I have a couple of hellebores which are just beginning to flower. The
leaves on both plants, despite spraying with fungicide, have Black Spot
fungus disease, and I have read somewhere recently (I think in the Garden
News) that you should cut off the diseased leaves and remove the top bit of
soil to remove the fungus spores.

But all the leaves are diseased, so that means I would have to cut off ALL
the leaves. Wouldn't doing that kill the plant (no leaves no food
production)?

Thanks

On Mon, 10 Feb 2003 23:43:50 -0000, "Jack" wrote:

I have a couple of hellebores which are just beginning to flower. The
leaves on both plants, despite spraying with fungicide, have Black Spot
fungus disease, and I have read somewhere recently (I think in the Garden
News) that you should cut off the diseased leaves and remove the top bit of
soil to remove the fungus spores.

But all the leaves are diseased, so that means I would have to cut off ALL
the leaves. Wouldn't doing that kill the plant (no leaves no food
production)?


The normal practice is to remove all the old leaves when the flowers
start to open or before. Hellebores grow new leaves each spring, so
all you're doing is pre-empting nature. Removing the leaves removes
the main source of reinfection so reducing the risks somewhat. Do it
now and you'll be helping the plants rather than setting them back.


--
Pete The Gardener
A room without books is like a body without a soul.