Plant Doctor Kim

10/06/2026

100% this!! Excessive nitrogen & unbalanced plant nutrition leads to turf far more likely to be vulnerable to plant diseases. Get a soil fertility test & you'll likely save money by not adding things you don't need while giving your lawn exactly what it does need to be in top shape.

Before adding fertilizer, start with the soil.

Healthy Lawns Healthy Waters participants can receive free soil sample analysis and learn how to use their results to make more informed nutrient decisions.

The test is only the first step. The program helps residents understand what the results mean and how they guide lawn fertilization.

Watch for a workshop near you: tx.ag/HLHWWorkshops

10/05/2026

The annual Texas AgriWomen's AgFair for area 4th graders was a blast this year! Kiddos from the entire county came to learn about many Ag science topics, including my Fungus On The Farm. We had a great time learning about and and using handheld digital microscopes to look at sesame and symptoms of the fungal diseases sesame farmers struggle with.

09/22/2026

Neat!

09/14/2026

Ya'll, check out this esperanza (aka yellow bells) sample showing symptoms of gall rust. This is a visually striking disease with symptoms that look like raised or sunken indents in the leaf. These areas will have brownish powdery spores emerging from the leaf. This problem is typically addressed by removing affected leaves, reducing plant stress, particularly ensuring the plant gets at least 6-8 hrs full sun each day.

08/11/2026

I have recently received several samples of plants suffering from nematode infestations. In the photo from my lab microscope, you can see blue arrows pointing to several plant pathogenic nematodes clustered around a section of bermuda grass root. The nematodes are pending species identification.

07/13/2026

I recently attended a pecan field day, where my colleague, Dr. Jo taught pecan growers about plant diseases to be on the lookout for. It was great seeing him, and my interns learned so much about pecan production.

07/01/2026

Ya'll, this year I am seeing downy mildew popping up in south central & SW Texas. This Mexican petunia is showing signs and symptoms of downy mildew, note the grey "fluff" on the leaves. While I have not observed this to be frequently fatal on Mexican petunia, it can cause damage and reduce plant performance in the flower bed. This problem can be minimized by improving air circulation, reducing leaf wetness, remove and disopose of infected plant material, especially at the end of the season.

06/24/2026

We found Gracie! She decided to join us scouting in a squash field and be my 4th 2026 SCARLET intern, NBD.

06/19/2026

Y'all, with all the rain we've had in SW Texas, I am seeing Phytophthora (pronounced fi-tawf-thor-ah) popping up in fields! This is a very common problem in summer squash and other cucurbits, bell peppers, many other vegetables, ornamental flowers, and even sesame! Phytophthora diseases cause water-soaked (wet-looking) plant tissues and often collapse of the plant. Fruits can also be infected and a total loss. Planting disease-resistant varieties is the "front-line" defense though improving drainage, applying appropriate (labelled) fungicides, and disposing of infected plant material can help combat the problem.

06/15/2026

In keeping with my last tomato post, check out this tomato leaf. The hole circled in blue is due to flea beetle damage (flea beetles love nightshade crops like tomato, pepper, eggplant). The leaf spot circled in gold is Septoria leaf spot, which is unfortunately common on tomato.
Much like with early blight, to control Septoria leaf spot, focus on removing infected leaves, improve air flow, use fungicides, and practice crop rotation season to season.
To manage flea beetles, use of various insecticides, diatomacious earth, and row covers can help reduce flea beetle impacts on the crop.