 Plant Diseases in Arkansas
Powdery Mildew
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Dr. Steve Vann - Extension Urban Plant Pathologist
Powdery mildew is considered probably one of the most common fungus diseases
here in Arkansas.
And we see it primarily on several woody ornamentals that are grown in the
landscape, including crapemyrtles, euonymus, dogwood and occasionally on roses.
Now this particular example here of euonymus, you can see that almost this
entire shrub is infested with powdery mildew.
This particular fungus causes the leaf to spot up, but if you look closely, you
can actually see white, fuzzy patches that develop on the leaf surface. And this
is actually the fungus growing on the surface of those leaves.
Now what it does - other than cause, of course, the unsightly appearance of the
plant - it will also cause the leaves to twist. Cause the leaves to twist like
you see here and on these particular leaves here. So we consider this disease
primarily a cosmetic problem.
In the case of euonymus, we tend to see more powdery mildew on those varieties
that are solid green, as opposed to the variegated types of euonymus. But this
particular fungus is very wide spread, very common disease that we see here in
the state.
One of the best things that a homeowner can do to manage powdery mildew is to
just practice good sanitational techniques. In other words, at the end of the
season, it’s advisable to go in and, if you can, rake up all those fallen leaves
that are on the ground and dispose of those. Burning is a good way to destroy
disease material. If you can’t burn it, you can bag it up, put it on the curb
for the garbage collector. But just good sanitation will reduce the likelihood
of powdery mildew next season.
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