Round Rock Gardens - What's Bugging You?

Now’s the time to control over-wintering insects and diseases:

Spray trees and shrubs with Neem Oil to reduce insect population.
Spray for spider mites with Neem oil on needles and limbs of arborvitae, juniper, pine and yews.
As the leaves begin to open on azaleas and rhododendron, spray with Fertilome Fungicide or Garlic GP (organic) to prevent flower blight and leaf blight on azaleas. Remove and destroy gals and repeat spraying weekly through blooming. Apply Fruit Tree Spray as buds swell and again at petal drop to all fruit trees.
Spray roses at bud break to control botrytis and black spot if you haven’t already done so.
To control leaf spot on Mt. Laurel, spray with Fungonil when new leaves are about an inch long. Also spray roses at bud break to control botrytis and black spot if you haven’t already done so.
Remove infected stems and litter of pachysandra and begin spraying every 2 weeks (until hot weather) with Hi-Yield Copperas or Garlic GP to control volutella blight.

A Thumbnail Guide to Common Blights

Plants have no immunity to infection. Your best defense against disease and blight is early, aggressive, preventive action. Regular spraying with a fungicide before or at first sign of disease is key. The removal of diseased branches, and clean-up of plant litter, will help avoid a reoccurrence.

	Plants & Blight	Look For	What to do
Azalea	Petal Blight	Pinhead size spots on flower petals that enlarge to irregular blotches. Flowers turn mushy then dry up and cling to the plant.	Pick off diseased flowers and clean-up around plant. Spray with Bonide Fungonil or Liquid Copper fungicide at new bud emergence. Continue to spray every 7-14 days through the bloom period. You may also use systemic fungicide, every 14 – 28 days.
Pachysandra	Volutella Blight	Irregular brown and black blotches appear on the leaves. Areas of the stem turn black, soft and sunken.	Remove infested stems and litter. Begin spraying with Fungonil at spring bud break. Continue to spray thoroughly every two weeks until hot weather arrives. Add a spreader-sticker to protect new growth against disease.
Dogwood	Anthracnose	Spotted, puckered leaves and flowers. Disease is worse in wet weather.	Spray Fung-Away at spring bud swell when buds show color. Repeat several times at 7-10 days intervals. Rake and destroy leaves in the fall. Prune and destroy infected twigs.
Juniper	Phomopsis Tip Blight	Affects new growth, causing tips of branches to die back.	Spray with Fertilome Liquid Fungicide when symptoms first appear. Repeat at 7-10 day intervals as long as necessary. Prune and destroy infected branches.
Mountain Laurel	Leaf spot	Yellow, red, tan, gray or brown spots appear on leaves. Several spots may join to form large blotches.	Spray with Fertilome Liquid Fungicide at spring bud break. Repeat every 7-14 days. Collect and destroy fallen leaves.