PERIL TO THE SQUASH

I have photographed everything in sight this morning and nothing was quite right. I even had a macro of bugs on a flower head but it has been done and done. Those little black bugs are everywhere this year. They are international.

Coming back along a path I saw this. Powdery mildew, a fungus that kills. This is on a young oak tree but its spores float through the air and get a grip on all plants susceptible to it. My squash plants, which have frolicked all over the herb garden (Italians say these plants "walk") are for it as are many other things. There are sprays for it but I cannot spray the entire countryside, can I? Add a considerable amount of bad language here.

This pic has not been enhanced in any way. The stuff really is this thick.

Italians call it malbianco, bad white, and indeed, that's just about it.