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Oh NO! Help with powdery mildew

Cena
19 years ago

Went to water this evening and what did I find? PM on Sinbad, my Bob Golden, and some others. So, I need a magic potion. Well, you know.

Of course, I know the first thing I need to do is get some air in there amoungst them. But I am looking for a good wipe solution, with baking soda, peroxide, soap, or whatever works with Begonias to stop this from spreading.

Is it time to repot? Many of these are recently aquired from the ABS convention in town recently... and I'm kinda new to begonia care. Most are in teeny pots and they are getting top heavy anyway.

Nigella and Begoniac can tell you I'm not a complete plant moron, just about begonias. Looking forward to hearing what worked for you.

Thanking you in advance for any answers.

Cena

Comments (6)

  • AuntieCelene
    19 years ago

    If you're not opposed to chemicals, IMO Green Light Fungaway is the best. If you'd prefer a more natural approach, flowers of sulfur in a saltshaker (I use a cheese shaker like used at a pizza place) sprinkled on the affected areas helps.

    HTH,

    Celene

  • Cena
    Original Author
    19 years ago

    Thank you so much, Celene. I remember some kind of solution that used baking soda... I have sulfur somewhere though. Good Idea!

  • Cena
    Original Author
    19 years ago

    I think DH threw my sulfer out when we moved. It's tough to find in this town, so I ended up with Safers Fungicide, ready to use in a hand spray bottle. I will let you know how things go. When I was at the nursery purchasing this, the head gardener told me that everyone was having problems with PM, since we haven't had the heat in the month of October we usually have.

  • Margaret_MacD
    19 years ago

    My big tuberous has it too. Does anyone know whether the colonies of the mildew are isolated, or are they just the visible bits? I bought some sulphur-based fungicide and burned holes in the leaves the first time through using too much. Now I spray on a dilute solution, as per the directions, but it doesn't seem to be helping. I'm wondering whether dabbing solution right onto the colonies with a q-tip would work better.

  • kamala
    13 years ago

    I had terrible powdery mildew on a tuberous begonia, sprayed it with sulfur fungicide and burned it, then left it to get worse with the powdery mildew.

    Then I googled organic solutions to the problem and found a website that told about zucchini growers in Brazil who switched to a dilute solution of milk that worked so well that they stopped using expensive and toxic chemicals.

    The dilution is 1 part milk to 9 parts water. Skim is better, less likely to go rancid on the plant, said the site. I made up half a cup of milk from powdered milk, diluted it and sprayed the top and bottom of the begonia's leaves and its stem. The mildew disappeared almost entirely.

    We'll see how it goes. Even if the respite is temporary, it's fantastic to have a solution that works. !! Yay.

    Try it. So cheap.

  • kamala
    13 years ago

    This is Kamala again. The website is Garden Guides and here is the link to the article, which says that the dilute milk solution also acts as a foliar feeder, and that New Zealand melon growers and possibly wine grape growers are trying the milk solution.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Garden Guides

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