Question
Hi Mike,

I have a large container garden, and in one of my containers I am growing three large cherry tomato plants.  I noticed that the lower stems have a strange white growth on them - it's not cottony, it looks almost like tiny little white grubs with black spots on the ends growing out of the stems.    Do you have any idea what this could be and what (if anything) I need to do about it?  I'd be happy to send a picture if that would help.  Thanks so much!

Answer
Sara, it sounds like the onset of powdery mildew, a fungus disease that is very prevalent during wet periods. It will usually infect the lower leaves first since they are closest to the soil.

This problem rarely proves fatal and will normally not affect production except in the most severe cases. It can be easily controlled by spraying the plants with a copper-based fungicide. I personally use a product called Soap Shield. This is an organic fungicide produced and sold by a company called Gardens Alive. Attached is a link to their website. There you will find numerous products that organically control diseases and insects.

http://www.gardensalive.com

I hope this information helps. Please write again if I can ever be of assistance.

Regards,

Mike