Radishes

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For more than a half century, home gardeners have been bringing us their questions and issues. We have University trained volunteers who can help you tackle those intractable problems! Our diagnostic team specializes in pinpointing issues with plants and pests, offering free research-based advice on effective management strategies for both the pests and the overall health of gardens and landscapes.

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Ask a Master Gardener

Gardening advice via email

If you have a gardening issue and cannot get to one of our in-person plant clinics, you can submit your question via email.

There are two options for King County residents to ask a gardening question via email.

Question submission form

Whether you email us directly or complete the form, please include these important details.

  • Type of plant
  • Description of damage
  • Location of plant
  • Care of plant
  • Photos
Ask a Master Gardener clinic at garden center

Ask a Master Gardener plant clinic locations

If instead of email, you want to have some back-and-forth question and answer so that, together, we can hone on the difficult to describe issue, then click here for an In-Person Plant Clinic location near you.

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Aphids on a plant.

Other gardening resources

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Gardening resources

Top weeds and pests in our area

Japanese Beetle

Alert: Japanese Beetle

The Japanese beetle was recently found in Washington, with several sightings near SeaTac in King County. WSDA is asking for help in identification and eradication of this destructive pest. You can help by reporting any Japanese beetles to WSDA and treating beetles (if found) to keep populations low. Reporting can occur online at agr.wa.gov/beetles, by emailing PestProgram@agr.wa.gov, or calling 1-800-443-6684. If you are in an affected area, you can sign up for free treatment.
Free Japanese Beetle Treatment
WSDA Beetle 101
Japanese Beetle WSU Homeowner Control
bittercress

Bittercress (a.k.a.: Shotweed)

Little bittercress blooms in early spring only, typically mid-March to mid-April. Its flowers are tiny and white, borne at the top of the plant. Fruits are slender, thin, and one to two inches long. When mature pods are touched, they split apart explosively, giving rise to the common name “shotweed.”
Shooting 'Shotweed'!
creeping buttercup

Creeping Buttercup

Creeping buttercup is a creeping perennial plant that is usually fairly low-growing. The stems are hairy and root at the nodes when they contact the soil. The flowers have five (sometimes up to ten) glossy yellow petals and a cluster of yellow stamens in the center. Difficult to eradicate, roots are deep and delicate and the plant grows back from pieces of roots and stems left during hand removal. 
Creeping Buttercup
European chafer beetle damage to lawn

European Chafer Beetle

The European chafer is a beetle that causes damage to turf and cereal crops when in its larval (or grub) form. Heavy infestations cause browning and death of turf. Secondary pests such as raccoons and crows peel back turf to feed on the grubs, causing significant damage to lawns.
Pest Watch: European Chafer (PDF)
Turfgrass-White grub
Dandelions

Dandelions

The common dandelion is a persistent tap-rooted plant reproducing by seeds and by short shoots from the crown. It also grows back from roots broken during hand removal. 
Dandelions
Field of horsetail

Horsetail

Horsetails are found primarily in moist to wet areas. Scouringrush is common along roadsides and ditch banks. Field horsetail is found primarily in moist to wet areas but can survive in drier areas once established. Field horsetail is a common weed of gardens, pastures, and home landscapes.
Horsetail
knotweed

Knotweeds

The giant knotweeds are aggressive plants that spread via long rhizomes and also by seeds. They are deciduous plants, with the woody, reddish-brown stems dying back in winter. Summer growth of Japanese knotweed or fleeceflower can reach nine feet in height.. 
Knotweeds