What are rhododendron diseases?

The most common specific fungal diseases that affect rhododendrons include;

• Bud blast (Seifertia azaleae)
• Powdery mildew (Erysiphe spp.)
• Petal blight (Ovulinia azaleae)
• Azalea leaf gall (Exobasidium japonicum)
• Leaf spots (predominantly Colletotrichum gloeosporioides, but occasionally other fungi)
• Rust (Chrysomyxa rhododendri)

They are also attacked by more generalist diseases such as;

• Honey fungus (Armillaria spp.)
• Phytophthora root rot (Phytophthora spp.)
• Silver leaf (Chondrostereum purpureum)

Symptoms

Bud blast:

• Flower buds go brown and die but remain attached
• Later, the buds may turn silvery grey before becoming covered in small black bristles

Powdery mildew:

• On evergreen rhododendrons, actual growth of the fungus on the lower leaf surface can be hard to detect, but infection tends to cause pale green, reddish-purple or yellowish patches on the upper surface
• On deciduous azaleas, white powdery fungus grows over the upper leaf surface

Petal blight:

• Spots appear on petals under wet conditions, which spread rapidly and cause the petals to collapse in a wet, slimy mess

Gall:

• Usually on azaleas, the leaves become very pale, swollen and distorted, then covered in a bloom of white fungus spores

Leaf spots:

• Purple or brown, more or less round spots appear on the upper leaf surfaces, usually of evergreen species. They sometimes contain numerous small, black fruiting bodies of the causal fungus

Rust:

• Discoloured spots on the upper leaf surface correspond to pustules containing dusty orange spores on the lower surface

Honey fungus and Phytophthora root rot disease:

• Sudden wilting and collapse of the whole plant occurs

Silver leaf:

• Causes dieback of the branches, with fruiting bodies of the fungus sometimes developing on the dead or dying parts

Control

The RHS believes that avoiding pests, diseases and weeds by good practice in cultivation methods, cultivar selection, garden hygiene and encouraging or introducing natural enemies, should be the first line of control. If chemical controls are used, they should be used only in a minimal and highly targeted manner.

Non-chemical control

• Bud blast: remove and destroy infected flower buds promptly
• Powdery mildew or leaf spots: leaf removal is not recommended as it would cause severe defoliation. Unless very severe, these infections should be tolerated
• Galls should be removed promptly before the fungus sporulates (the white stage when the spores are released and the disease can spread)

Chemical control

Bud blast: control of the leafhopper, to prevent infection by bud blast, is difficult because they are strong fliers and reinvade rapidly, but sprays of natural pyrethrum (e.g. Bug Clear Gun for Fruit and Veg, Ecofective Bug Killer), deltamethrin (e.g. Provanto Ultimate Fruit & Vegetable Bug Killer), lambda cyhalothrin (e.g. Westland Resolva Pest Killer) or acetameprid (e.g. Bug Clear Ultra) from early August for as long as the pest is active may be helpful

Powdery mildew, rust and leaf spots: The fungicides tebuconazole (Provanto Fungus Fighter Concentrate), tebuconazole with trifloxystrobin (Provanto Fungus Fighter Plus, Toprose Fungus Control & Protect), and triticonazole (Fungus Clear Ultra) are approved for the control of powdery mildew and rust diseases on ornamental plants. They would probably also give some control of rhododendron leaf spots (Provanto Fungus Fighter Plus and Toprose Fungus Control and Protect mention 'leaf spot of ornamentals' on the label).

Inclusion of a product does not indicate a recommendation or endorsement by the RHS. It is a list of products currently available to the home gardener.

Downloads

Pesticides for gardeners (Adobe Acrobat pdf document outlining pesticides available to gardeners)
Fungicides for gardeners (Adobe Acrobat pdf document outlining fungicides available to gardeners)

Links

Chemicals: using a sprayer
Chemicals: using safely and effectively
Chemicals: storing and disposing safely

Biology

Bud blast: the fungus causing bud blast produces its spores on the black fungal 'bristles' that appear on infected buds. They are spread by water and potentially infect buds through wounds made by the rhododendron leafhopper when it punctures the bud to lay its eggs (although some recent research has cast a doubt on this link between the pest and disease).

Powdery mildew: the biology of powdery mildew is discussed in the web profile devoted to this group of diseases.

Petal blight: the fungus causing petal blight produces wind-dispersed spores on old infected flowers which remain hanging on the plant from the previous season.

Gall: the azalea gall fungus produces airborne spores on the white bloom that develops on the galls. These may lodge and develop in buds in a similar way to the peach leaf curl and pocket plum pathogens, although they belong to a different group of fungi. Little is known about this pathogen.

Leaf spot: the leaf spot fungus produces water-dispersed spores from fruiting bodies on the infections.

Rust: the rust pathogen releases airborne orange spores which spread the disease among Rhododendrons, then later it produces dark resting spores. When these germinate they infect the alternate host which is spruce (Picea spp.). Spores produced on spruce then reinfect rhododendrons.