Anthracnose

Symptom

Infected eggplant fruits exhibit circular, water-soaked lesions that are slightly sunken below the surface of the fruit skin. As the disease progresses, small black fungal spore masses become visible within the lesions. Similar water-soaked lesions also appear on leaves, petioles, and stems, which gradually darken from deep brown to black. Although these symptoms may resemble those of early blight, the lesions lack the characteristic concentric ring pattern typically associated with that disease. This distinction is important for accurate diagnosis and effective disease management.