Each month in 2025, the UW Plant Disease Diagnostics Clinic sponsored a Zoom presentation on a plant disease-related topic. Check out descriptions and a preview of the talks below.
If you have questions about the presentations, feel free to contact Brian Hudelson at pddc@wisc.edu or (608) 262-2863.
To register for one or more of the talks, CLICK HERE.
Top Ten Plant Diseases of 2024
Date: January 22, 2025
Time: 6:30 – 8:30 pm
Description
Learn about 10 plant diseases that made a splash at the UW-Madison Plant Disease Diagnostics Clinic in 2024. Diseases include both those that were submitted the most commonly to the clinic and those that potentially had the biggest impact from an economic or regulatory standpoint.
Preview
Register for this talk.
Fundamentals of Plant Diseases
Date: February 26, 2025
Time: 6:30 – 9:00 pm
Description
Learn about disease-causing organisms and the symptoms they cause, as well as information on environmental factors that favor disease development. Also learn about disease-like disorders caused by non-biological factors such as nutrient imbalances, pesticide exposures, environmental pollutants and adverse environmental conditions.
Preview
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Growing Healthy Plants – Basics in Plant Disease Management
Date: March 26, 2025
Time: 6:30 – 8:30 pm
Description
Learn about common methods for disease control, their pros and cons, and how you can adapt these techniques for use in your own home garden.
Preview
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Ten Diseases of Native Plants
(and Non-Natives, Too)
Date: April 23, 2025
Time: 6:30 – 8:30 pm
Description
Learn about common diseases of plants that are native to Wisconsin. This presentation will include information on how to identify these diseases, as well as information on how to manage them.
Preview
Register for this talk.
The Science (and Art) of Plant Disease Diagnosis
Date: May 28, 2025
Time: 6:30 – 8:30 pm
Description
Learn about the fascinating and complex process involved in identifying plant diseases. Learn about how to visually assess for plant disease symptoms, as well as about the range of lab tests that are often needed to confirm the identity of plant diseases.
Preview
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Vegetable Diseases
Date: June 25, 2025
Time: 6:30 – 8:30 pm
Description
Learn about common diseases that can adversely affect the plants in your home vegetable garden. This presentation will include information on how to identify these diseases, as well as information on how to manage them.
Preview
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Diseases of Herbaceous Ornamentals
Date: July 23, 2025
Time: 6:30 – 8:30 pm
Description
Learn about common diseases that can adversely affect the herbaceous plants in your home garden. This presentation will include information on how to identify these diseases, as well as information on how to manage them.
Preview
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Deciduous Tree and Shrub Diseases
Date: August 27, 2025
Time: 6:30 – 8:30 pm
Description
Learn about common diseases that can adversely affect the deciduous trees and shrubs around your home. This presentation will include information on how to identify these diseases, as well as information on how to manage them.
Preview
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The Bad and the Ugly:
Ten Plant Diseases Not to Compost
Date: September 24, 2025
Time: 6:30 – 8:30 pm
Description
Certain plant diseases are so horrible or so deadly that composting is not an appropriate way to get rid of affected plants. Learn about some of these diseases and their proper management.
Register for this talk.
Diseases of Houseplants
Date: October 22, 2025
Time: 6:30 – 8:30 pm
Description
As gardening moves indoors for the winter, growing houseplants can prove challenging. Learn about common houseplant diseases that adversely affect your indoor gardening efforts. This presentation will include information on how to identify these diseases, as well as information on how to manage them.
Preview
Register for this talk.
Diseases of Evergreens
Date: November 19, 2025
Time: 6:30 – 8:30 pm
Description
Learn about common diseases that can adversely affect the evergreens around your home. This presentation will include information on how to identify these diseases, as well as information on how to manage them.
Preview
Register for this talk.
Ten Cool Diseases You Can Learn to Love
(and Identify by Eye)
Date: December 17, 2025
Time: 6:30 – 8:30 pm
Description
Learn about ten fascinating plant diseases with such distinctive signs and symptoms that you can identify them by eye. This presentation will cover the biology of the organisms that cause these diseases and tidbits of disease control information as well.