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Sainte-Catherine-de-Hatley, Quebec, Canada

I had a very wet spring/early summer and lots of weeds. In early July a lone leaf near the crown wilted. Then turned brown and this happened to random leaves throughout the plant. Then a small secondary near the aborted pumpkin wilted and browned I completely weeded the area then a big secondary wilted followed by the whole plant. The other plant in the same patch was swallowed by weeds and destroyed by bugs if the same disease hit that one it was disguised by the other things. Both plants were nutrient deficient almost all the time. The demise of the first plant happened about 5 days after 60l of appropriately diluted 20-20-20 with micronutrients. In another more neglected patch with weeds the same fate came but much more swiftly and 3 weeks before the other ones went down. The weeds had black spots on them. Was it phytopthora or something if so can I use the same patch next year? Also the weeds had black spots on them and the entire plant wilted after the wet spell was over and the soil was quite dry maybe too dry

10/8/2026 11:25:00 AM

Portland, CT

Do you have anywhere you can grow that has access to water and electricity? All soil will have some level of pathogens in it and since you haven't been growing in the same spot for many years I wouldn't be too worried about that yet.

10/8/2026 5:16:02 PM

Grittyville, WA

I notice in your latest pics you have many trees. My guess is they wont compete well with the tree roots (and weeds too) even when water and fertilizer is added. The competition will be detrimental. If you can sow a cover crop of rye in a weed free patch farther from the trees, then I think you'll get much better results.

[Last edit: 10/08/26 9:01:23 PM]

10/8/2026 8:58:50 PM

Grittyville, WA

The rye will create a good healthy rootzone.
Watering the right amount would also be a big help.

10/8/2026 9:00:50 PM

Sainte-Catherine-de-Hatley, Quebec, Canada

The tree patch is my 100 sqft patch which is in my backyard I have another 1500 sqft one which a farmer nearby lets me use far from trees. The tree patch is not infected and next year will be home to marrows

10/8/2026 9:25:40 PM

Sainte-Catherine-de-Hatley, Quebec, Canada

If it’s fusarium can I actually still use that patch next year? I don’t want the same fate I think I’ll do a disease test but I’ve got s9 é questions about that, look in my next post in « general discussion »

10/8/2026 9:27:26 PM

Grittyville, WA

Fusarium lasts awhile. I think some agronomists would say that a diverse cover crop would create good soil fastest but I wonder if maybe a non-host monoculture would reduce disease faster. Rye isn't a host to pumpkin diseases and it might be a host to beneficial biology. Hence people have had success with it. Mustard would probably freeze out in your area but it's another example of a cover crop that might benefit pumpkins.

10/9/2026 1:11:53 AM

Sainte-Catherine-de-Hatley, Quebec, Canada

I don’t think I can do eye because I want to amend the soil and snow comes in 30-40 days

10/9/2026 11:32:58 AM

Sainte-Catherine-de-Hatley, Quebec, Canada

If what I had was phytopthora would it damage next year? One thing I thought of is maybe it was SVBs damaging random leaf stalks and secondaries then the mv killing the plant? The tomato had a very similar fate but it was all at once and could maybe have been frost but I think it was the same thing. Can maters be SVBd? The other 3 maters I think were okay but they were swallowed by weeds. SVB is the only thing I can think of that fits

10/9/2026 11:38:16 AM

Grittyville, WA

I don't know.

10/9/2026 5:02:40 PM