There's a powdery looking substance all over my peony leaves. According to the research I've done it sounds like powdery mildew and can be treated with Funginex and Chlorothanonil. Are these safe or is there something safer and less hazardous to the environment?

FaeryWings, I have a potted Flox with powdery mildew. I also don't care to use chemicals in my garden but sometimes there's no choice when a situation gets realy unmanageable.

I've had good luck with the following and, as Alankhart, remove the affected leaves (which are probably yellowing and spotted).

Use a small sponge soaked in the recipe below to gently scrub off the mildew.

POWDERY MILDEW RECIPE
1 Empty spray bottle
2.5 oz milk
Fill with water to the 25 oz mark on the bottle
Mix will keep in fridge for 2 days.
Wash bottle, esp. spray head, well when done.

Drench the plant from the top and underneath. I would do this on a cloudy day or first thing in the morning before the sun.

I've applied this twice to the flox and they are blooming a second time with new growth at the base. I have read that this recipe may strengthen the plant's immune system but I have no time experience with this plant to endorce that claim.

Let us know how you get on!

Tomacco

I do think it would be too drastic IMHO.

http://www.thegardenhelper.com/peony.html

"A spring application of 2-4 inches of leafy, organic mulch will help to conserve the soil moisture and at the same time keep the soil cool and control weeds. This mulch must be removed and destroyed before winter and a new, fresh winter mulch of loose straw or evergreen boughs added, to help control disease."

"In the fall, after the foliage dies back, cut the stems back to three inches, remove and destroy them."

Hope this helps

The powdery mildew on my flox came from more than a week of heavy rain. You might do a drenching in the spring after the final frost just to get the ball rolling. It can't hurt Keep watch if you have a lot of rain.

Tomacco