Powdery Mildew on Crepe Myrtles

ddossey · Joined: 01 Apr 2004 Posts: 24 Location: Hewitt,TEXAS

http://www.dirtdoctor.com/view_question.php?id=208

Has anyone tried this treatment?

I've got a couple of small Crepe Myrtles that are getting eaten up with powdery mildew.

Dave

The Ent · Joined: 19 Mar 2003 Posts: 784 Location: ,

In fact I am about to do this tonite.

Several of our smaller crepes have some powdery mildew on them that showed up in the last week. I'll just be doing the Garrett + Sodium Bicarbonate.

ddossey · Joined: 01 Apr 2004 Posts: 24 Location: Hewitt,TEXAS

Ent,

Thanks. All I have on hand is some corneal. I think I'm just going to try the conrmeal juice. I'll post a follow up with results.

How long do you think I should soak the cornmeal?

Dave

Kathe Kitchens · Joined: 21 May 2003 Posts: 829 Location: Dallas,TX

Soak a cup or two of cornmeal in a gallon of water for about an hour in a warm place. That'll be all you need.

If you really want to eliminate the problem, spray the plant with cornmeal juice and then rough up the soil at its feet and water in the solid cornmeal. It's a great remedy and it works very quickly, overnight!

It works, it works, it works, it works!
Kathe :D

goo0h · Joined: 07 May 2004 Posts: 127 Location: Denton,TEXAS

Kathe Kitchens wrote: Soak a cup or two of cornmeal in a gallon of water for about an hour in a warm place. That'll be all you need.

If you really want to eliminate the problem, spray the plant with cornmeal juice and then rough up the soil at its feet and water in the solid cornmeal. It's a great remedy and it works very quickly, overnight!

It works, it works, it works, it works!
Kathe :D

OK, I'll hold you to that! :wink:

Like others my Crepe Myrtle has got that nasty stuff on the tips of the branches. Used the entire contents of a 1 gal sprayer of this stuff on two (mostly one) such infected bush, and sprinkled a bunch of cornmeal on the ground and watered in. We'll see how it goes.

Now I wish I had thought to prune these things back a bit this past winter. I'm glad this mixture isn't toxic, because I got a bunch of overspray in my face. :wink:

Kathe Kitchens · Joined: 21 May 2003 Posts: 829 Location: Dallas,TX

They'll be very happy very quickly.
Now think to yourself what would have happend if you were using one of those horrible fungicides recommended for powdery mildew. Instead you decided to go organic, and every with overspray in the face, NO poison! You just made the point crystal clear for everyone!

Kathe :wink:

goo0h · Joined: 07 May 2004 Posts: 127 Location: Denton,TEXAS

Kathe Kitchens wrote: They'll be very happy very quickly.
Now think to yourself what would have happend if you were using one of those horrible fungicides recommended for powdery mildew. Instead you decided to go organic, and every with overspray in the face, NO poison! You just made the point crystal clear for everyone!

Kathe :wink:

They may be a bit happier, but still got powdery mildew. :(

I don't discount the value of cornmeal, just wonder if it's strong enough when it's a bad case. I think I'll try the Potassium Bicarbonate + Garrett Juice mixture and see how that does.

(Last Spring I had bad black spot on a rose bush I inherited with this property. The previous owner swore by various chemicals, so I dutifully followed said prescription, but it just didn't get better. About that time I saw some comments from Dchall_San_Antonio on another forum regarding the monthly application of cornmeal to the ground around his rose bushes. So that August I pruned off the sickly stems, and started the monthly sprinkling of cornmeal at the base of my rose bush. I've continued that regimen this season, and so far that bush has been very healthy with big, huge blooms, and still no signs of evilness like last Spring, despite much more rain than last Spring. So I know cornmeal works to maintain a healthy plant.)

Say, how much watering do Crepe Myrtle need, anyway? Is it possible that if it doesn't get enough water that it may get weak, and more susceptible to powdery mildew? I notice my Crepe Myrtle leaves aren't as dark a green as some of the other (more healthy looking) ones in the neighborhood. I'm wondering if there's another component in this equation that I'm overlooking. Maybe the Garrett Juice will help there too, huh?

goo0h · Joined: 07 May 2004 Posts: 127 Location: Denton,TEXAS

goo0h wrote: I think I'll try the Potassium Bicarbonate + Garrett Juice mixture and see how that does.

Actually, why is Potassium Bicarbonate mentioned here? Why not just Sodium Bicarbonate?

Kathe Kitchens · Joined: 21 May 2003 Posts: 829 Location: Dallas,TX

Potassium bicarbonate is recommended because the potatssium is a better component, as opposed to sodium. Both will work.

Crepe myrtles like enough water but not too much. Check the drainage. Cornmeal has worked with every type of plant I have ever tried it on, from trees to herbs. It's also a good organic material source. You just can't beat it for price and effectiveness.
Kathe

Billusa99 · Joined: 24 Mar 2003 Posts: 291 Location: Dallas,TX

The combo works... did it last week on my 16... only the new upper shoots had it.

We had a relatively wet spring and the pecans and American elms in my area leafed out a lot faster than last spring. This resulted in morning shade (a lot sooner) for the crapes while the new shoots were still growing. r

Result: a perfect combination for powdery mildew... wet and lack of sun.

The Ent · Joined: 19 Mar 2003 Posts: 784 Location: ,

Baking soda got most of it the other day. Some came back, what with it stil being moist and cloudy yet warm.

Used corn meal tae last night. Looks like it's all gone.

Just like Billusa99, it was only the newest growth.

nina norman · Posted: Wed May 26, 2004 7:52 am Post subject:

:oops: Can I please ask a stupid question? When ya'll are saying that this combination cleared it up are ya'll saying that the black spots all went away or are ya'll pulling those leaves off? I just added cornmeal to the soil of all of my dads roses and I would like to spray with baking soda (don't have any potassium stuff yet), garret juice and liquid seaweed. Will that do the trick or should I leave out the seaweed?

Thanks
Nina

ddossey · Joined: 01 Apr 2004 Posts: 24 Location: Hewitt,TEXAS

Silly question:

After a treatment of cornmeal juice, should the powdery mildew still be evident? I sprayed the cornmeal juice on the foliage and watered in the cornmeal at the plants' feet about a week ago. I have noticed no change in the amount of powdery mildew. I'm not sure of it is any worse, but there is no less on the plants. Should the cornmeal "take it off" of the leaves?

Reapply? Plan B?

Thanks.

Crepe Myrtles, by the way.

The Ent · Joined: 19 Mar 2003 Posts: 784 Location: ,

It doesn't take it off (though once it's cured a good rinsing form the house will get most of it off) and the black spots on roses don't fully disappear, but they stop spreading.

dcluck · Joined: 09 Mar 2003 Posts: 315 Location: Dallas,TEXAS

Last year I didn't have any problems with powdery mildew on my crapes. This year they've been hit fairly hard with it. Cornmeal juice and cornmeal watered in at the base of each was sumarily laughed at by every last one them. Two applications in the last ten days and it's as bad as it was prior to. Looks like I'll be picking up some potassium bicarbonate this weekend.

As for wet and shade being a recipe for powdery mildew, I've seen lots and lots of crapes in my neighborhood that get full sun and are heavily covered with it. The house behind me has about six of them in the backyard. All six of them are in full sun all day and haven't been getting anything but rain water because no one's lived there since late January. To me, that points to other factors being involved.

~Dave