Monday, September 15, 2008

Parsley Trouble


Every monday I go straight to the garden to take a critical look at the plants
and make a mental list of chores for the week (in addition to the "bigger plan"
that I keep mulling over in my head and working on).
Today there was 2 more parsley plants that had keeled over and died:( 
The roots were a stinky slimy mush, and the plants had wilted completely. The swallowtail 
butterfly caterpillars are NOTHING compared to whatever has attacked the plants 
now. I actually let the caterpillars munch in peace - they are so adorable and the butterflies
they turn out to be are gorgeous!!!!

It looks like the disease is called (surprise-surprise!) a ROOT ROT. (Fusarium spp. and Rhizoctonia solani)
Right now I don't know what else to do but cross my fingers and hope the last 4 plants will make it a few more months. I've already started new plants and I'll plant them in different beds to see if it will help.

In the spring I want to plant parsley in flower beds too give the caterpillars something to eat and attract more butterflies to the garden. 
Am I crazy????




1 comment:

Joe and Christy said...

You're not crazy--it is always good to plant a few things for the bugs!
As far as root rot goes in parsley, I never found a way to get around it this time of year other than starting new plants frequently and in different places. Can't wait to see some pictures!