Strawberry Mild Yellow Edge Virus

For some reason, strawberry plants often get infected with more than one virus simultaneously. Strawberry mild yellow edge virus is one of those diseases.

Strawberry mild yellow edge virus is a long name for a disease that can reduce your strawberry crop by as much as 30%. Strawberry mild yellow edge virus often appears when the mottle virus does. They are both transmitted by aphids. Nematodes may also add raspberry ringspot virus to the mix.

Strawberry mild yellow edge virus symptoms

As with most viral diseases, stunting is a common symptom of strawberry mild yellow edge virus. Older leaves may turn bright red, but the leaves around the crown nearly always exhibit yellow margins or edges, hence the name. These yellowed areas eventually die and turn brown. Leaf cupping may also occur.

Since these symptoms look much like water stress, fertilizer burn, overly acidic pH, boron toxicity, or bad weather, it is important to rule those out before deciding on a plan. Once strawberry mild yellow edge virus has made an appearance in your garden, there are steps you can take to minimize the damage.

How to manage strawberry mild yellow edge virus

Even though the fruits of infected plants are still edible, remove plants infected with strawberry mild yellow edge virus to prevent the disease from spreading. 

Aphids carrying the strawberry mild yellow edge virus are disease vectors for life. You can try to use insecticidal soap on every aphid that might be a carrier. Just be sure to do this at a time when honey bees and other pollinators will not be attending the flowers. Common lambsquarters and other Chenopods can also carry this disease, so keep these plants away from your strawberry plants.

This disease is most common when plants are grown using a matted-row method. The matted-row system allows parent plants to send out runners, or daughter plants, which will produce fruit the following spring. This highly productive method has been around for a long time. It gets its name because the runners end up intertwined, creating a mat. The only problem with the matted-row system is that it means plants are in place longer, making infection more likely.

As always, put new plants into quarantine until you know they are disease-free.