Question re: black spots & white patches on trees & shrubs

Caneyville, KY(Zone 6b)

I've been working on landscaping about 3 acres for 3 years starting with young plants. This year I see a lot of black spots on leaves on a large variety of trees and bushes, like Hydranga, fruit trees, River Birch. The large white translucient (sp) patches on the leaves are mainly on the lilacs. Can I treat these someway, or do they have to be removed. We have a wooded "scrub brush" area near where these are all planted and I noticed black spots on a lot of them too.

Danville, IN

I wouldn't worry about either of your situations, as long as the overall appearance of the plants is fine. The black spots could be the result of the wet spring and early summer we've had in the Midwest. The white patches on your lilacs are most likely powdery mildew which is not fatal, although looks bad at times. This is also common to lilacs, especially in hot, humid summers.

If you could post some photos, maybe we could narrow it down. It would be rare that you would have to remove anything, or treat.

Caneyville, KY(Zone 6b)

Thanks. This is reassuring. Thought I'd have to start from scratch. I had forgotten about the roses, peonies and grapes having black spots, too. The blooms always look really nice, but the foliage always looks kind of sickly. If it's weather conditions that cause this, it may just be something I have to learn to accept. We live on a high open hilltop surrounded by rolling hills and narrow valleys and have a heavy fog roll in almost every night.

I'll get some pictures posted in a few days.

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