Once the fruits and vegetables have been harvested and the flowers start to fade, it's tempting to relax and let your garden go. But late-summer pests and diseases can lay dormant until next season if left untreated. The information below will help you prevent that.
- Dry conditions in August favor red spider mites, under glass and outdoors. Once established, they can be hard to eradicate.
- Warm, humid days encourage the spread of fungal and bacterial diseases, such as mildew on gooseberries, plums, peas and chrysanthemums; rust on roses; and fire blight on cotoneasters and apples.
- Continue with preventative measures taken earlier in the season and maintain precautionary insecticide or fungicide spray routines if you have adopted these for roses and fruit.
- Develop the habit of lifting the leaves as you work among plants, checking the undersides for insect pests and spores or other signs of fungal infections.
- Late in the season, it is often more effective to cut off and burn leaves, shoots or flowerheads harmed by disease or aphids rather than attempt treatment with slow-acting systemic sprays.
- As temperatures drop under glass, the efficacy of biological controls lessen; the predator or parasite needs consistent warmth to feed and multiply rapidly.
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Protect your fruits and roses by using either insecticide or fungicide sprays.
