Creeping Jenny Dead Patch

Q: A dead patch has been progressing quickly on creeping Jenny in my yard. Full sun, started two weeks ago. Have you seen it?

A: My bet is it’s Southern blight. UGA plant disease expert Jean Williams-Woodward says you can often see mustard seed-looking structures that allow the fungus to survive for years in a bed. The disease needs warm, humid, moist conditions. As air temperature cools, it will slow its growth and eventually stop. Then next year, it will come back in July. Dig up the dead plants and place them and the top couple of inches of soil in the garbage. Then, dig and flip the soil so that the soil surface is buried six inches deep. The pathogen needs oxygen and only infects at the soil line. If the fungus is buried, then it won’t infect. You can add new soil to the area and replant.