A reader wrote in with a problem regarding some sort of slippery mold discovered in her yard:

I was walking in the back of my yard today and almost slipped on this slippery mold-like substance. It is spread out over a vast area. It looks like little piles of slimy poop, but no animal could possibly scatter that much in the area without me seeing it! It’s everywhere! Can you help me identify it? It’s black, in piles about 3 or 4 inches around.

Our response, which we hope was helpful:

It seems like this could be a version of Dog Vomit fungus (nice name right?) – in which case you might take a look at this recent post on our blog: I Have Slime Mold In The Mulch In My Garden!

It could also be a mold called Nostoc, which starts out bluish/greenish but can turn black.

All mold/fungus is slimy and slippery, usually popping up after significant rainfall especially if the area never has a chance to dry out.

What can you do?

For long-term, you may want to look at how that part of your yard is draining. If drainage is poor, you may want to get a landscaper in to correct the slope or lay some drainage piping.

Short-term, try these techniques:

Most organic approaches:

• Apple Cider Vinegar – Use 1-2 Tablespoons per gallon of water. This is a good natural herbicide.
• Corn Meal (any kind of corn meal is OK) – Dry Method: Work 2 pounds of cornmeal into the soil for every 100 square feet. Water well, to activate the fungus killing properties. Wet Method: Cornmeal Juice – soak 1 cup of cornmeal in 1 gallon of water overnight. Strain liquid and use as a spray.
• Milk – 3 ounces of any kind of milk in a gallon of water used as a spray.
• Baking Soda – One tablespoon of baking soda per gallon of water, use as a spray. Follow up with compost at 1 cubic yard per 1,000 square feet to reestablish microbial population, as baking soda is very hard on the soil microbes.

Last resort – non organic:

• Bleaches and Peroxide – great fungicides. 1-2 tblsp per gallon of water.

Good luck!

Joyce & Gayle

Something crept in into my vegetable garden overnight and ate my zucchini plants.

I thought I did everything right! I put up two fences around my garden to keep out animals. One fence was a made of three foot chicken wire which I buried about one foot deep and the other was a four foot wire fence that was loose on top so animals could not climb up and get in. I planted six tomato plants, six lettuce, six cucumbers, and six zucchini plants. Everything was great. I mulched with the grass clippings from my lawn and watered regularly.

Then one morning I went out to watch my garden grow and notice all my zucchini plants where gone. Whatever got into my garden ate just my zucchini plants and left the rest of my garden alone.

The only thing I can think of is something got into my garden started chomping away on my zucchini and then got interrupted by a noise.

If I didn’t think of something fast I might lose the whole garden to an unknown critter. I can’t stay up all night and keep guard over my garden! I have a motion detector light that is close by, but clearly that did not help. I need something that moves and makes noise but what? Later that day when I was rinsing out plastic and tins for recycling, it came to me. Pie tins!

And that’s what I did. I hung pie tins on all sides of my garden. They make noise in the slightest of breeze and if something was trying to climb my fence they would surely make a clatter. I also added a small beach ball to roll around gently inside the garden just in case those critters get past my pie tins.

It’s been a month since I installed my pie tins and my vegetables are flourishing including the zucchini plants that I replanted.

I still don’t know what ate my zucchini plants but I’m sure glad I decided to make a pie!

Got a gardening question or issue that you just can’t figure out? Click here to send us a note with your garden problem and we’ll do our best to find you a good solution!

About a month ago I mulched my beautiful garden and thought I was all set for the summer months. Then just the other day I went outside to admire my flower garden only to see what looked like dog vomit. There was a blob of yellow brown slime in my garden! Yuck! It looked terrible and it seemed to be growing! What is this growth in my mulch and how do I get it out of my garden?

Slime Mold

I have slime mold! Slime mold lives in moist, cool, and shady places on decaying wood, leaves, and organic matter that retains an abundant amount of moisture. They feed on decaying organic matter and bacteria. That is why it is common to see this grow in on mulch. Slime mold has many different colors they can be yellow, orange, red, or cream colored. Slime mold may appear as a slimy mass and as the fungus matures, the slime mold will usually become more hard or powdery in appearance. It will eventually dry to a white, yellow, tan, or dark brown crusty blob.

Getting Rid of Slime Mold

There does not seem to be any effective chemical treatments.

You can use a rake to help break it up, or wait a week or so until the mold dries out. Either way, the slime mold will eventually disappear.

Slime mold may grow near plants and flowers, but don’t worry they will not harm them.

I removed my slime mold by scooping it up with a shovel and placing it in a wooded area of my yard.

Got a gardening question or issue that you just can’t figure out? Click here to send us a note with your garden problem and we’ll do our best to find you a good solution!