Early symptoms include small, circular leaf spots. Another symptom is telltale gray mold. But don’t look solely at the leaves -- Botrytis can infect stems and flowers and it can infect almost any type of floral crop. Stake out Botrytis when it’s damp and cloudy.

Criminal history

The disease is typically caused by Botrytis cinerea. Botrytis can persist in the greenhouse year-round. The optimum temperature for spore germination is 72°F-77°F, although it can be a postharvest problem and establish at 32°F-50°F.

Botrytis is characterized by the production of leaf spots, flower blight, flower bud rot, stem canker, stem and crown rot, cutting rot, damping off and plant death.

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