Editing Vanilla (section)

===Pest and disease management===
Vanilla is susceptible to many fungal and viral diseases. ''[[Fusarium]]'', ''[[Sclerotium]]'', ''[[Phytophthora]]'', and ''[[Colletrotrichum]]'' species cause rots of root, stem, leaf, bean, and [[shoot apex]]. Development of most diseases is favoured by unsuitable growing conditions such as overwatering, insufficient drainage, heavy mulch, overpollination, and too much shade. Fungal diseases can be controlled by spraying [[Bordeaux mixture]] (1%), [[carbendazim]] (0.2%) and [[copper oxychloride]] (0.2%).

Biological control of the spread of such diseases can be managed by applying to the soil ''[[Trichoderma]]'' ({{convert|0.5|kg|lb|abbr=on}} per plant in the [[rhizosphere]]) and foliar application of [[pseudomonas]] (0.2%). [[Mosaic virus]], [[leaf curl]], and [[Cymbidium mosaic virus|cymbidium mosaic potexvirus]] are the common viral diseases. These diseases are transmitted through the sap, so affected plants must be destroyed. The insect pests of vanilla include beetles and weevils that attack the flower, caterpillars, snakes, and slugs that damage the tender parts of shoot, flower buds, and immature fruit, and grasshoppers that affect cutting shoot tips.<ref name="Davis-1983" /><ref name="Elizabeth 2002" /> If organic agriculture is practiced, insecticides are avoided, and mechanical measures are adopted for pest management.<ref name="Anilkumar 2004" /> Most of these practices are implemented under greenhouse cultivation, since such field conditions are very difficult to achieve.