Crown Rot Epidemic

[mooie]

Figured this might happen with the late freeze and all, but not to this extent. I've been trying to be diligent with the clean up as much as possible. When one was diagnosed, I did the clean, bleach and dry in the sun method. I also dipped each plant in Captan fungicide.

As with most gardeners, I decided it was time to do the hosta shuffle, move the littler ones out from behind the big ones etc. I dug up 15 hostas of all sizes, 8 had either slight or advanced crown rot. Even my very healthy looking Diana Remembered simply fell into pieces when I move it up out of the ground. I also hauled out my Xanadu Paisley and Lakeside Breeder with advanced rot. I pitched the Ice Age Trail cuz there was nothing left. Thank goodness I divided the Lakeside and the Paisley last year and they are fine.

My question is this as I wallow in misery, I know there's more problems than this but I didn't have the heart to dig anymore tonite. This encompasses a large area of my hosta beds and what do I have to do to make the soil usable again? And to protect the healthy ones? I've considered doing an annual drench of captan or similar. But my main concern right now is what to do to the soil. Abandon the beds? Burn on them? I'm hoping there's an answer from someone out there cuz I'm just about ready to throw in the towel!

Thanks for any help!

mooie

[Roxanne]

Crap Mooie!! I lost a bunch, too---and found a few last week that had rotted away. I don't know what to tell you, except this has happened to me before (but only a plant or two) and I just planted new in their places, and they did fine. I have never bleached or fungicided anything here....if it rots, I replace it. This year was totally wierd with the late freeze. I have a Beech tree with distorted leaves and they bud up late!
Hang in there! I keep telling myself it is just a bad year.
Rox

[eastwood2007]

Well, I tried bleach thing on one of my hostas and I think it killed it, so I am glad I only tried on one. On one hosta I used half strength Daconil fungicide (Walmart carries it), and the crown rot seems to have stopped and the hosta is recovering.

I think my problems were from the crowns getting frozen. I have never had problems with fungus and the like. Maybe it is the same for you?

[baja220]

Me too, I haven't done a total tally of what I've lost, but it's substantial.

Charla, I'll try that and see if it helps. It can't hurt anything at this point. Oh, the hosta I sent you in the PM didn't go through the freeze. I got it in May from Foxfire Gardens and they didn't have a late freeze after the hosta were up.

I'll be interested to see what peeps say about the soil, I hadn't thought of that.

Debbie

[NWhosta4life]

I know how you feel . I lost guardian angel, blue moon, dorset blue, fireworks, sum it up, lakeside cupcake, rainforest sunrise and blue sliver to name a few. Some of which i really loved. I havent looked into preventative care yet, but the frosts really beat me up this year.

[Jamie]

Hi Mooie,
Same problem here and I lost some that aren't replaceable .. I did the same as Roxanne though and gave no treatment and planted directly back in the hole the rotted one came from. So far the new ones are growing nice and showing no ill effects.

[PeggyC]

And I'm another one that has crown rot... between the late freeze, 50 mph winds and then spotty rain, my hostas sure do look bad this year.

[Wild Dog]

Are you sure it is crown rot and not southern blight?

Look around the base and you will see the leaves falling off with a brown color and little red balls that look like timed release fertilizer balls.

[Linda P]

mooie, I'm so sorry to hear that. I lost a few that just didn't come up this year, or came up and immediately froze to the ground and didn't come back. I've also had a number of hostas with eyes rotting away. I checked every hosta after the freeze and trimmed away anything I could see, and patrolled for several weeks. I'm still finding eyes that have rotted away. I'm still trying to keep up with it, and have been using Bayer Advance Rose and Flower Care on it. That seems to have stopped most of it, when I find it early enough. I lost several eyes on my big Great Expectations, and a few on Paul's Glory, to name just two. We've had the same nasty weather...too cold, followed by howling winds for weeks on end, no rain, cutworms doing their worst, and then the scorching heat that came out of nowhere. Some of mine have not even unfurled completely, but we had a couple inches of rain over the weekend, and they're starting to look a little better.
Mine is definitely not southern blight, though I have had a few with that in the past.
Linda P

[mooie]

No, I'm pretty sure it's Crown Rot. Altho Southern Blight can be similar, I haven't seen any of its telltale red balls. Did I type that with my outloud voice? Anywho, the work continues on. I'm about out of captan and will have to contact the local ag fertilizer plant in town and see what they have. Right now, I plan on drenching the old holes with the fungicides along with the plant. Hope it works. Yikes! The rain (tho very welcome! ) have slowed me down for the weekend.

mooie

[thehostagourmet]

I, too, have had the problem this year, and far more than ever before. Don't know what the cause is, but crown rot, I'm told by the experts, is a bacterial problem. Fungicides won't work. Bleach or hydrogen peroxide will.

George

[eastwood2007]

I used bleach on one and it rotted anyway. I wondered if the bleach polished it off? Maybe too little too late, not sure. I would wonder if Peroxide would be gentler?

[Wheasie]

I have crown rot problems with hostas in pots - happens in the spring once they emerge and I start to water. A freeze may potentiate it - whatever.

In the ground, the problem sounds more like southern blight that ?name mentioned. This is problematic for me with a couple of my hostas when the weather gets hot an humid and then I water or it rains.

I have had luck controlling this by watering the crown area with a 10% bleach solution after watering or rain. I have also used a fungicide in a double strength concentration with equivalent success.

As I understand it, there is no "cure" for the blight. But these ideas may help you if indeed it is blight that you have vs. crown rot. Like ?name said - look for those little bead-like things attached the base of the leave that just pull free with no effort.

Louise

[cedarleaf]

What kind of crown rot is it? Mushy, gray, and smelly or dry and rusty brown? You can try and save the plants by cutting out the rot and treating with a specific root rot chemical. I use Clearys 3336WP and Banrot. They are expensive but last a long time and work on all four types of crown rot found on hostas (including blight). Make sure you let the crowns callus over before planting again. Mix in lots of peat moss in the planting hole as this seems to deter the fusarium strain of rot somewhat. The soil will need to be drenched with the chemical. Hope this helps.

[thehostagourmet]

Cedarleaf, how expensive, and is there a difference between the two? Generally available without an applicator's license?

Also, what's available in Iowa may be banned by the all-knowing despots in Albany, NY.

George

[MikeWI]

that is exactly how my great die off happened... exactly same thing.. egads, iknow your pain.

[cedarleaf]

I buy the chemicals from Carlin Sales which only ship to IA, IN, IL, MI and WI. Banrot ($86 2lb. jug) contains Etridiazole in addition to Thiophanate-Methyl which prevents and controls Southern Blight making it a little more expensive than the Clearys 3336WP ($64 2lb. bag). I treat other disease problems like anthracnose on trees with the mixture as well as hostas (500 plus varieties) and I have had the chemicals for over 4 years. I think there are several companies that market Thiophanate-Methyl so see what you can find in your area and if it is available without a license. They are chemicals you need to use with caution but they do work extremely well.

[Ginger]

Mooie wrote

No, I'm pretty sure it's Crown Rot. Altho Southern Blight can be similar, I haven't seen any of its telltale red balls. Did I type that with my outloud voice?


I'm sorry I just could not help myself.... I know this is a serious thread....

Ginger

[ademink]

ROFL Mooie...I also found that quite hilarious

I almost lost a mature Marbled Cream division to crown rot. It smelled like the netherregions of some foul beast! I "mushed off" the nasty stuff, dipped it in 10% bleach solution and immediately rinsed it off thoroughly. I replanted it in the same hole and it seems to be doing great!