Hi all,

Firstly, thank you to all those that took time to give me feedback on my
problem. Muchly appreciated.
However, I'm more confused now than ever. I'm not sure now whether my maple
is suffering from powdery mildew, woolly aphids or what. The lower leaves
seem to be the most affected, and the powdery white stuff is on the
underside of the leaves. It is a fine white powder with some larger masses.
This seems to mean it may be woolly aphid instead of powdery mildew?
Also I found what looked like a mealy bug on it today. Would a mealy bug
infestation result in the white stuff on the leaves? To be sure I'm
continuing with the copper oxychloride and have started spraying with
insecitcide. I've isolated it and put it in a position with good air
circulation and sun (I think this is part of the overall problem I'm having
with many of my plants - overcrowding. Too many plants in too little space.
Well, I can't help myself, I see it, I like it I buy it. Just have to make
more room :-).
For all you experienced folks keen to pass on your knowldge & expertise a
grateful thank you, more problems to follow.