Garden Doctor: Solutions to common problems in the winter months

Looking after a healthy garden can be time consuming so it is no wonder that when the garden is less than healthy it is easy to despair! At Alfresia we want to alleviate any sense of despair when it comes to your gardens (and that doesn't just mean making our products easy and reliable). So allow us to share some information about three common garden problems which occur especially frequently in November, December and January.

Grey Mould (left) is a fuzzy grey fungal growth topped with vast quantities of dust-like spores that develops on dead or dying plant parts. It is encouraged by damp conditions and so often thrives at this time of the year. An infected plant may show browning, softening and/or dieback.

To cure Grey Mould cut off or pick off affected areas promptly and ensure better general hygiene: never leave dead bits of plant lying around and if possible keep the atmosphere a bit drier too. Try to avoid overhead watering as the spores are readily spread by rain or water splash as well as on air currents.

Apple Canker is formed when loose areas of bark develop in concentric rings, forming cankers, which can be sunken or swollen. If the canker rings the branch, it causes dieback. In extreme cases whole limbs may be killed. In the summer, tiny raised white fungal pustules develop on the cankered area and in winter tiny red raised fruiting bodies develop. The casual fungus Nectria galligena commonly attacks pears and apples but may also attack other trees such as willows, poplar and sorbus. To get rid of Apple Canker, prune out infected areas completely, cutting back to healthy growth, and bin or burn the prunings.

Coral Spot Fungus are bright orange raised spots on woody stems. They are the fruiting bodies of coral spot fungus. During damp weather the spores of this fungus spread rapidly and can colonise dead or damaged wood. Once coral spot is in a stem on some plants it may show more aggressive tendencies and cause dieback. This is a common problem, seen especially frequently on acers, figs, magnolias and elaeagnus. To cure Coral Spot Fungus you must prune out infected stems as soon as you notice them, cutting right back to completely healthy wood. Bin or burn the prunings. Try to remove dead stems regularly even before the fungus appears.