Brown Rot, Dead Frogs, Ukuleles
No matter what else is going on in the world, the garden just gets on with what it does, and right now, it is doing zucchinis, lemons, potatoes, turnips, kale and, as of this week, apricots. I am trying to be cheerful about the apricots. They are afflicted this year by brown rot, which is the cruellest disease - it waits until the very moment the fruit ripens and then it pounces. Tiny patches of brown rot spread within days until the whole apricot is covered. The brown rot fungal disease is spread via various means - affected mummified fruit that is left on the tree, a gummy, oozy sap on the tree branches, dropped fruit that is left on the ground, and the weather - rain spreads the fungal spores. Oh, and also pruning in the winter leaves stone fruit more prone to disease. I didn't prune in the winter, but I am guilty of all the other possible ways of spreading brown rot - I planted a garden under the tree so I can't find dropped fruit, I haven't trimmed off all the branch
