Pests & diseases › Club Root
Club Root
Soil-borne disease of all brassicas. Roots swell into grotesque clubs, plants struggle and fail.
Symptoms
- Plants wilting in sun, recovering at night
- Stunted, yellow, off-coloured growth
- Roots swollen into knobbly white clubs
- Eventually whole root rots, plant collapses
Lifecycle
Resting spores live in soil for 20+ years. Worst in acid, badly-drained soils.
What to do
- There is no cure — affected plants must come out
- Lift carefully, bin (don't compost)
If it's bad
- None approved for home use
Stop it coming back
- Lime the bed in autumn to bring pH up to 7 — disease hates alkaline conditions
- Sharp drainage — add grit if the bed sits wet
- Grow resistant varieties: Kilaton, Kilaxy, Crispus
- Start brassicas in 1-litre pots so they have big roots before going in
- Eight-year rotation away from any infected bed
Crops it goes for
Plan the plot, track every sowing, cook the harvest
Sowing reminders and harvest forecasts for your own frost dates, the Seed Tin, Scan Centre for any label or packet, and the Potty Mouth Garden Club. Free to start.