Yes, this is powdery mildew on hydrangeas. By retail environment do you mean that the hydreangea is growing by a retail store? Or do you mean that you’re selling these plants and they have mildew? In either case you can spray it with one of the organic fungicides such as Green Cure or a copper-based fungicide. Either are the least-toxic solution. Pick off the worst looking leaves and throw them away. In a retail environment I would also do something that draws the eye away from the plant…Place a brightly colored chair to one side or in front of the plant for example. (If the space is small, use a kid’s chair) Or you could put a collection of whimsical ornaments around the plant or to one side. If the plant is really looking badly, you could even make fun of it depending on what type of retail store you have…a group of garden gnomes laying down on the job with signs that say “mildew control squad” for example. If you find a way to poke fun at it, take photos and post them on your store facebook page. This has been a bad year for mildew on plants, and beyond preventing the mildew from spreading quickly by using an organic fungicide the best we all can do is to try and make light of what Mother Nature delivers in some way.
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