More pests

Oh no! Scale also.... I'm going to have to spend some serious time cleaning and disinfecting, treating and isolating my plants in the greenhouse and house. I'll post some of the most useful sites that help me deal with my sudden infestations here in subsequent posts.

Greenhouse Pests

Well it's still cold and snowy out, and most days are still Michigan-winter-gray, but with the longer days plants overwintered in the greenhouse are waking up and sending out promising new leaves and shoots. Unfortunately, the pest population is also waking up, and although I try to be SO careful to keep my greenhouse clean and uncontaminated, I guess it's tough to do if you bring outdoor pots indoors. Overnight, I have fungus on some plants and fungus gnats on others. I probably overwatered because I got so excited to see fresh green again. Actually, I also watered late in the day after getting home from work, not giving the pots a chance to dry out during the day but instead staying damp all night in the cool night temps. I know better - I do - but thought I could get away with it a few times. ARGH! Now I have to experiment with the various non-commercial, relatively organic solutions to my problems that I've read about. Hopefully, the next post will contain success stories on this front.

Lesson for cuttings

I've learned the hard way that when you cover your cuttings with a clear plastic top (as is often recommend for retaining the correct humidity for best rooting), watch DAILY for any sign of fungus infection. The extra humidity is a ripe environment for fungus which can quickly destroy your cutting before it has a chance to develop roots.

Spring is coming!

The bubble-wrap insulation on the greenhouse walls worked like a charm! Propane consumptions was drastically cut. Last year I had to refill the propane tank 4 times; this year it is still running on the first tank from November, and looks as though it will make it through the next few weeks into real spring weather without having to refill. What a coup! The cost of the bubble insulation was recovered in a single season!