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Fungus spread from basil to mint
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Posted by
hippylove4u Fl (
My Page) on
Wed, Aug 6, 14 at 21:54
| My basil was taken over by what I think was a fungus-Cercospora ocimicola. I returned from vacation and every leaf on both kinds had it. I finally removed it but now I'm starting to see the same spots on my mint which was the basil's close neighbor. This is a completely organic garden. Is this what it truly is and if so how would I treat it naturally? |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Fungus spread from basil to mint
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| I just received a posting from our local ag agent in North Carolina about an increase in 'Basil Downy Mildew' that was first found here in 2008. It looks like your problem. The 'solution' was apparently only the removal of affected plants to prevent spread. It is more prevalent in hot humid conditions. The report said that seeds can carry the disease but that the plants may be tilled in or placed in the compost pile as only the live plants can support the mildew. |
RE: Fungus spread from basil to mint
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| There are any number of organic approved fungicides available. Regular use of one of them plus removal of all affected foliage from the plants can slow and often even prevent further spread. Dave |
RE: Fungus spread from basil to mint
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| Looks like Blotch leaf miners, to me. More common on basil and mints than anything, probably. Any other pictures, just to be sure? |
RE: Fungus spread from basil to mint
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| Looks like Blotch leaf miners, to me. More common on basil and mints than anything, probably. Any other pictures, just to be sure? |
RE: Fungus spread from basil to mint
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Here is a clearer pic of the mint. All the spots look the same. When I went in to remove the infected leaves- 90% of leaves were with the spot so I completely cut it back and transplanted to a new location by itself. I was careful not to touch anything else & washed tools thoroughly. I am sprouting new basil now & am looking for natural/organic ways of combatting this before it shows it's ugly spot again :-)
Read about baking soda spray and corn meal spread around the plant? But first I'm trying to identify .... |
RE: Fungus spread from basil to mint
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| Still looks like blotch leaf miner damage to me. Insects not fungus. |
RE: Fungus spread from basil to mint
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| I had opened one of the basil leaves & saw a small worm like creature....didn't try that with the mint. Will research. Any suggestion? |
RE: Fungus spread from basil to mint
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| Neem oil spray. Make sure you get one that says "safe for use on day of harvest" - some of the stuff in the big box stores has other chemicals in it, and since you actually eat the leaves - best get the purest stuff you can find. I don't know that it will take care of this particular kind of bug - but it's done a good job on everything I've needed it for so far. I've been worried about damage to my eggplant from flea beetles since they did away with Rotenone - but there don't seem to be any flea beetles here, so I still don't know if it's effective against my great nemesis, the flea beetle. |
RE: Fungus spread from basil to mint
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| Thank you zensojourner & rhizo_1. After some research I think you're right about the insect not fungal. I trimmed the whole mint plant back and transplanted to a pot. I do have 100%cold pressed neem oil. I was using it occasionally but will go back to every week to stay on top of the pesky little insect. It's been raining every day here in Miami beach so it's hard to apply it and be effective. :-) |
RE: Fungus spread from basil to mint
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| Well I looked it up, and apparently neem oil won't actually kill the larvae that are chewing up your leaves, but it will prevent them from reaching maturity and breeding a new generation of leaf miners. From what I've read, it looks like your best bet is prevention, and just pick off and discard (NOT in the compost, and I would be tempted to burn them or at least run them down the garbage disposal) any affected leaves. The site suggests using plastic mulch to prevent the adult fly from laying eggs that can turn into tunneling larvae. Since it's in a pot now, that ought to be pretty easy to manage. Just leave an opening where you can water, or fix it so its easy to pull the plastic up when you want to water. |
Here is a link that might be useful: Leafminer control
RE: Fungus spread from basil to mint
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| Actually, neem can be very helpful in preventing the adult from laying eggs in the first place. When you do your research, focus on the Blotch leaf miner. |
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