There have been some questions in the gardens this week about strawberries turning black and shriveling (grey mold). This is a fungus called Botrytis which affects fruits, flowers, and sometimes leaves. It is worse in cooler, wetter weather also affecting roses and marigolds or other flowers and other fruits. Fungicide like Daconil helps prevent the fungus from spreading and affecting new buds and fruits. Also increasing air flow helps by thinning or increasing spacing.
If you have hackberry trees, you will notice bumps underneath the leaves. This is from a little fly (midge) that lays an egg, and the portion of the leaf grows around the newly hatched insect protecting it until it emerges. Since the tree and insect are both native, all hackberry trees will get this condition depending on the weather which does not harm the tree. I live with it.
Be on the outlook for squash borers. The adult lays eggs around the base of the plants. These hatch and the tiny grubs burrow into the vine causing wilting. Tests show that aluminum foil around the stems where they come out of the ground confuses the borers when they hatch. Also, a Malathion spray around the ground kills the insect.
It is a good idea to tour your garden or flowerbed every day scouting for disease and insects. Please keep a look out for cucumber beetles, cabbage worms, and potato beetles.
The weeds of the week are the foxtail barley (neither a foxtail nor barley) and downy brome grass (cheatgrass) not to be confused with the perennial smooth bromegrass. The plants are easy to pull out in the flowerbed or garden. In the lawns, do not let them set seed. A good stand of sod will crowd these weeds out.
I have noticed that many Alberta Spruce get winterkilled. The dead will not grow back and if the whole side or top of the plant is dead, replant with another hardier plant.
Stop harvesting asparagus when the spears get to the diameter of a pencil. Let the spears grow until a hard frost for next year’s crop.