(Conservation Currents,
Northern Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District, April
2004)
The Fairfax County Master Gardeners’
Diagnostic Laboratory operates year-round. The lab is staffed
by senior Master Gardeners who have many years of experience
in solving plant, pest, and disease problems. Bring a sample
of whatever is troubling you to any Fairfax
County Public Library and ask the staff to send it to the
Master Gardeners through the county’s mail system.
Your sample will be analyzed at the lab, and
a detailed diagnosis with recommendations will be mailed back
to you. This generally takes two to four weeks, depending on
the time of year and the backlog of requests.
Samples are sent from the library to the laboratory
through the county interoffice mail. It is important that you
bring your sample suitably wrapped for this journey. Plant specimens
should be sealed in a plastic bag; insects should be in a firm
plastic container. Complete the Laboratory Diagnostic Sheet,
and place the sheet and the plastic container in another envelope
or box. Do not place the Lab Sheet inside the same plastic bag
with the sample. (Moisture from the sample often renders the
sheet unreadable.)
During the months
of May through September, the Master Gardeners will hold
plant clinics
throughout the county.
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- For disease/problem diagnosis: Provide a sample showing
both diseased and healthy tissue on the same sample. For proper
diagnosis, samples should have stems or branches at least
6" long. Individual leaves are usually not sufficient.
Include a small handful of fine feeder roots if you think
the plant can spare them.
- For plant identification: Provide as many parts of
the plant as possible—the entire plant if it is small
enough. In addition to stems and leaves, include flowers or
berries if available. Attach a description of the plant’s
size, shape and growing habits. (For example, does it drop
its leaves in winter, is it a 5' shrub or a 1' groundcover,
etc. If no flowers are available, describe when it last flowered
and what kind of flowers it had.)
- Sod: Submit a sample of sod 6" to 8" square
from the margin of the affected area that contains both healthy
and problem grass. Do not send grass that is already dead.
Send the entire root system—it may be 2 or 3 inches deep.
Place sod in a plastic bag inside a sturdy box. For identification
of a lawn weed, do not send sod but follow instructions above
for plant identification.
- Insects: Collect one or more complete insect specimens
and place them in a sturdy plastic container (such as old
pill bottle or film canister) with diluted rubbing alcohol.
Soak insects overnight to preserve them, then drain off ALL
the alcohol and seal. Do this BEFORE you bring the sample
to the library. Do not send insects in tissue paper or envelopes.
Do not tape insects to a card or paper.
Please do not send snakes, rats, mice, or any other wildlife
through the library system.
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