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Ornamentals and Turf |
Are blackish-brown colored tiny spots resembling fly specks appearing all over the side of your house (or anything else in it's way)? Don't blame insects. The weather has been favorable for artillery fungus. This fungus is most commonly reported from hardwood mulches, but grows in several media. We don't see it often, but it is not uncommon. The fungus has shotgun-loaded spore packets (1 to 2 mm) that can shoot twenty feet. The bad part is that they are almost impossible to remove. Watch for artillery fungus and if you see it, duck. For more information, see publications on the subject available at the following web sites:
http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/pp/notes/oldnotes/gp1.htm
http://plantclinic.cornell.edu/FactSheets/artfungus/artilleryfungus.htm
The Departments of Entomology and Plant Pathology at North Carolina State University have assembled two new notes on the insects and diseases that attack Leyland Cypress. The information is not new, but is assembled together in one place and hopefully will be useful to county Extension agents. If you would like to view these notes you can find them via the usual directory for insect notes or directly at the following web address: http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/ent/notes/O&T/specificplants/index.html. The authors wish to thank Leyland Cypress for being such a good host for these insects and diseases and the many people who plant them.
This is the time of year when those nasty Notodontids rear their ugly yellow necks. The yellownecked caterpillars can be seen feeding gregariously on a wide range of landscape plants (including the Pyracantha coccinea in my front yard). This insect overwinters as a pupa underground, with moths appearing in June and July. The larvae feed in large groups for about 4 to 6 weeks, eventually consuming all but the petiole. It has both a yellow-red phase (caterpillar is red with yellow stripes and a black head) and a black-yellow phase (caterpillar is black with yellow stripes and a black head). At this point simply prune out infested branches. It is too late for chemical control and this will reduce the number returning to the ground to overwinter. Alternatively, the caterpillars make great cat toys.
Employment and program opportunities are offered to all people regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, age or disability. North Carolina State University, North Carolina A&T State University, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and local governments cooperating.
Last modified on August 30, 2004 by Stephen J. Toth, Jr.
