Home Vegetable Gardening: Treating Plants For Powdery Mildew

By Author: Michael Podlesny
Total Articles: 174
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Powdery mildew affects such a wide range of plants but most notably those that are in the broadleaf category such as squash and different varieties of plants in the pea families.

If your plants currently have them, do not worry it is a very common occurrence and even better yet this pesky problem is easily treatable.

If left untreated by doing nothing however, your plants can become weak, look deformed and reduce yields of your harvest.

Here are some steps you can take today that could reduce and/or eliminate powdery mildew from your vegetable garden.

The first step is to avoid planting species of plants, such as phlox or bee balm, anywhere near your vegetable plants. This simply invites trouble into your garden, making it easier for it to infect and spread.

The second step is to use natural and safe sprays that reduces the problem without harming the plant itself or helpful insects within the garden. Neem oil is perfect but you can also make your own spray out of 1.5 tbsp baking soda, 1 tsp vegetable oil and 1.5 gallons of warm water mixed together thoroughly then sprayed on the affected ...
... plants.

Finally apply a chamomile tea spray mixture on your plants which act as not only a solution for existing powdery mildew but also a repellent to keep the mildew from coming back. Take 6 dried out chamomile tea leaves and boil them in 3 cups of water. Let the mixture cool, remove the tea leaves, place mixture in a spray bottle and apply to affected areas.

If your garden suffers from powdery mildew then you should be using all three of these methods. They are low cost and very affective. Put an end to your powdery mildew in your vegetable garden today.
About the Author
Mike is the author of the book Vegetable Gardening for the Average Person: A Guide to Vegetable Gardening for the Rest of Us, available where gardening books are sold. Sign up for Mike's vegetable gardening newsletter at his website: AveragePersonGardening.com and he will send you a free pack of vegetable seeds to get your garden started.