[tam]

I think my spaghetti squash might have powdery mildew. It's got whiteish grey powdery looking stuff on it's leaves.

How do I treat it? It's growing up a trellis so it's fairly open to air.

Thanks
Tam

[mumofstig]

Spray with milk and water solution, 1 part milk to 5 parts water

[tam]

Thanks, that's a nice easy solution

[Salmo]

Milk is good. Skim milk at 1 part of milk to 9 parts water is what I have been told. If the fat content is too high other moulds may start growing on the leaves and it can smell a bit.

The other thing I have heard of is baking powder (1 teaspoon per litre).

Commercial wettable sulphur from your garden centre will halt the spread but will not kill the mildew.

If you find a systemic fungicide that can be used on squashes/courgettes read the label carefully as they all have a time interval between application and eating. Personally I would not use one.

Mildew likes dry conditions so anything that makes the leaf surface so that any water droplets spread out helps. Water with soap or detergent should do some good.   

[tam]

Sorry, one more question, is it okay to compost the dead leaves or should they be thrown away?

[goodegg]

i agree with salmo about the skimmed milk and the mixture . i would burn the leaves because you will only be putting the spores in the compost