This is a public-interest archive. Personal data is pseudonymized and retained under GDPR Article 89.

Re: Forwarded mail...

There is a moth that particularly likes Rattlesnake Master.  Contact Connie
Carroll at <carrollc@mail.inhs.uiuc.edu> to find out more about this moth.
She found this moth on the Rattlesnake Master in the Paxton RR Prairie
several years ago.

Christopher P. Lindsey wrote:
>>
>> This came to me -- anyone have any suggestions?  Please copy Mary King
>> ( MKing@genevaonline.com ) with any responses.
>>
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Chris
>>
>> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>> Forwarded message:
>> >
>> > Maybe you can help me out.  I have two acres of a  mostly seed planted
>> > prairie (on a old grazed field).  I have two six year old rattlesnake
>> > masters that until today looked spectacular.  However one has developed
>> > some weird problem.  All the lower leaves have turn brown and on close
>> > inspection the roots seemed to be trotten.  They fall apart when touched
>> > and if I break them apart there is a white goey growth in between the
>> > roots. Lots of ants and earwigs all over the immediate area.  I take this
>> > as a bad sign.  Can you recommend a book on prairie plant diseases?  I
>> > don't want to loose six years of work.  Thank you,  Mary King
>> > MKing@genevaonline.com
>> >
>>
>> ---------------------------------------------------------------------
>> To sign-off this list, send email to majordomo@mallorn.com with the
>> message text UNSUBSCRIBE PRAIRIE
>
>
>I can only speculate as to why you have witnessed a sudden decline in
>your rattlesnake masters.  From your description, it sounds like your
>plants were affected by a bacteria or fungal disease.  This seems
>obvious but the real question is why? as it sounds like these were
>established plants that had not in previous years been affected by such
>"ailments".
>
>My theory is this:
>
>Depending on where you live but in much of the former prairie areas ie.
>the Cornbelt, there has been much higher than normal rainfall.  This
>plant is listed by many references as adapted to "mesic" sites.  Many of
>our prairie soils that are mesic are actually wet, wet, wet during these
>wet years.  Some plants just don't do well on these sites during wet
>years when in normal years they do fine.  Instead mesic plant
>communities are dominated by wet tolerant plants during wet seasons.I
>have seen the opposite to be true.  That is in dry years, sites that are
>normally mesic are dominated by more drought tolerant species.  I hope
>this helps.
>
>
>Brett Roberts
>State Conservation Agronomist
>USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service, Illinois
>
>---------------------------------------------------------------------
>To sign-off this list, send email to majordomo@mallorn.com with the
>message text UNSUBSCRIBE PRAIRIE


Ruth A. Green, Greenhouse Manager, Supportive Scientist
Illinois Natural History Survey, Center for Biodiversity
607 East Peabody Drive, Champaign, IL  61820
Office:  217-333-7091   FAX:  217-333-6294
Email:  rgreen@mail.inhs.uiuc.edu


---------------------------------------------------------------------
To sign-off this list, send email to majordomo@mallorn.com with the
message text UNSUBSCRIBE PRAIRIE
Other Mailing lists | Author Index | Date Index | Subject Index | Thread Index