From January to March 2026

As the diagnostic season begins to ramp up, we are seeing a steady increase in sample submissions and a growing diversity of plant health issues. The following is a brief summary of diagnostic activity from January through March, highlighting key trends in crops, disorders, and pathogens observed during this early part of the year.

January
In January, samples were received across a range of categories including ornamental plants, vegetables, and fruit crops. Ornamental submissions were largely affected by abiotic and environmental issues, such as mechanical damage and cold damage. Ethylene was observed in tomatoes grown in greenhouse settings. Powdery mildew was diagnosed in several perennial plants grown in greenhouse. Neopestalotiopsis disease and anthracnose was diagnosed in two strawberry plants.

February
February submissions were dominated by vegetable and ornamental samples, with a strong prevalence of root and crown diseases. Multiple lettuce samples were diagnosed with Phytophthora root rot. Fusarium root rot was diagnosed on pepper. Ornamental Bonsai (juniper) samples showed Phomopsis spores. Diaporthe associated with possible environmental stresses was observed on Canaan fir. Environmental stresses were reported in several cases, including cold damage on strawberry.

March
March saw the highest volume and diversity of submissions, largely from ornamental crops. Diagnoses included a wide range of fungal diseases such as needle casts (Swiss, Stigmina), root rots (Pythium, Rhizoctonia, Phytophthora, Globisporangium), and needle and leaf blights (Phyllosticta, Cryptocline). Several samples showed abiotic stress related to herbicide exposure, ethylene exposure, transplant shock, or cold injury. Oystershell scales were identified on a chestnut sample.

Host	County	Month	Final Diagnosis
Insect ID	Unknown	Jan	Drosophila
Oak Red	Cuyahoga	Jan	Mechanical Damage
Spatiphyllium (?)	Franklin	Jan	Abiotic Watering Related Issue
Cannon Ball Tree	Franklin	Jan	Eutypella Dieback (Suspected)
Insect ID	Unknown	Jan	Leaf-Footed Bug
Strawberry	KY	Jan	Neopestalotiopsis and Anthracnose
Insect Id	Montgomery	Jan	Jumping Spider No Other Pests
Tomato		Jan	Abiotic Ethylene Heat Damage
Veronica	Delaware	Jan	Powdery Mildew
Bonsai	Cuyahoga	Feb	Phomopsis Spores
Bonsai	Cuyahoga	Feb	Phomopsis Spores
Lettuce	Franklin	Feb	Phytophthora Root Rot
Lettuce	Franklin	Feb	Phytophthora Root Rot
Lettuce	Franklin	Feb	Phytophthora Root Rot
Lettuce	Franklin	Feb	Phytophthora Root Rot
Pepper	Franklin	Feb	Fusarium Root Rot
Canaan Fir	Geauga	Feb	Diaporthe (secondary) Environmental Stress
Elm	Delaware	Feb	Phytoplasma Negative (Nested PCR testing)
Arborvitae		Feb	No Pest or Pathogen found, Environmental Suspected
Strawberry	Wayne	Feb	Cold Damage
Insect Id	Butler	Feb	No Insect Found
Begonia	Licking	Mar	Rhizoctonia Root Rot and Environmental stress
Tomato		Mar	Environmental Abiotic (Ethylene damage)
Rhododendron	Wayne	Mar	Cladosporium Leaf Spot (Asked Larger Samples)
Garlic	Wayne	Mar	Garlic Bloat
Spruce	Wayne	Mar	Needle Cast
Spruce Blue	Marion	Mar	Swiss Needle Cast
Taxus	Cuyahoga	Mar	Globisporangium Root Rot
Fir	Marion	Mar	Suspected Herbicide
Fir	Marion	Mar	Suspected Herbicide
Spruce Black Hill	Marion	Mar	Suspected Herbicide
Arborvitae	Lorian	Mar	Transplant Shock Suspected
Chestnut	Ashland	Mar	Oystershell Scale
Cypress False	Lorian	Mar	Phyllosticta Needle Blight
Ranunculus	Clinton	Mar	Pythium Crown Rot
Taxus	Lorian	Mar	Cryptocline Needle Blight
Fir Douglas	Cuhyaoga	Mar	Pine Needle Scale (?)
Hemlock	Wayne	Mar	No significant number of pests found
Lobelia		Mar	Ethylene Exposure Or Herbicide suspected
Marigold		Mar	Ethylene Exposure Or Herbicide suspected
Spruce	Franklin	Mar	Spider Mite Damage
Tomato		Mar	Ethylene Exposure Or Herbicide
Arborvitae	Franklin	Mar	Phyllosticta Blight
Spruce	Franklin	Mar	Stigmina Needle Cast
Arborvitae (Roots)	Franklin	Mar	Phytophthora Root Rot (Immunoassay)
Lettuce	Lake	Mar	Pythium root rot and Botrytis
Spinach	Lake	Mar	Pythium root rot Botrytis
Spruce	Franklin	Mar	Possible herbicide damage

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From January to March 2026

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Plant diseases and disorders diagnosed by the Clinic in 2024

Plant diseases and disorders diagnosed by the Clinic in 2023 (click on the link to our google doc)

Plant diseases and disorders diagnosed by the Clinic in 2023 _{(click on the link to our google doc)}