Plant Diseases

/Plant Diseases

Swiss Chard

Please accept our apologies for the delay in responding to your question! Your chard plant could be suffering from one of several things, including an infectious disease or a non-infectious (abiotic) disorder that arose from environmental stresses. These two types of plant disorders can be difficult to tell apart because symptoms can be very similar. From what we see in your photo, it could be that your plant is suffering from too much water and/or high humidity, (we'd more info about that), or that a fungal disease is responsible for the condition of the leave, which could be encouraged by too much moisture, splashing water on the leaves and/or not enough sun (again we'd need more info). We've included some links about growing chard and common diseases for your reference. We hope this helps.
http://www.harvesttotable.com/2009/06/beets_and_chard_growing_proble/
http://bonnieplants.com/growing/growing-swiss-chard/

By | 2017-09-11T15:49:23-07:00 February 23rd, 2016|Plant Diseases|0 Comments
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Early Blight Or Uneven Watering

There could be two causes of yellowing of bottom leaves on a tomato. The first, and most easily remedied, is uneven watering. If you let a tomato plant go too dry in between soakings the plant will drop its lower leaves to conserve water. Soaking the ground for a longer period of time less often, and not watering by hand but using a sprinkler or soaker hose, is the way to handle that situation. Mulch around the plant will also help keep a more even level of moisture. Try not to splash water on the leaves in the evening as this is a prescription for most fungal problems.

Early blight is a fungal disease that causes the lower leaves to yellow, and frequently become spotted with dark spots as well. Remove the leaves that you see are damaged and begin spraying with an organic fungicide. If you spray weekly from now until frost you should be able to continue to harvest. As at your local garden center for an organic fungicide that is labeled for early blight on tomatoes.

By | 2016-02-23T07:39:49-08:00 February 23rd, 2016|Plant Diseases|1 Comment
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Nutrient Deficiency Azalea

This is not an infectious disease, but a nutrient deficiency which could be caused by a couple of things, mainly water stress (too much or too little) and/or the wrong soil pH range for the plant. Soil conditions can, and often do, change over a period of time; its apparently changed enough around the roots of this plant to cause the deficiency. Azalea needs an acidic soil pH, but at the very least you will want to fertilize with an acidic fertilizer; they are available at your local garden center. You will also want to make sure the soil around this plant is not particulary wet (too wet) for some reason (ie: water leak nearby, water running "down" slope,even if gradual), or too dry. You'd think the healthier looking plant would be suffering the same as this one since they are so close to each other, but this is often seen in landscapes due to variations that can and do occur in small areas. Hope this helps.

By | 2016-02-22T20:51:17-08:00 February 22nd, 2016|Plant Diseases|0 Comments
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Tomato Disorders

This may or may not be an infectious disease, but disorders caused by cultural care practices and environmental issues can cause similar problems, and may make the plant weak and more susceptible to attack by pest and diseases. We often see tomato stems and leaves curl downward after flooding of soils around the root system. This disorder is called Epinasty and is a result of ethylene production by the plant in response to the lack of air in the soil. This same issue could be caused by a lack of water deep in the soil, causing roots to grow shallow, in the upper surfaces of the soil. In short, there are several visible abnormalities in leaf color, size, and curling that can all be accounted for by inconsistency in watering, compact soils, soils with high clay content, soils low in organic matter, or too much air around the root system. We've included a weblink with information about tomato culture and common pests, diseases, and disorders.
http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/GARDEN/VEGES/tomato.html

By | 2016-02-22T09:46:20-08:00 February 22nd, 2016|Plant Diseases|0 Comments
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Tomato Disorders

This may or may not be an infectious disease, but disorders caused by cultural care practices and environmental issues can cause similar problems, and may make the plant weak and more susceptible to attack by pest and diseases. We often see tomato stems and leaves curl downward after flooding of soils around the root system. This disorder is called Epinasty and is a result of ethylene production by the plant in response to the lack of air in the soil. This same issue could be caused by heavy soils that restrict deeper root growth. In short, there are several visible abnormalities in leaf color, size, and curling that can all be accounted for by inconsistency in watering, compact soils, soils with high clay content, soils low in organic matter, or too much air around the root system. We've included a weblink with information about tomato culture and common pests, diseases, and disorders.
http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/GARDEN/VEGES/tomato.html

By | 2016-02-22T08:52:01-08:00 February 22nd, 2016|Plant Diseases|0 Comments
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Euonymus

Cause The fungus Colletotrichum gloeosporioides has been found a few times by the OSU Plant Clinic and is considered an occasional problem in BC. It is a problem on Euonymous japonica and E. fortunei including the very susceptible cultivars Canadale Gold, Emerald Gaiety and Emerald 'n Gold. Favored by warm temperatures and long wet periods.

Symptoms Small leaf lesions with white, gray or tan centers and dark or reddish boarders. Centers of lesions frequently fall out, giving the leaf a "shot-hole" appearance. Stem cankers are small, oval and may be raised and scabby. Larger cankers may girdle the stem causing dieback and defoliation.

Cultural control

Grow less susceptible cultivars.
Remove fallen leaves and other plant debris from production areas.
Do not overwater, and irrigate when leaves can dry quickly.
Remove and destroy heavily infected plant parts.
Improve air circulation with increased plant spacing.
Grow under high shade intensities, rather than full sun or light shade.

By | 2016-02-22T06:11:26-08:00 February 22nd, 2016|Plant Diseases|0 Comments
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Tobacco Mosaic Virus On Tomato

It appears that your tomato plant has Virus. There are 3 virus possibility. WE have included links below. Two of the viruses are spread by aphids (sounds like the insect that you described). A third, the Tobacco Mosaic Virus, is very easily transmitted when an infected leaf rubs against a leaf of a healthy plant, by contaminated tools, and occasionally by workers whose hands become contaminated with TMV after smoking cigarettes. The "mosaic" appearance of the yellow/green tissues of the leaf, and what appears to be a "shoe-string" or ferny look is a characteristic symptom of a virus disease. Unfortunately viruses cannot be reversed or cured, however infected plants may produce edible fruit, but yield, size, and quality are reduced. Here are a few links that you might find helpful:
http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/r783102811.html
http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/r783102611.html
http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/r783102711.html

By | 2016-02-21T13:33:09-08:00 February 21st, 2016|Plant Diseases|0 Comments
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Burros Tail Leaf Shrivel

This is a hard one to figure just from a photo. First, it is possible that there is no problem at all other than maybe some erratic watering. If the soil had gotten too dry at some point, it could have caused some root collapse. This could cause a stem to die and start the leaf problem. Succulents like other plants do shed leaves from time to time but usually they are the oldest ones closest to the bottom of the plant. These seem to be somewhat random as to on which stem its happening. Worst case scenario which is impossible to see from this photo is the possibility of a mealybug problem down around the base end of the stems. If you can look down in there without knocking too many "jelly beans" off, if you see a white cottony bunch of little critters that's a problem. If so, I would just take a bunch of healthy cuttings off the plant (away from the bugs) and start a new plant and ditch the rest. Hopefully you are just seeing some natural attrition and possibly just a watering issue.

By | 2016-02-21T12:04:14-08:00 February 21st, 2016|Plant Diseases|0 Comments
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Austrian Pines Dying

We apologize but all of our advisors studied your photo and could not come up with a definite answer for you. It was decided that it takes closer examination - if possible take a cutting to a garden center that is knowledgeable about pine trees. Suggest that you contact your local cooperative extension office and explain about the problem. Here are some sources that provide information about Austrian pines, Pinus nigra.
http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/wilderness-resources/stories/mysterious-outbreak-killing-montanas-austrian-pine-trees and :http://csfs.colostate.edu/pdfs/bark-beetles-brochure.pdf. Please let us know what you find out as this is how we learn as well.

Pinus nigra ( Austrian Pine ) - Backyard Gardener
www.backyardgardener.com/plantname/pda_1e9f.html‎
Learn about Pinus nigra ( Austrian Pine ) and see photos with detailed growing ... They can be subject to many diseases, such as damping off, root rot, dieback, blister rust, ... This is done to maintain the desired shape of a hedge or topiary.

By | 2016-02-21T07:59:47-08:00 February 21st, 2016|Plant Diseases|0 Comments
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Fungal Leaf Spot On Rhododendron

This looks like the typical damage done by one of the fungal leaf diseases of Rhododendron. When the fungus kills an area of the leaf the dead tissue drops out, making it look like something is eating the leaf. But when you can see brown spots where the leaf tissue hasn't fallen away yet, you know that it's a fungal problem not an insect problem. Ask at your local garden center for a fungicide labeled for leaf-spot on Rhododendron and use according to directions. Most garden centers carry organic fungicides as well as conventional ones, so you'll be able to find a product that meets with your gardening philosophy.

In seasons to come, try to water your plants so that the foliage isn't frequently splashed with water. Frequent water, which sometimes comes from drift off lawn sprinklers, is the cause of many leaf-spot diseases. For this reason it's best to water all plants deeply but less often.

By | 2016-02-20T08:15:13-08:00 February 20th, 2016|Plant Diseases|0 Comments
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