Questions and Answers on diseases related to fruit trees and edible plants.
Can you tell me the best ways to control the Tomato potato psyllid (TPP) - Bactericera cockerelli. I first found them on my tomatoes about three seasons ago and I would like to know the best environmentally friendly way to control them or failing that other pesticides that may be effective against them.
My parsley gets absolutely covered in bugs. Are they aphids and what is the best product to use on an edible crop to prevent or get rid of them please?
After months of waiting patiently for strawberries to grow and ripen, it can be frustrating to discover grey mould on your fruit. Strawberries can become affected with grey mould (botrytis) which thrives in humid, damp conditions or where air circulation is poor around plants.
How do you stop blossom rot on tomatoes?
I usually spray my peach tree early in the season, but this year I forgot. While the foliage and immature fruit are doing well, I’ve just noticed a few hints of leaf curl. Will this affect the crop, is it too late to treat, and with what?
I would like some help with my raspberries please. Last season I had an invasion of little white grubs in the fruit. What can I do to stop this happening again?
Lately, one spot in my garden has been affected by possibly ‘clubroot’. I have been advised to plant different veggies there and/or spread dolomite lime. Is this correct?
I wonder if you could tell me what is wrong with our peaches please. Also is there anything we can do naturally to help them?
My lemon tree is covered in this black sooty like stuff? What is it and how do I get rid of it?
My tomato plants were looking very healthy until the four days of rain we had in January. Then they started wilting and have not improved. Just before the rain, I had given them a dressing of Daltons Tomato Fertiliser and they had a large amount of tomatoes set on them. What went wrong?
What is the best way to control aphids on my plants? I have trouble with them every year.
Many of our apricots are displaying a small brown spot, which turn into a soft rotten spot. I have sprayed a copper spray in the spring as a preventative measure. What causes this brown soft rot and how do we prevent it?
Last year my broad beans had rust. This year they are looking good, but are only three or four inches high. Please tell me how to prevent them getting rust again.
How do I get rid of the black fungi looking growth all over my lemon tree? Lovely lemons but the tree gets covered and so does the fruit. It washes off but looks terrible and is a concern.
These orange spots have appeared on the leaves of my raspberry plants. What are they and do I need to treat for them?
Why have tomatoes in my polycarbonate glasshouse gone mouldy? The leaves are spotted with mould and turn yellow, and many of the flowers don’t develop into fruit, while my outside tomatoes have done really well.
How is mildew prevented on gooseberries?
Does moss and lichen on fruit trees cause any problems and what product should I use to remove it? Also, what fertiliser should I use for pip and stone fruit trees?
Can you suggest any organic methods to control leaf curl in nectarines?
I have discovered what looks like bora on our nectarine tree. We treated our house for bora last summer. Could the bora have spread from the house to this fruit tree? How can we treat it so the fruit will be safe to eat?
When my tomatoes are approximately one metre, they wilt from the top and on inspection there is rot on the stem above the root system. What causes this and how can it be cured?
Our grapes are small and covered with a silver grey coating and the leaves are withered and diseased. There also is what appears to be a brown centre in the vine when the end is cut. What should I do?
The tomato plants in my greenhouse are now 1.5m tall and are producing tomatoes. Some of the leaves and branches are showing greyish patches and silvery mould like things on stems. What diseases is this and how can I fix it?