After the drought last year, this spring has been exceptionally wet! Frequent storms, rain, and high humidity can cause fungal and other problems to run rampant in the home garden. A great question is “How much water is too much?” As a rule of thumb most garden plants require about 1” of water per week. When excessive rainfall happens, soils with pore spaces that normally hold air, fill with water, eventually causing decay, and root rot. In well-draining soils, this may be naturally mitigated, but heavy clay soils drain slowly and compact quickly, this can exacerbate problems. Wet weather also can cause increased humidity around plants leading to fungal leaf problems. Find a list below of the most common plant problems that have been coming into the office:
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- Anthracnose: This is a fungal infection, especially prevalent on maple and ornamental tree species; this disease causes irregular brown spotting on leaves, leaf curling, and canopy thinning in some severe cases. This is mainly a cosmetic disease that does not often have long-term impacts on the plants.
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Cedar Apple Rust (and other related plant rusts): This fungal disease requires two differing hosts to complete its lifecycle. On junipers, it appears as brown and orange blobs, on the alternate hosts (apple, crabapple, hawthorn, and quince) it will appear as yellow to orange leaf spots. This disease makes plants look unattractive, but rarely has detrimental effects.
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Powdery Mildew: This non-lethal fungal disease is most commonly found on peonies and lilacs in the yard, but can be frequently spotted on other woody ornamentals, herbaceous perennials and annuals, fruits and vegetables. The identifying feature is a powdery white growth on leaves, making it look like it was sprinkled with powdered sugar. Increased circulation can help control this disease, as can applications of fungicides.
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Tar Spot: This disease shows up as either solid or specks of black tarry spots on leaves of maples and willows. Tar spot can survive on leaf litter overwinter and re-infect leaves in the spring if not removed from the area. Treatment is rarely warranted, as this is a common cosmetic disease.
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After times of flooding, or frequent rains, plants should be monitored carefully for signs of disease or stress during the next few months. If flooding is occurring in a vegetable garden, gardeners often question if if the produce can be used. If flooding occurs early, there will typically be weeks left in the growing season, and gardeners will likely wish to salvage some crops. What crops are grown, and at what stage the garden is at during the growing season will determine if produce can be used. Find more information here: https://hort.extension.wisc.edu/articles/safely-using-produce-from-flooded-gardens/
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Something eating your plant? Need help identifying a tree? Interested in the best way to care for your lawn? Submit your questions online!
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| Kaitlin Bricco, Horticulture Educator |
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An EEO/AA employer, University of Wisconsin-Madison Division of Extension provides equal opportunities in employment and programming, including Title VI, Title IX, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act requirements.
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