Expert: Mike Mascio - 7/11/2008

Question
When I discovered all the flowers and buds missing from one pot of
impatiens, I thought the bunnies had struck again.  Now all the pots are
showing signs of what I would describe as blight: silvered leaves, no flowers
or buds and generally wasting away.  I thought I was watering every other day
only when the temperatures were in the 90's and above. I live at the foothills
of western Maryland.  Thanks for your help!

Answer
Unfortunately, impatiens are susceptible to blight. The solution is to spray them with a copper-based fungicide. I personally use a product called Soap-Shield from Gardens Alive, but there are many other copper-based fungicides available which will help halt the disease.

Attached is a link to Gardens Alive. They also offer many good illustrations of plant problems with suggest products to cure them. If you're interested in the Soap-Shield, just type it in their search field.

http://www.gardensalive.com

I hope this information helps. Good luck, and please write again if I can ever provide assistance.

Regards,

Mike