Get Growing: How to fend off a bug boom and fungal infections

[00:00:07]Well, it's been a really hot summer [music] so far and you know what loves the heat?

[00:00:13]>> Bugs.

[00:00:14]>> Bugs love the heat. [laughter] We're in for a population boom potentially.

[00:00:18]>> We are and it's not just insects, it's also some fungal infections, too.

[00:00:22]>> Okay, fun.

[00:00:24]>> So [laughter] both of those brought on by high heat and yes, and the big one is high humidity.

[00:00:28]>> Okay.

[00:00:29]>> Gosh knows we've had a lot of that.

[00:00:31]>> It certainly has been. So you've got some examples of what our plants can look like when they're affected by these things.

[00:00:36]>> You got it. So I've got some bug stuff, I've got some some fungus stuff. So we're actually going to start with bug stuff.

[00:00:43]So this one here. Now to me I think this is actually kind of pretty, but it's not. So this is an nasturtium leaf and we can see all these little itty-bitty trails. This is something called a leaf miner.

[00:00:53]>> Okay.

[00:00:54]>> So the leaf miner gets in, munches out the inside of leaf and leaves these little trails.

[00:00:58]>> It looks like a parasite.

[00:01:00]>> It does. It does. So unfortunately on this one there's not a lot for treatment. What we're going to do hopefully it's just a few leaves, pinch the leaves off right at the stem and out in the garbage. Perfect, okay.

[00:01:10]We're also seeing Now this is an apple.

[00:01:13]And we may not be able to see the insect. We We saw them a little earlier, so hopefully we got a good photo, but we can tell there's an insect in it because we can see that we've got some really um mottled leaves >> Yes.

[00:01:26]>> and we've got some leaves that are that are just starting to curl, right?

[00:01:29]They're curling up, but these guys are the telltale sign. They're actually curling down. So it's the insect is actually living here on the veins. He comes in Oh, there he goes.

[00:01:39]Super super tiny, the little aphid.

[00:01:42]>> Wow, it's almost invisible.

[00:01:44]>> Yep.

[00:01:44]>> But causes so much damage.

[00:01:46]>> He's got sucking mouth parts, so he pierces the vein and sucks the juice out juices out of it, which is why you get that shape.

[00:01:55]>> How do we treat for these ones?

[00:01:57]>> again, if you're only noticing a few leaves, take the leaves off, get them out, don't compost them.

[00:02:02]Um if you've got a very severe infestation, then to do an insecticidal soap or something like End-All. Totally organic, but I got to admit I like the name.

[00:02:10]>> Yeah.

[00:02:10]>> Um you'd spray that on, do it in the morning or the evening when it's cool, and you're going to do a total of three to four times. Each time's going to be about 7 to 10 days apart.

[00:02:20]>> Okay, good to know.

[00:02:21]>> All right. So that that takes care of a few different things.

[00:02:25]The ones that I know a lot of our customers are bringing in right now are leaf spots.

[00:02:30]>> Okay.

[00:02:30]>> And when we look at this, so I've got this one is an oakleaf hydrangea, and these spots, this is called rust, right?

[00:02:38]Makes sense.

[00:02:39]>> It looks like rust.

[00:02:39]>> rust. So quacks like a duck. Here we are.

[00:02:42]>> [laughter] >> Um so rust is a good good example of a really big fungal infection, and it can appear either as that, or this is also rust, too. It's just more orange. And this one's on an apple tree.

[00:02:54]Or it can appear like this one as a leaf spot. This is a dogwood.

[00:03:00]>> Oh.

[00:03:01]>> So we're just just starting.

[00:03:02]>> Okay.

[00:03:03]>> And again, brought on by high heat and high humidity.

[00:03:05]>> Mhm.

[00:03:06]>> So in usually the week or two after a really hot spell, we see a lot of this.

[00:03:11]>> I think easily mistaken for burn marks, too.

[00:03:13]>> That's right.

[00:03:14]>> Yes.

[00:03:14]>> And it's it's tough, right? Cuz you bring burn marks up, and I've got this one here. This is a brunnera.

[00:03:21]This is a sunburn.

[00:03:22]>> And okay.

[00:03:23]>> So for those of us with uh red-haired friends, or for those of us that are fair-skinned, we're very familiar with why this is sunburning.

[00:03:30]>> Yes.

[00:03:31]>> Right? So this one, again, all I'm going to do is remove the leaf, and we're done.

[00:03:35]>> Okay.

[00:03:36]>> For these though, we want to take a look at doing some fungicide applications. So that's actually the three on the end.

[00:03:42]>> The three on the end. Okay.

[00:03:44]>> So whether you're using something that's sulfur-based like this one, so this is a liquid you mix or you you spray on.

[00:03:50]>> Mhm.

[00:03:50]>> There's a dust that you sprinkle on, kind of like you're doing icing sugar on a cake.

[00:03:54]>> Okay.

[00:03:55]>> And do that in the morning when there's dew on the leaf, so then it sticks.

[00:03:57]>> Perfect, yep.

[00:03:58]>> The other one is copper-based.

[00:04:00]And copper works because it's a little bit more residual.

[00:04:03]>> Yes.

[00:04:04]>> Um so it sticks around longer for really, really nasty, nasty infestations.

[00:04:08]>> Okay.

[00:04:09]>> The other fungal disease that we're seeing, and this one it's kind of my favorite. She's really pretty, but she's she's kind of detrimental.

[00:04:15]>> Beauty in the eyes of the beholder, I think, for this one. [laughter] >> This is called powdery mildew.

[00:04:20]>> Okay.

[00:04:20]>> We know it's mildew because literally I can see you can see it rubbing off.

[00:04:26]>> Okay, interesting.

[00:04:27]>> high heat and high humidity builds this, and we see it it spread more when the leaf is humid or when the leaf is wet, right? So it it the as the leaf drips off, the spores will move down. So in the fall, once all the leaves drop, you're going to mix you're going to rake the leaves up, get rid of them. Don't compost them.

[00:04:47]>> Good to know. Okay.

[00:04:48]>> Right? So cuz all the spores we don't want those sitting in the soil.

[00:04:51]>> Yes.

[00:04:51]>> Cuz next spring >> Of course.

[00:04:54]>> The little darlings >> They reactivate.

[00:04:55]>> Yep.

[00:04:56]Never, never good.

[00:04:57]>> Now, I want to talk about this tree here because we've got a great example of what a bee can do to your >> I know. This is a good one. So this is a leaf cutter bee.

[00:05:08]Thank you. I totally forgot about those.

[00:05:10]>> And a leaf cutter bee is a solitary bee that lives in tube-like structures. So whether it's grasses, reeds, uh even wood bits, um and then they lay their eggs at the back of the tube, and the bees go out, they cut these perfect little semi-circles in the leaf, they mash it all up, and then they use it as a plug.

[00:05:30]>> Perfect. Okay, lastly, as as we get into these late summer weeks and months, preventative measures. Should people be looking at these things now before this population boom occurs?

[00:05:42]>> Bingo.

[00:05:43]>> Okay. So keep an eye on your gardens every day.

[00:05:46]>> Absolutely. And the easy way, just like watering, we're checking regularly. If it's only a leaf or two, snip it off.

[00:05:51]Out it goes. And then you're not You're using spray as a last resort. Even though sprays are organic.

[00:05:56]>> So, get ahead of it.

[00:05:57]>> Yep, you got it.

[00:05:58]>> Awesome. Thanks, Taniya.

[00:05:59]>> You're welcome.