In case any of you have been watching, the pseudo-summer of 2011 has been unusually damp and cool. This kind of weather, while preferable to the scorching heat of other areas, creates its' own special problem. Fungus loves this kind of weather.
This year has brought us record crops of powdery mildew on a wide variety of plants, and lots of rust and black spot. Controlling these problems is very difficult as the weather is the major contributing factor. Using fungicides can help but they must be re-applied on 1-2 week intervals during damp weather. Fungicides won't cure the damaged leaves but prevent the fungus from infecting new healthy growth. Other things you can do to help include not watering through the foliage of fungus-susceptible plants, handpicking and disposing of diseased materials, and pruning to increase light penetration and air circulation into the foliage.
Another bumper crop in our summer-that-never-was is a high population of slugs and snails. Poison baits work well for these pests and there are pet safe brands available. Slugs and snails like cool, dark, damp areas so in addition to baiting around your precious plants, also bait around woodpiles, stone walls, or other places these mollusks can hide. If you live next to the woods, throw some bait in there and kill them before they get into your yard.
If you don't like using poison, try this trick. Take a piece of plywood, half a sheet or bigger, and lie it down in a shady area. Moisten the ground underneath, prop up one corner with a rock or stick, and place some pieces of fruit under the plywood. The slugs will love you for creating a damp shady spot with ample food. They will collect themselves under the plywood and in the evening you can go out with a shovel and chop chop chop. Leave the bodies there as slugs are enthusiastic cannibals. You can make a big dent in the slug population quickly, easily, safely and in an environmentally sensitive manner.
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