Guignardia Leaf Blotch Running Rampant

Our continual wet weather over much of Ohio this season has been a two-edged sword. On one hand, we haven't had to drag hoses to water our landscapes. On the other hand, a number of fungal plant pathogens that require wet conditions to infect and produce their associated diseases are running rampant. Such is obviously the case for Guignardia aesculi; the fungus responsible for Guignardia Leaf Blotch of Aesculus.
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Authors
Joe Boggs

Plants of the Beehive State

This past week I was in the Beehive State, Utah, first speaking at a conference and then for a bit of vacation. My wife and I visited both the red rock and desert areas in southern Utah and then in the north, the more verdant areas of the Uinta and Wasatch mountain ranges. Utah, which became the 45th state in 1896, was named the Beehive State for the hard-working, industrious inhabitants.
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Authors
Jim Chatfield

Annual Flaming of Black Locust Trees

Jim Chatfield called me from the road this morning to report seeing "flamed" black locusts along a highway in northeast Ohio. The captivating reddish-brown leaf coloration caused by the native Locust Leafminer Beetle is often a familiar sight to travelers motoring on Ohio's interstate highways. Indeed, when beetle populations are high during "outbreak years," black locust trees are able to be identified at highway speeds because of their blow-torched appearance.
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Authors
Joe Boggs
Jim Chatfield

Monarchs vs. Aphids

What are those hordes of yellow aphids sucking juices from common milkweed "reserved" for monarch butterfly caterpillars? They are Oleander Aphids and their appearance on milkweeds reminds us that nature makes no food reservations. This non-native aphid may be found sucking juices from over 50 hosts belonging to 16 plant families.
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Joe Boggs

Pine Cones on Willow?

The improbable looking but appropriately named Willow Pinecone Galls are now large enough to be very noticeable on their namesake host. As the common name suggests, the galls closely resemble pine cones with closed seed scales. They are produced on willow by a gall-midge but cause little damage to the overall health of their namesake host.
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Joe Boggs

Two Cats on the Prowl

Two general defoliators are producing damage in southwest Ohio: yellownecked caterpillars and walnut caterpillars. Both of these caterpillars feed in groups, or "colonies," of 10-30 individuals throughout their development which is why their defoliation is often focused on a single branch or a group of adjoining branches. However, it's also why multiple colonies can quickly defoliate small trees.
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Authors
Joe Boggs

Dogbane Discoveries

Dogbane is the representative species for the dogbane family, Apocynaceae, which includes milkweeds and other plants that ooze milky sap ladened with poisonous alkaloids. Indeed, Apocynum translates to "poisonous to dogs," or "dog killer." Sap from the plant is reported to have been used against ravenous feral dogs.
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Authors
Joe Boggs