Now that it ha’s rained it is the ideal time for killing perennial and woody brushwood weeds, such as bramble, bracken, nettles, docks, thistles, perennial crouchgrass and ground-elder.  The weed plant needs to be actively growing to quickly and effectively absorb the weedkiller and move it right down to the end of the root system.  So it’s always advisable to water the soil where weeds are growing a couple of days before treatment if it hasn’t rained.  Pick a calm dry day when rain is not expected and mix up your Roundup GC or Weedol Rootkill Plus weedkiller concentrate, in a pressure sprayer according to the directions on the box.  Spray carefully to lightly wet all the weed leaves, but avoid all spray and spraydrift getting onto cultivated plants and desired vegetation inlcuding the lawn and decorative grasses.  These are not selective weedkillers and they will kill all green plants.

As the soil gradually dries out in summer, powdery mildew spreads more easily among Roses, Sweet Peas, Michaelmas Daisies and all manner of shrubs, especially those positioned against a wall.  Deep watering and plenty of room for air to circulate between plants will go some way to keep your plants clean, but when you spot the first signs of this white powdery deposit on leaves and buds, then it’s wise to spray right away.  FungusClear Ultra is among the newest of the systemic disease controls that get inside the leaves to fight any existing disease and prevent new spores from germinating.  It contains a new ingredient called triticonazole which gives good control of powdery mildew, rose blackspot and rust.