Tag: Garden tips

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Sick plants? Get the most out of Master Gardener Plant Clinic!

By Elizabeth Records, Master Gardener Program Assistant

Previously published in Growing.
 

Three gardeners standing at info booth.
Master Gardeners are here to help at Pop up Plant Clinics in a location near you.

It’s gardening season! Whether you’re a longtime gardener or are new to growing things, OSU Extension Master Gardener Volunteers are here to help you grow your best garden yet and deal with garden challenges.

Master Gardeners are volunteers who complete a specialized training program and work as a team to help find solutions to garden problems for people in our community. We are from all walks of life and have widely varied gardening interests and experiences. Together we bring lifetimes of collective garden knowledge to solving plant problems with research-based information. Here are some scenarios where Master Gardener volunteers can help:

Plant Identification

You are digging in the garden and find an unfamiliar plant that you did not put there. Will it produce lovely flowers or tasty food? Or will it prove to be an invasive weed that takes over your garden? Master Gardener volunteers can help you find out. Bring a sample of your plant including a full branch or stem with any leaves, flowers and fruits that may be present.

Insect issues

You find a mystery insect in the garden and wonder if it is going to harm your plants or be a helpful pollinator or a useful predator of insect pests. A dozen insects appear in your garage, and you don’t know if they are a simple nuisance or are likely to feed on you, your pets or your home. Master Gardeners can help identify insects and suggest how to manage them! Bring the insect in a sealed jar, or a high resolution photo of the insect on a pale colored background, next to a ruler or coin so we can tell the size.

Gardening guidance

Just starting your first veggie garden and wondering when to plant, or what varieties do well in your location? Want to make your garden more sustainable by using less water, attracting more pollinators or using fewer chemicals? Short on space but excited to grow fresh herbs or salads on your windowsill? Whatever your gardening goals, Master Gardeners can help you find research-based information to get the most from your garden.

Diagnosis and recommendations          

Your previously healthy plant suddenly wilts. Brown spots appear in your grass. A tree that produced lots of fruit in the past stops setting fruit. Master Gardener volunteers can help figure out what is going on and decide what to do next for best results. Bring samples and/or photos that show the problem and also the surrounding area.

Get the most out of plant clinic
  • Be ready to answer questions that will help Master Gardeners hone in on the source of your problem so we can provide the best advice possible. Master Gardeners might ask, “how long has this problem been going on?” and “Are all of the similar plants affected, or just one?” “What treatments have already been attempted to remedy this situation?”
  • Bring good samples – you can always call us for suggestions to bring the most helpful samples.
  • Master Gardeners cannot answer questions about State or Federally controlled plants, identify mushrooms, or offer medical advice. We are pleased to assist with all your other garden questions to the best of our ability.
  • Sometimes we may need input from other team members or horticulture faculty to resolve your question. Be ready to share an email or phone number if we need to do some extra research and follow up.
  • Have fun and enjoy your garden, even when things don’t go as you expected!
Plant Clinics near you!

Find us at your local office most weekdays from 9-12 and 1-4. Email or leave a phone message anytime.

Benton County

  • 4077 SW Research Way, Corvallis, OR97333
  • Call with your question: (541) 766-6750
  • Email your question and any photos to: bentonmg@oregonstate.edu

Linn County

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Do you have fruit trees? Tips on codling moth management from MG Alan Taylor

Alan Taylor has been a Benton County OSU Extension Master Gardener since 2015. When he’s not growing grapes and fruit, Alan puts his scientific background to use at the Master Gardener plant clinic by helping communities, teaching new volunteers and troubleshooting equipment.

If you have ever bitten into an apple and gotten a taste of a worm, there is a good chance it was the larva of a codling moth, a major pest of apples in the Pacific Northwest. Read on to see how Alan uses the data to get ahead of codling moths– and how you can, too!

biofix (plural biofixes)
(biology, pest management) A biological event or indicator of a developmental event, usually in the life of an insect pest, that initiates the beginning of growing-degree-day calculations.
Codling moth larva exiting fruit to pupate (Washington State University – E. Beers, July 2007)

For codling moth, this is the first date of consistent capture of adult moths in pheromone traps, and this year the consensus date for the mid-Valley biofix appears to be 29 April.

Now the fun part: CLICK HERE to visit the IPPC codling moth model (Brunner and Hoyt).

This link to the degree-day model gives a map to let the user select the weather station, and the correct biological model has already been selected. The user will need to enter the biofix date (I’ve been using 29 April) and then the calculations will give the appropriate dates for spraying.

For example, I clocked on a weather station in SW Corvallis, then entered 4/29 as starting date. This gives 20% hatch at 6 June and 50% hatch at 18 June. These two dates are the timing of the two sprays of insecticide for the first generation of codling moth.

Then I selected a site NW of Corvallis with an elevation of 780’, more representative of where I live (unfortunately no good sites both to the SW and at elevation are shown in the map), and the prediction is 20% hatch on 11 June and 50% hatch on 23 June. You can see the effect of a cooler location or microclimate. I have consistently noted that bloom and ripening of my fruit (apples, pears, grapes, etc.) is 7 – 10 later than that of friends down in Corvallis. Being at ~700’ and somewhat closer to the coast does make a difference, and I’ll be allowing for that in my sprays this year. Realistically, this is a conservative estimate, because I should also have a later biofix at my site, but I’ve chosen to ignore this. Last year, I used the timing for the Valley sites, and my apples were very clean.

Just to complicate things, not all insecticides remain effective for 12 days. I think spinosad, which I used, is supposed to be good for 10 days. Always compromises, so I used the model timing of the first spray, then waited 10 days for the second spray.

Finally, there are 2 and sometimes 3 generations of codling moth in the Valley. I’ll use the model to predict the spray timing for the second generation (we can cover that later), and I chose to ignore the potential 3rd generation last year. Four sprays is enough!

Read more about codling moths and how to manage them in the Pacific Northwest Insect Management Handbook.

Managing Diseases and Insects in Home Orchards is another useful guide.

“Project Happy Apples: Reducing codling moth damage in backyard orchards” is a free webinar for Master gardeners and home orchardists alike. Watch it HERE.