Divisi
Groundnut leaf spot
Passalora personata · Fungal
Groundnut leaf spot is a fungal leaf disease of groundnut caused by two close cousins — early leaf spot (Cercospora arachidicola) and late leaf spot (Passalora personata). The fungus lives on last season's groundnut trash and spreads on wind and rain-splash. Spots kill the leaf tissue and knock the leaves off the plant during pod-filling, so the pods stay small and the haulm (the leafy vine you feed to livestock) is ruined. Late leaf spot is usually the worse of the two.
Why it matters
Groundnut leaf spot can strip the leaves off your plants right when the pods are filling, and a bad attack can take half your crop (up to 50%) — smaller pods, fewer kernels, and vines too bare to feed your animals. It matters because the leaves are the engine that fills the pods: lose them early and the pods never fatten. It is hard to fix once it takes hold — the spots are already killing leaves before you notice, the spores spread fast in wet weather, and by the time the plant is half bare there is little you can do. The win is to break the cycle before planting and to catch the first spots early.
When to act
First spots appearing on lower leaves during pod fill, especially after a wet spell in a continuous-groundnut field.
This guidance is general, compiled from published agronomic references including FAO and CABI. Thresholds and timing shift with your crop, your variety and the season.
In much of the region a spray is simply called mushonga — medicine. But a chemical group you cannot name is one you cannot rotate, and a product you did not write down has no pre-harvest interval you can observe. Mushonga, and other farming words →
The full groundnut leaf spot field guide
- Identify it
- Scout for it
- Control it
14 field-guide sections in the app
The full guide to groundnut leaf spot — every symptom to check, how and when to walk your field looking for it, and the controls that actually work, ranked. Built into your crop plan, so you are told to look before it costs you a harvest.
Crops it affects
Frequently asked questions
How do I identify groundnut leaf spot?
The damage you see first: small round spots on the lower, older leaves — the leaflets near the ground yellow, then dry up and drop off, so the plant goes bare from the bottom upward. In a bad year the vines look half-stripped by pod-fill.
When should I take action against groundnut leaf spot?
First spots appearing on lower leaves during pod fill, especially after a wet spell in a continuous-groundnut field.
How do I control groundnut leaf spot?
Prevent it first — break the cycle (your strongest, cheapest tools): Rotate — grow a cereal like maize, sorghum or millet on that land for at least two seasons before groundnut returns, so the fungus in the old trash starves out (rotation = not growing the same crop on the same land year after year). Never plant groundnut straight after groundnut.
Which crops does groundnut leaf spot affect?
Among the crops covered here: Groundnut.
Catch it before it costs you a harvest
Divisi builds scouting into your crop plan — it tells you when to walk your field, what to look for at that stage, and what to do when you find it. Free for farmers, works offline.
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