Plant disease spreads in a variety of ways. It can be passed from plant to plant by wind, insects, or water. While it’s impossible to control these factors, there is one simple, and very important thing you can do to prevent plant disease- keep the garden clean. What does that mean?
Rake up debris. Fungi and bacteria can live in dead or diseased plant tissue for a long time. A diseased leaf can blow across the yard, and spread that ailment to a healthy part of the garden. Rain can splash spores or bacteria from the ground onto healthy leaves. So keep leaves, twigs and dead flowers cleaned up, especially if you know they come from a diseased plant. DO NOT put any infected tissue into the compost pile. Throw it away.
Prune. Cut away dead or diseased twigs, limbs, flowers and fruit, and again, throw them away so that they cannot spread fungus spores or bacteria. Seal pruning wounds to protect vulnerable open tissue from infection.
Clean your Tools. When you are finished with your clean up, clean your tools thoroughly before putting them away.
Making a habit of keeping your tools clean, and your garden beds debris free will go a long way to keeping your garden healthy and disease free.
Wound Dressing
Anvil Pruner
Garden Tools You Can Use:
