2012 Veg Garden Summer Squash

The first real summer squash harvest is in! The mildew was kiboshed on this side of the garden with no real damage. Turns out spraying the leaves with water early in the day is enough to keep the nasties away as unlike most mildew this one spreads in dry conditions. We ended up cutting out the most damaged leaves on the winter squash side and that left one pumpkin plant a bit bare, I hope it makes it.

2012 Veg Garden Powdery Mildew

About a week after laying down straw the winter squash and volunteer crooked necks developed this hideous case of powdery mildew. It has spread across the entire 15x8ft patch. The soaker hose runs under the plants and straw. I suspect this, combined with the sheer mass of leaves from the volunteers that blocks the light, has created the perfect moist condition for the nasty mildew. We of course went straight to the garden store to pick up an organic solution. However it turns out even organic products have precautionary labels. In this case, don't let it drain into stormwater runoff, don't inhale, wear long sleeves, 72 hours before harvest... So, we'll be searching the books for a more user friendly solution. If you have any wisdom on the subject feel free to let me know.