Ok, the clouds just parted enough to take a few photos. Please let me know if you think any of the following pictures indicate asters yellow....
Asters Yellow? Photos of Possible Damage
?
Are the leaves supposed to look a little curled like this? I can't remember what they looked like last year. This is the same plant from the last photo.
?
This is Pink DD and was just planted last weekend. I noticed that the flower stalks are drooping over. Asters yellow?
This is Mangus - just planted last weekend. There is no doubt something is wrong with it...
Sorry I didn't see these sooner. Your plants look like they are getting too much water. Go to Lowes and get some Daconcil. It comes in a bottle already mixed. Spray your plants really good with it. That bloom stalk that is bent...Cut it off and trash it some place else. I've seen that this year too at a local nursery. There is a lot of things going on because of the rainy, cool weather we've had the past few weeks.
It's not possible to say that any of your plants have aster yellows. It does cause some yellowing of leaves but the main thing to look for are the terrible blooms. Your pink double delight looks ok to me. Since you've probably had rain like me, I think fungus is most likely your main concern. Spray with Daconcil and I bet you'll see improvements.
hi,
there's no sign of aster yellows on your coneflowers. the tell-tale mark of aster yellows is the formation of 'witches brooms' on the flower heads.
droopiness can be expected for the first 10 days to 2 weeks after transplanting, especially in the afternoons. go check your plants first thing in the morning, if they are standing upright, they will be fine.
if they are droopy first thing in the morning, use your moisture meter to see if the ground is dry. i usually insert mine about an inch and try not to get my fingernails too dirty while doing it.
if ground is dry, water.
if ground is damp or moist, let it be and watch for another day or two. do not water.
the yellowing of the leaves makes me think of nitrogen deficiency. do you have some compost you can topdress with? you might also want to pick up one of those inexpensive soil test kits at ace or lowe's and check your soil ph, phosphorus and potassium levels to see if you need to supplement. coneflowers like slightly acidic soil and if your soil is basic, your plants are not getting the nutrients they need.
your magnus looks sun-burned.
anyways, they all look like they will be fine, here's a website with some pictures of what aster yellows and other diseases look like:
http://urbanext.illinois.edu/focus/per_echinacea.html
specific pictures of the aster yellows witches brooms:
http://www.mobot.org/gardeninghelp/plantfinder/IPM.asp?code=138&group=67&level=s
The bent stalk I was referring to is the one on your Pink Double Delight. It's the stalk that looks like someone pinched it. These will not recover. Remove the part that looks damaged. You can leave the part below.
I have seen some plants in a friend's garden with a worm inside the stems this year! There will be a swollen place on the stem. This is an unusual year so far!
GreenThumbsTN :
I would have thought that Magnus was sunburned, also, except we have had rain and cloudy days for WEEKS. Also it was planted only a week ago - there's no chance it was sunburned. Yesterday, I had found all the flower buds on it dark and crispy. I had pinched them off. I wish I hadn't so I could have shown you those, too.
Thanks for the input.
knitty, crispy is always a good sign! crispy plants most often recover while soft and slimy ones usually don't.
it has been a crazy spring here, hasn't it? all it takes is half an hour of direct sun on a greenhouse grown (not hardened off) plant to give them a major case of sunburn. ugh, ask me how i know: i was so thrilled with the nice weather after Easter, I moved bunches of mine right smack dab out in the sun.
check the center of your plant and look for nice green growth. as soon as you see some fresh shoots starting out, cut off the ugly foliage. it will not recover.
go easy on daconil or other types of products, you may want to get a definite diagnosis before starting a spray or treatment to help reduce the amount of possibly not needed pesticides and fungicides in our environment.
there's an extension office near you, you can contact david cook (dcook5 at-sign-here tennessee dot edu ) and send him a picture, i removed the @ and . and added spaces so that his address is safe from spambots hunting the internet for email addresses. there's a really nice group of people at that office whom happy to help with most any plant problem. you can also call (615-862-5995) or visit and take a sample leaf.
Thany you for that information. I had no idea about the extension office - I'll keep that in mind.
Is it normal for a small starter plant to wilt when potted up? I received some bare root plants and one is still wilting after 3 days.
Yes - it has been a crazy spring here. Including today, we are supposed to have 4 days of sun to come, then it looks like it's back to the rain AGAIN ! UGH !!!!
Thanks again :)
knitty, yes, it's normal for them to wilt, especially when they are in the sun. be sure to check whether they have dried out before watering, they really hate being in constantly damp soil.
it's a beautiful day here today, almost too hot to do anything outside.