Milk for fungal infections

[TheCrazyPlantLady]

Has anyone tried milk to combat fungal infections on your plants?
I have a kalanchoe at work, and the other day I noticed that it had developed dusty mildew. Now, it was my own fault, and I own up. I left it to go dry while I was off for a week, and it was shortly after this stressor that it succumbed. I checked online, and came across an article that said milk and water (1:3) can actually get rid of established dusty mildew. Since that was something I had in the fridge at work, I made a little saucer of milk and water, and painstakingly bathed each leave and stem bit. I did this on a Thursday and Friday, and Monday when I went in, there was just a little patch of mildew. I bathed it again the Monday and Tuesday, and I've been off for the rest of the week, so I'll see how it looks on Monday.

Now, this evening when I finally got around to dead-heading my roses, I discovered that 4 of them have developed black spot! I looked that up online, and first, saw that it's common when the weather is warm and moist - a perfect description of our summer this year! And then I came across yet another article on milk, this time for black spot. I believe this article said 1:2 ratio. So I just finished spraying all my rose plants, and my two mint plants that have black spot, with milk mixture. I'm going to keep it up for the next couple of weeks, and see how they fare.

Neither article I read could say why milk seems so effective on eliminating fungal infections, but that's ok. As long as it works, I don't really need to know. I am very against using any sort of chemical fungicides in my gardens, so if this works, I will make sure I always have milk on hand to treat my green friends when they get sick!

 

[claudine]

I haven't heard of this method before...I'll give it a try too! I often notice this nasty, dusty mildew on my miniature roses' leaves and stems. Usually, I just wash them, but it doesn't really work since the mildew always comes back after a while.
Please keep us posted.

 

[Gina145]

I think I once read something similar using skim milk but I never got around to trying it.I've got so many trees (some bonsai but mainly pre-bonsai) that I can't find the time to give them the individual attention they deserve. My mildew problems have all been on deciduous trees so I just waited for winter to get rid of it, which really isn't the right thing to do.

Now that I've read how well this has worked for you, I'll have to give it a try next time I see mildew. I almost wish that I had trees with mildew now to try it out, but it's winter here.

 

[TheCrazyPlantLady]

Now that I've read how well this has worked for you, I'll have to give it a try next time I see mildew. I almost wish that I had trees with mildew now to try it out, but it's winter here.

LOL - I did a double-take when I read that, they I saw that you were in South Africa

 

[TheCrazyPlantLady]

I think I once read something similar using skim milk but I never got around to trying it.I've got so many trees (some bonsai but mainly pre-bonsai) that I can't find the time to give them the individual attention they deserve. .

What size bonsai do you grow? I recently dug up a maple seedling from the wood behind my house and potted it, and I plan to turn it into a bonsai. It's only about 8" high right now; I'm thinking of keeping it around 2 foot, so I can keep it potted. We have a real problem with black spot on maples here, so I sprayed it with the milk mixture as well.

 

[Gina145]

What size bonsai do you grow? I recently dug up a maple seedling from the wood behind my house and potted it, and I plan to turn it into a bonsai. It's only about 8" high right now; I'm thinking of keeping it around 2 foot, so I can keep it potted. We have a real problem with black spot on maples here, so I sprayed it with the milk mixture as well.

I've got a variety of sizes. Some are only a few inches high, but some of the thicker ones go up to about two foot tall. If your maple seedling is really thin you should probably think about making a shorter tree. Either that or put it in a big pot or even back in the ground for a year or two to allow it to fatten up.

My only restriction on the size of my trees is that I must be able to pick them up on my own. I belong to a bonsai club and some of the members have bonsai so large that it takes four people to move them.

LOL - I did a double-take when I read that, they I saw that you were in South Africa

I've come to expect that. Most of the websites I visit seem to be orientated towards people living in the Northern hemisphere.

 

[TheCrazyPlantLady]

I'm just going to let him grow until next year before I do any pruning. The trunk is naturally growing in a beautiful curved shape, so I don't know how much training I'll need to do. I'm brand new to bonsai, but I just got a book about indoor bonsai, using exotic trees (i.e. the kind that won't grow outside in Canada!) so this fall I'm going to get a few indoor projects started.

 

[claudine]

My only restriction on the size of my trees is that I must be able to pick them up on my own. I belong to a bonsai club and some of the members have bonsai so large that it takes four people to move them.

Wow, it must be amazing. I've never seen any bonsai this big. Do you have any pictures? I would love to see them. All bonsai trees are beautiful, big and small I wish it was easier to grow them.

 

[Gina145]

I'm just going to let him grow until next year before I do any pruning. The trunk is naturally growing in a beautiful curved shape, so I don't know how much training I'll need to do. I'm brand new to bonsai, but I just got a book about indoor bonsai, using exotic trees (i.e. the kind that won't grow outside in Canada!) so this fall I'm going to get a few indoor projects started.

When I first started trying to grow bonsai trees I wanted them all to be indoor trees, but I've since discovered that even the exotic ones will be happier if they get time outdoors when the weather is hot enough. I'm lucky enough to live in a climate where we never experience extreme cold, with minimum temperatures never dropping more than a few degrees below zero Celsius and rarely that. So far this winter we haven't dropped below zero even once This means that even in winter I put my sensitive trees outside during the day and bring them in at night, while in summer they stay out day and night. Obviously that won't work in your climate, but good light is important as they'll develop very spindly growth without it.

You were lucky to find a tree with a trunk that has naturally curved growth. I hate wiring trees and try to keep it to a minimum.

Wow, it must be amazing. I've never seen any bonsai this big. Do you have any pictures? I would love to see them. All bonsai trees are beautiful, big and small I wish it was easier to grow them.

I can't find anything that big, but the tree in this photo (taken at one of our club shows) is quite big. It is estimated to be about 90 years old and had been in bonsai training for about 9 years when this photo was taken. The tree was originally a full sized olive tree which was dug up out of the ground, probably when it was about 80 years old.

I don't own any trees that are even close to this size or age. The tree in my profile picture is about a foot high and was grown from a cutting about six years ago.

Oh, and it's not as difficult to grow bonsai trees as you think. Species like Ficus can be really easy to look after as long as they aren't exposed to extreme cold.

 

[claudine]

It's a gorgeous bonsai! And it's 90 years old...wow I love it!
The tree in your profile picture looks lovely too
If growing bonsai trees isn't as difficult as it seems, maybe I should try it too. I'm not sure if I'm patient enough though.

 

[Gina145]

It's a gorgeous bonsai! And it's 90 years old...wow I love it!
The tree in your profile picture looks lovely too
If growing bonsai trees isn't as difficult as it seems, maybe I should try it too. I'm not sure if I'm patient enough though.

Thanks claudine.

You really should give it a try. I'm not a patient person either, but growing bonsai trees teaches one patience.