This week the mower came out again which gives that opportunity to go up every row of plants and take in how each individual looks.
Comparing with this time last year I am happy we have made real progress.
Last year was blighted by disease with plants with desiccated branches, diseased leaves and sorry looking plants.
This year is exactly the reverse with young plants established with strong new shoots; maturing plants are healthy; the plants that I cut down 50% last year to control the disease have come back; those that were cut down 75% have not been so lucky. The variety Elizaveta still looks sad with curled leaves but they are at least green and there are no signs of disease. Most Elizaveta has new shoots so my aim for next year is to reverse this end of season leaf curl.
I still believe that this is due to Elizaveta having more reliance upon shallow roots which are struggling to find moisture in my dry clay soil.
As I have been mowing I have probably found 20 plants with large web cocoons of catepillars. These have already striped any leaves in the immediate area of the cocoon. So wearing gloves I have pulled these cocoons off and rubbed all the affected branches to kill any remaining catepillars. This presents a fourth season in the year for catepillar infection. The nature of these are that they can and will strip a whole plant. My experience is that the plant will recover but it is a probelm that requires continual vigilance.
