Disease

From Antivist

Milk

Fungal diseases can be a serious problem for gardeners, especially in the heat of the summer. Powdery mildew and black spots seem to be the most common diseases that cause gardeners to reach for the spray bottle. Now, instead of reaching for a chemical fungicide, gardeners can open the fridge for an excellent fungal control - milk!

In 1999, a Brazilian scientist found that milk helped control powdery mildew on cucumbers just as effectively as a synthetic fungicide. Since the study was published, the news has traveled around the world and encouraged gardeners and farmers alike to try milk as a fungal control for a variety of diseases. So far, there has been success reported on the use of milk to control powdery mildew on a variety of different plants. In addition, it has also been found to be an affective control of black spot on roses.

Any type of milk can be used from full milk to skim to powder. However, the low fat milks have less of a chance of giving off any odor. The recipe calls for milk to be mixed with water at a ratio of 1 part milk to 9 parts water and applied every 5-7 days for 3 applications.