Does anyone out there know a nice, organic spray to combat powdery mildew? I'm sure I saw a recipe somewhere made of common household ingredients (shampoo, mouthwash, etc.) but cannot find it. HELP PLEASE.

this one works if it doesn't rain right away, and you need to get it early because the leaves with it will fall off anyway, but the new leaves won't get it...and spray every few days

In a spray bottle of water placy 1 Tblsp. light cooking oil, 2 Tbsp. baking soda. Shake before using

Sulfur sprays refer to gardens alive catalogue

Baking soda/oil mix works, as well as just plain baking soda in water. However, some mildew is caused because of poor air circulation. Plants by a solid fence are susceptible to this.

My sage plants had mildew this year after a hot, wet rainy spell. I sprayed them with 1 part hydrogen peroxide, 4 parts water. It did the trick, but seemed a little hard on the leaves. The sage didn't seem to mind, and are doing fine.

I'd like to add another question to this thread. As a new gardener, I didn't realize that I had powderly mildew on an aster in my garden until very recently. Now that the growing season is over up here in Zone 5, should I still spray the plant? If I don't, will the powderly mildew return on this plant next year?

Fungus of any kind is an indicator of stress, too much or too little water, too hot or too cold. Believe it not, corn meal mixed into the soil will beat almost any fungul problems. It doesn't need to be any special kind, by the cheapest cornmeal at the grocery store, sprinkle enough on the soil to turn it yellow, then work it in slightly, then water. It also works great when you make it part of the bed preparation before planting. Besides being antifungal, it's also a great mild fertizer.

I've found that a equal ratio of water & skim milk mixed together & sprayed onto the leaves several days in a row works as good as the baking soda solution. & the comment about air circulation is so true: thin out your tall phlox or monarda or other suseptible plants. (I'm gonna try that cornmeal thing, by the way" THANKS!)

I have had really good luck with the sulfur products from gardensalive.com