Help identify this disease?

[simicb]

I came home to find this on my Cherokee Purple. Its planted in a 5 gallon SWC. What is this and is there a treatment?

Thanks

[RayR]

Hard to say, any number of things can cause stem lesions with dying leaves. It looks bacterial from your pictures. It appears to be starting at the stem and spreading to the petiole and thereby killing the leaves. Is that right?

[simicb]

Yes. That's exactly right. The only other sign of stress is blossoms are dropping off without setting fruit. This actually started before the problem in the pictures. The first blossoms set fruit but everything above the initial cluster drop blossoms after flowering.

How can I treat the issue with the stems?

Thanks again for your help.

[simicb]

Ray, after your post I went back and looked at the pics again. I am pretty sure the lesions are starting not on the petiole but just below on the stems. Thanks again for your help.

[RayR]

Any brown spotting on the leaves or the fruit? That may give a clue as to what it is.
Also cut open an infected branch and see if there is any browning of the vascular tissue.
Some bacterial infections if they are not systemic can be treated with a copper fungicide.

[simicb]

The fruit seems clear. The very bottom leaves developed little holes in the middle of the leaves with brown perimeters. Kinda looked liked someone burned through them with a laser pointer. I got both these plants from a HD. I treated with a fungicide for a few weeks and it seem to halt its advance.

I cut one of the infected stems in half and the Brown spot is only on the surface.

Thanks again!