what is eating holes in my petunia blossoms?

[grasswire]

Just started last week in my hanging petunias. Round holes in the blossoms. I pick them off every day, as well as the dead blossoms.

And why do petunias get that sort of dusty powder this time of year?

[mitchtv]

1. oh boy mildew and predators

sounds like an earwig problem , or spotted cucumber beetle . Two I know that do that kind of damage, slugs leave a trail, leave a damp rolled up newspaper out all night to trap earwigs, cukes , use BT

[Curmudgeoness]

2. There are so many insects that eat holes in leaves/flowers

at this time of year, it is hard to say. It could be grasshoppers or earwigs or various beetles (I have grasshopper problems right now). If it is not a serious problem at this time of year, I would leave it alone (but that is because I don't treat anything unless it is a big problem). The dusty powder is probably powdery mildew (duh! Very good name for it). I get a lot of powdery mildew at this time of year, and although it takes away from the attractiveness of the folage, it will not do deadly damage this late in the season....and I don't know if you can stop it now. If you are putting something that is prone to powdery mildew in the same spot next year, look into treating for it early---and make sure you clean out all the dead plants and leaves this fall.

Good luck, and I hope you get better responses than I was able to give you!

[grasswire]

3. thanks for your input

The only critter in the area of the hanging baskets is some little moths. I understand from google that it might be thrips making those round holes.

Yeah, powdery mildew! These are new pots with new potting soil this year. I wonder if I need to discard that soil.

[Curmudgeoness]

4. I think powdery mildew is everywhere.

They say that it is in the dirt, but I believe that it is in the dirt and in the air and in water. If this is a problem again next year, or if you don't want to deal with it, look for plants that are resistant to it----many are. You can try discarding the soil, but my experience is that it doesn't really help. If you got through the whole summer without a problem, just feel lucky.