{"id":9891,"date":"2015-05-22T22:40:10","date_gmt":"2015-05-23T02:40:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.surroundslandscaping.com\/?p=2275"},"modified":"2024-06-12T18:00:59","modified_gmt":"2024-06-12T18:00:59","slug":"northern-virginia-garden-plant-diseases","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.surroundslandscaping.com\/northern-virginia-garden-plant-diseases\/","title":{"rendered":"Garden Care: Common Northern Virginia Garden Plant Diseases"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Five Garden Plant Diseases: What they look like and what they do to your plants<\/h2>\n

\"anthracnose<\/a>
Anthracnose on Cornus Dogwood leaves<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Of the many types of garden plant diseases, Surrounds garden care specialist Margaret Miley says these five are the ones she sees most frequently in our Maryland and Northern Virginia gardens:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Sooty Mold<\/li>\n
  2. Powdery Mildew<\/li>\n
  3. Anthracnose<\/li>\n
  4. Cankar<\/li>\n
  5. Needle Cast<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Truth is, if you\u2019ve chosen a company to perform scheduled garden care and landscape maintenance<\/a> programs, you aren\u2019t likely to see these diseases take hold of your plants or\u00a0trees. But, a basic understanding of what these diseases look like and which plants they attack may perhaps enable you to alert your neighbor to an issue some day. Also worth noting, if your neighbor\u2019s garden has issues, it usually doesn\u2019t take long for them to migrate over to your yard.<\/p>\n

    \"sooty<\/a>
    Sooty mold on camellia leaves. Photo: Brian Kunkel, University of Delaware, Bugwood.org<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

    1 Sooty Mold<\/strong>
    \nSooty Mold collects on camellias and other leafy plants. Unlike certain     pest insects<\/a>, it doesn\u2019t feed directly on the plant. Sooty mold is a fungus that feeds on the leavings of sucking insects that eat the plant. For example, scale bugs and aphids excrete sugars called honeydew. The sooty mold spores grow on those excretions. If allowed to propagate freely, a black coating of mold can potentially interfere with the\u00a0plant’s ability to breathe and photosynthesize sunlight.<\/p>\n

    <\/div>\n
    \"powdery<\/a>
    Powdery mildew on lilac leaves. PHOTO: Whitney Cranshaw, Colorado State University, Bugwood.org<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

    2 Powdery Mildew<\/strong>
    \nPowdery mildew is a fungus that thoroughly enjoys our humid Maryland and Virginia climate\u2014particularly during a dry spell accompanied by moderate (below 90-degrees) temperatures and high relative humidity. That\u2019s because powdery mildew requires a dry leaf surface to form.<\/p>\n

    There are multiple types of powdery mildew and each one favors a particular species of plant. So, if your lilacs are affected, that mildew will stay put and not spread to your peonies or other species. The fungus won\u2019t kill a plant unless you allow it to progress for several years without treating it. In that case, it would gradually interfere with growth, distort plant shape and cause leaves to drop prematurely.\u00a0Typical causes of sooty mold are:<\/p>\n