Not just humans and animals fall ill, plants and trees do as well! When your garden suffers from a bout of illness and disease, it could really ruin your whole outdoor space. Not only that, though, but if things get particularly bad then you might find that the plant illness spreads to your neighbors’ backyards too. It is fair to say that they will not be happy at all!
To ensure that you can keep your garden in top condition, here are some common plant and tree diseases that you need to watch out for and what you can do about them.
Bacterial Leaf Spot
This disease is just what it says on the tin – you can easily tell if your plants are suffering from it because you will be able to see spots on the leaves. The spots will be small and black, and might look a bit like water stains in some instances. Eventually, the infected leaves will shrivel up and fall off the plant. Sadly, there is no cure for this disease. If you notice it on one of your plants, you should apply some sulfur or copper based fungicides to prevent the disease spreading to your other plants.
Dutch Elm Disease
Dutch elm disease only affects trees. Thankfully, it is not all too common, but it is important that you know about it because it can be devastating if it hits a garden. You will have to use local tree removal services, as it is important that all infected trees are disposed of, unfortunately. A nasty fungus that affects the tree’s vascular system causes it. This disease is often easy to spot in the summer – you will notice that the bark starts to peel and brown rings will develop around branches.
Downy Mildew
If you have a vegetable patch in your garden, you will need to keep a keen eye out for Downy Mildew. You will be able to notice this because it often looks like a slightly purple dewy growth that ever so slightly resembles mildew. This disease favors moist conditions so it is important that you do not over-water your veggies. It is a good idea to water them early in the morning so that the ground has plenty of time to dry out before you water them again in the evening. Make sure that the soil they are in is well aerated so that plenty of air can get down to the roots.
Mosaic Virus
Mosaic Virus is another disease that affects vegetables. However, this one mainly targets beans, peppers, and tomato plants. When it hits, it will discolor the leaves of the plants. As a virus causes this, there is no cure for it and your plants that are affected will probably die, I am afraid. To prevent this disease killing your whole crop, try and only plant strains of beans, peppers, and tomatoes that are resilient to the virus.
Some of these diseases can be devastating, so it always pays off to take the right preventative measures.
