroot?

1. Planting in infected soil
2. Use of fungicide
3. No chemical cure available
4. Crop rotation effective

Who identified the cause of clubroot?

1. Darwin, a British naturalist
2. Mendel, an Austrian monk
3. Woronin, a Russian scientist
4. Pasteur, a French chemist

How does Clubroot spread?

1. Plants from infected soil
2. Transfer of cyst in soil
3. Spread by water
4. Spread by air

What is the first sign of clubroot infection?

1. Wilting of plants
2. Overgrowth of plants
3. Yellowing of leaves
4. Swollen and knobbly roots

How long can clubroot cysts live in the soil?

1. Permanently with weed carriers
2. Up to 5 years
3. Up to 12 years
4. Up to 9 years

What is not an effective cure for clubroot?

1. Chemical treatment
2. Weed-free plot
3. Pieces of rhubarb stalk or leaf
4. Crop rotation

Who successfully identified the cause of clubroot?

1. Fleming
2. Russian scientist in 1875
3. Woronin
4. Mendel

How can plants catch diseases?

Wounds in the bark and stems of plants can make them vulnerable to diseases and pathogens

Pests such as aphids and caterpillars can carry pathogens and damage plants

Clubroot is a significant threat to brassicas and requires urgent government intervention.

Clubroot is a serious problem for agriculture.

Government should allocate funds for research.

Farmers should adopt strict biosecurity measures.

Education campaigns are needed to raise awareness.

Crop rotation is the most effective method for controlling clubroot.

Crop rotation can reduce clubroot spread.

Chemical treatments should be available for use.

Planting resistant varieties is a better solution.

We need to focus on developing biological controls.

Education and awareness are key to preventing the spread of clubroot.

Gardening associations should provide educational resources.

School curriculum should include information on clubroot.

Community workshops on clubroot prevention are crucial.

Information campaigns should target commercial growers.

The long viability of clubroot cysts in the soil requires a multi-faceted approach to control.

Long-term strategies are crucial for control.

Integrated pest management is necessary for control.

Research should focus on soil treatments.

Government regulations should restrict plant movement.