A few weeks ago, I noticed one of the bushes in front of my office had this white mold on the leaves. I was concerned and brought it to the boss's attention, but he said 'it's nothing' and dismissed it immediately. Meanwhile, this mold-looking stuff has spread to the trees and bushes on either side of the original infected bush. This mold seems to be very fast spreading and is covering most of the plant, with some of the leaves now entirely white. I don't even know what the plants ARE, let alone what this mold is. Wikipedia wasn't a huge help- it would seem to be either "white mold" or "powdery mildew". I just don't want our plants to die! Can anyone tell me what this plant disease is and how to cure it? Is there some kind of all-in-one plant aid I can use to help our plants recover?
[img]https://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f293/fox_spirit/DSC04722.jpg[/img]
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summermaddux
- Newly Registered
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- Joined: Tue Apr 22, 2008 6:10 pm
- Location: Sacramento, CA
Looks like powdery mildew to me. Powdery mildew is a catchall for quite a few different species of fungi that infect plants.
Those plants appear to be well beyond the use of any least-toxic fungicides which should be sprayed at the first signs of infection. For what it's worth, I personally wouldn't use a least-toxic fungicide around man nor beast anyway.
Some information that may help you understand what I believe you may very well have on your hands right now and your boss may very well be correct because even though some plants may be weakened by powdery mildews, they generally don't kill them-
https://plantclinic.cornell.edu/FactSheets/powdery/powdery.htm
The big problem with powdery mildew is that spores are carried by wind to new hosts. That's why you're seeing it spread to other plants in the area.
If it were me, I'd try an organic Neem oil product. Pick up, bag, and dispose of any diseased leaves that fall to the ground beneath the plants. If your boss isn't willing to pay for Neem oil, you could try a couple things. First would be whole milk in a 1:8 ratio with water and spray the whole plant. There's some research out there that suggests this may help. If it rains, spray the plants again with your diluted milk solution. Don't forget the undersides of the leaves as well as the stems and repeat every few days or after it rains. Another option is a baking soda solution. You'll have to go online and look up what the recommended ratio is per gallon. Probably a Tablespoon or two. Supposedly, the baking soda raises the pH and the fungi doesn't exactly like high pH.
It's been my experience you can't cure a plant of powdery mildew but you can generally control it.
Those plants appear to be well beyond the use of any least-toxic fungicides which should be sprayed at the first signs of infection. For what it's worth, I personally wouldn't use a least-toxic fungicide around man nor beast anyway.
Some information that may help you understand what I believe you may very well have on your hands right now and your boss may very well be correct because even though some plants may be weakened by powdery mildews, they generally don't kill them-
https://plantclinic.cornell.edu/FactSheets/powdery/powdery.htm
The big problem with powdery mildew is that spores are carried by wind to new hosts. That's why you're seeing it spread to other plants in the area.
If it were me, I'd try an organic Neem oil product. Pick up, bag, and dispose of any diseased leaves that fall to the ground beneath the plants. If your boss isn't willing to pay for Neem oil, you could try a couple things. First would be whole milk in a 1:8 ratio with water and spray the whole plant. There's some research out there that suggests this may help. If it rains, spray the plants again with your diluted milk solution. Don't forget the undersides of the leaves as well as the stems and repeat every few days or after it rains. Another option is a baking soda solution. You'll have to go online and look up what the recommended ratio is per gallon. Probably a Tablespoon or two. Supposedly, the baking soda raises the pH and the fungi doesn't exactly like high pH.
It's been my experience you can't cure a plant of powdery mildew but you can generally control it.