Winter garden pests and diseases

 

 

Plants lose buds before they open, bud tips and petal edges turn brown.

 

Keep the soil moist and protect flowers from early morning sun to avoid damaging petals damp with dew. If in a pot the plant may need repotting.

 

There is no chemical option available.

 

 

 

This fungus makes leaves look like fleshy swellings, sometimes turning them red or pink.

 

Cut off and destroy the affected parts, sterilising secateurs before and after use.

 

There is no chemical control and once the disease is noticed other leaves are too mature to be infected.

 

 

 

Insects feeding on the underside of lillypilly leaves cause small oval lumps on the surface with hollows on the underside.

 

Prune and leave it or grow less susceptible species such as Acmena smithii and Syzygium luehmannii.

 

Spray new growth with a systemic insecticide such as Confidor.

 

 

 

Rhododendron and azalea flowers are attacked by a fungus, causing blotches that affect the whole flower.

 

Remove and destroy diseased flowers, checking for damage every few days.

 

As soon as buds begin to show colour spray them with Bayleton Garden Fungicide.