There are about 15 almost completed updates on my computer.  I have vowed to finish one today!  Ah, summer.

Deer-leerious plants?  That sounds like a deer approved program but it is really a marketing method for plants deer don’t like. Want the home grown angle?  Listen to Mark Bridgen’s talk from the Floriculture Field Day  and see his list of tried and true plants that make deer say ‘Yuck!’

And while you are there, check out the other videos from the Floriculture Field Day.  Carol Miller on Retail Changes, Connie Schmotzer on Pollinator Friendly Landscapes, and Paul Curtis on Deer Management – and the associated handouts and resources (scroll to the bottom).  Next year you should be there in person!

It’s been HOT (had you noticed?).  What do your plants think, and how can you tell?  You can measure crop temperatures with an infrared thermometer.  Connection to pest management?  Some insects and diseases – and beneficials – have temperature optima so finding literal hot spots in the greenhouse might answer the question of why they are pest hot spots.

Pumping iron!  We usually think about iron when we see deficiency symptoms in the spring crops. So while you are relaxing (!) this summer, here’s an article from Premier Tech Hort on the role of iron in plant growth so you’ll be ready next year!

New aphids?  Actually chrysanthemum aphid isn’t new but you don’t see it in the greenhouse much because – the main point in its favor – its only host is chrysanthemum! But as many aphids increase in number faster in warmer weather (and the best information I can find says the same about this aphid) and you may see distortion of foliage with chrysanthemum aphid, its a good idea to go scout those plants today!  (remember to check NYS labels for anything mentioned in this article)

And to give the plant pathologists equal time… how to control downy mildew on a variety of crops.  Since it has started raining again (at least around Ithaca) downy mildew is happy again.

Keeping up with pop culture!  Hey, if it sells plants . . .  And these critters sort of look like bugs.  Using Pokemon GO in your garden center.   Just watch out for players walking into things…..

Hurray!  I did it.  More soon.