Flowers Dying After Budding?

Question:

I am having problems this season with several plants, one a hangingVerbenia and one of several Cone flowers... they bud and then priorto blooming the bud dries up and dies. In the case of the Cone flowerit turns black and dies. Can anyone tell me what is going on?Hardiness Zone: 6bThank you!Fauxpaslover from Martinsburg

Answer:

Fauxpaslover,

Let's try the process of elimination. Does the rest of the plant look okay? Are there spots or yellow leaves? First check for insect damage (specifically mites). If you don't see anything, move on to checking for fungal disease-specifically botrytis blight. I know the east coast has had some severe weather this summer, although I'm not sure how you've been affected. This fungal disease can occur anytime during the growing season, but is most common after extended periods of wet weather. When flower buds are infected, they usually turn black and shrivel up or fail to open. You may also see gray fuzzy growth on other parts of the plant. If flower buds do open, the petals sometimes appear water-soaked or matted. If this sound like it could be the problem, you'll want to remove affected plants to prevent the blight from spreading or treat them with a fungicide. Also, use trickle irrigation, or water early in the day so the plants have time to dry before evening and make sure they are spaced properly so they get good air circulation. Other possibilities might include severe swings in temperature (hot or cold) or too much/too little watering. Without seeing your plant, it's hard to know, but I hope this gives you some ideas.

Ellen