Powdery Mildew

[Grace Sylke]

I just introduced myself over in that section of this forum; and now I want to dive right in with some important questions about the Plants.

I'm feeling so grateful to this forum right now because about thirty minutes ago, I went out to my greenhouse to discover, to my amazement, powdery mildew running rampant all over my melon, squash and cucumbers. EGAD!

Now, I had noticed a couple of leaves with some white spots on them a day or so ago; but I didn't get the message and ignored it. I had no idea powdery mildew could spread like it has in about three days. Thanks to you, Murray, and a post I read several months ago, I had ECO ROSE, which I paid a fortune to get shipped to the US. But somehow, I knew that one day I would really need it and today was that day.

I mixed up my Eco Rose according to the instructions and went out and sprayed all the leaves that had powdery mildew with it. Some were completely covered with it. Now the container of Eco Rose talks about following that process with Botanical Oil Concentrate; but I don't have that. So I just sprayed with Eco Rose. Is that okay? Is there anything else I need to do? The Eco Rose container says follow up with a second spray in 10 Days if necessary. Should I just follow those instructions?

Oh, I'm so glad to have back-up in this forum. I'm going to post another question on another thread just to keep things neat.

Gratefully submitted,
Grace Sylke
www.AquaponicsUSA.com

[nwestwood]

Long term the only solution I have found is to raise mildew resistant varieties. My European Seedless Cucumbers always get a mild case on the older leaves, which are removed once the fruit at that node is ripe. It's always around, but with resistant varieties, it doesn't overcome the plant. Otherwise, I have not had success with melon crops, in a greenhouse or aquaponic setting as the extra humidity and moisture aggravate the problem. Spaying milk can help, I haven't tried eco rose, but there are other treatments, many are not fish safe.

Long term, my recommendation is to find a variety that resists enough for your climate.

[DaveOponic]

What is Eco - Rose? I have had this mildew problem a few times when trying to get cucumbers going. Here in Borneo, high humidity is all the time. I have quite a lot of watermelon coming on now and it's doing OK so far climbing down off the growbeds and on to the ground. I had some great cucumbers a few months ago but lost all the vines in a day or two with a white mouldy outbreak.

[GaryD]

Hi Dave,

You can find out more about Eco-Rose here.

Gary