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Why are my plants/herbs like this?

DamhahDamhah Posts: 43
in Problem solving
Hi,

Why are my plants/herbs like this?

Also something similar on my apple and pear tree, some of them had rust like problem and some had some sort of growth on the leaves.



Posts

  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    That just looks like the effects of a wet autumn ... my herbs look pretty much the same as yours. 

    As for the pear ... did the leaves look anything like this?https://www.orangepippintrees.co.uk/fruit-tree-problems/pear-rust

    I pick off and burn the affected leaves as soon as the orange spots appear so that the fungus can't develop more spores.  It doesn't seem to affect the fruiting of the tree.  

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • DamhahDamhah Posts: 43
    Thank you, that is exactly what i got on the pear.

    As for my herbs, there were like that since the summer
  • NollieNollie Posts: 7,529
    Your soil does look quite claggy and rich. Most herbs like rosemary, mint, thyme etc., do better in a sunny position in a free-draining, gritty soil. They will languish and be more subject to mildew, fungal diseases etc., in a rich soil and if they shade each other out. Looks like some critter has been munching on those clearly very tasty leaves in the middle photo as well!
    Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
  • BorderlineBorderline Posts: 4,700
    The mottled leaves look like possible Sage Leaf-hopper damage. Rosemary tends to get affected most. It's safe to use and eat. 
  • DamhahDamhah Posts: 43
    is there any treatment I can use for the fungal and leaf hopper?

  • NollieNollie Posts: 7,529
    It’s really not necessary to use any treatment on herbs and definitely not advisable if you are growing them for culinary use imho. Better to look to your soil and growing conditions first.

    Difficult to tell from the photos but it looks fairly crowded, with a fair amount of leaf debris as well as possibly over-rich, damp soil, all not good for the Mediterranean-type herbs. Flat leaf parsley and the ‘soft’ leafy herbs like chervil can take a richer soil and more water, so might do ok there.

    It’s cheap enough to buy small plants that will grow fast in the right conditions, I would dig them out, dig over your soil and check the drainage. Dig in large quantities of grit of the soil is rich and/or poorly drained and replant new ones, giving them space and sun. 

    If you can’t provide the right conditions in the ground, grow them in pots in a gritty, free-draining medium and mulch the top of the pots with more grit. That way you can provide the right growing medium, place in the best spot and protect them from excess winter rain. I grow rosemary etc., in ordinary garden soil with about 50% grit dug in - never fertilised, in a sunny location, so I would suggest that’s what you need to aim for. Plant mint in a separate pot, as it will spread like crazy and take over everything.

    As borderline says, they are still safe to eat, just don’t look very attractive!

    Hope that helps.
    Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
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