Actually the part that looks like it might be infected is the pimply part. You can have one part infected and another part clean. There was a regimen for killing off the pest on xeric world that I saved: "Wiping out aloe mite in larger specimens is easily accomplished with systemics, especially with Cygon. Sevin is also an excellent miticide, but do be wary of using the powdered form in the crowns of good plants, as with Tim's experience, it can cause damage. However, using the liquid form does not. On rare plants, especially those that rarely (never?) offset, letting the mites get a good foothold and producing an abundance of abnormal growth� and then treating with Sevin or Cygon or any other miticide will not only rid the plant of the mite problem, the undisturbed (not excised) area(s) will convert from a mass of warty tissue to one of several desired offsets. I have done this with several species and it has worked well on all. I now have a seven-headed Aloe comosa (endangered) specimen in my yard. And yes, Aloe reitzii is also susceptible to mite attacks. I have a two headed form of this taxon as a result of treatment for aloe mite. ... Eriophyid mites can migrate plant to plant via wind. However, as we discovered with our trial, often there is still monstrose growth occurring after no mite can be detected! This is due to the auxin like material that continues to systematically cause monstrose growth. We are not sure how long that can continue after the plant is no longer inhabited by the mite. We have also seen subterranean offsets heavily infested by the mite. Other materials that are efficacious for Eriophyids are Kontos (spirotetramat), Judo (spiromefisin) and Avid (abamectin). Auxin signalling goes all the way down to the DNA transcription level, and so can persist for weeks once started." I would for sure seal up that infected-appearing rosette and throw it in the trash. If the aloe is rare, I would isolate and try and save it, but if it is common I would just throw out the entire thing and buy a new one. Easy for me to say, they are relatively cheap here, cheaper than Cygon & etc.

All are good tips to deal with Field Bindweed (a.k.a. Morning Glory). Here's my 2cents worth: The most effective way to deal with any plant (either to make it grow or to kill it) is to understand how it propagates itself. One of the reasons that Bindweed is so invasive (and frustrating) is that it really badly wants to "go forth and multiply". Bindweed is very successful at all of the requirements for survival: 1)It's a long-lived perennial, 2) it propagates both by vegetation and by seed 3)the seeds are viable for a long time in the soil (I've heard 30 years) 4) I've seen a picture of the root system being over 20 feet deep 5) it will re-sprout a new plant at each "node" along the root and stem 6)it's quite drought tolerant 7) it is happy in ANY kind of soil (clay, sand, rocks, loam... But it likes disrupted soil the best. All this is very discouraging, but understanding Bindweed's method of reproduction helps control it. Here's what's been successful for me in "managing" Bindweed in my yard, and in the other yards that I've worked in. I've delt with many acres of Bindweed, and now only have to carry a small bottle of glyphosate in the spring and remind the Bindweed who's boss. ;) 1) First line of attack is to manage the existing plants, and their root systems that sprout from each node when you pull off the top. I've tried many ways to deal with the "parent" plant (pulling, smothering, tilling, burning, vinegar, salt, solarizing with plastic, etc.). But the most effective way that I've found is that it's important to use an herbicide that trans-locates the herbicide through the root system (therefore killing the roots along with the vegetative top growth; remember that Bindweed sprouts from each node including on the root system). Glyphosate (the effective ingredient in Roundup) is one of the more successful herbicides that trans-locates through the root system. There are a few "tricks" in using glyphosate. Follow the manufacturer's instructions and mix the glyphosate using the instructions for "shrubs/vines" (in other words, mix it as strong as possible). Glyphosate is easily neutralized by contaminates, so make sure you don't use dirty water (from a pond, etc.), don't add any other chemical unless it specifies that it's compatable, and make sure that you don't use a metal canister to mix/spray/store it in (I use plastic). Having said that, I add a few "secret ingredients". Glyphosate works best in slightly acid pH water. Most of our mountain states have alkaline soils, and therefore alkaline water. Therefore, I add a bit of vinegar (about a tablespoon/gal) to acidify the water. The next ingredient that I add is a surfactant (which some of the herbicides already have in them). A surfactant breaks down the surface tension on the leaf, and allows the herbicide to spread over the surface therefore being more available to be absorbed (also called a spreader/sticker). One of the easiest surfactants is liquid dish soap. A few drops is plenty. The final "secret" ingredient is a bit of water-soluble fertilizer such as Miracle Grow. It is extremely important for the plant that you want to kill is "actively green and growing". Fertilizer helps with this. Keep in mind that glyphosate is a NON SELECTIVE herbicide. It will kill any plant, but it has to touch the leaves (or other part of the plant that has chlorophyll in it (some plants have chlorophyll in their trunks/stems). Glyphosate is neutralized in the soil and therefore is NOT a soil contaminate/sterilizer. Be careful of chemical drift (the wind blowing the spray to other plants), tracking glyphosate on your shoes, tracking via pets, rain, etc. If the Bindweed is amoung other plants, I use a plastic drinking cup that has the bottom cut out. I pull the Bindweed through the bottom of the cup, and then spray into the cup therefore reducing the possibility of the herbicide drifting onto other plants. I let this dry, and then remove the cup. I also have heard of using a paint brush and painting the leaves, and also "foaming" the soap into bubbles (remember the soap?) and placing the glyphosate-infused bubbles on the plant. It's hard to be exact when you're spraying, so try these other options. It is most effective to use glyphosate in the fall when the plant is pulling nutrients into their roots getting ready for winter. But, Bindweed takes persistence, so use it whenever you can. Another tip: DON'T use any herbicide when the temps. will be over 80degrees!!! Most all chemical herbicides will volatilize above 80 degrees and turn into a gas and drift onto other plants. :( 2) Now we have to deal with the seeds! A pre-emergent herbicide (such as Preen) will help, but you're only putting off the germination of a 30 year viable seed. I've chosen to allow them to germinate and then continue to kill the "parent" plant. Do this by pulling new seedlings and continuing to use glyphosate to kill the more mature plants. Remember, each time you till or work the soil, you're bringing up seeds to the surface so that they will germinate. It will seem like a never-ending battle, but you can win! There's an old saying that it takes 7 years to manage one year's worth of laziness by allowing a plant to reseed. Don't give up! Sorry for the long reply. Hope this helps!

I am a peacemaker between gardeners and bindweed. These plants are not all that bad as you think they are. I hope scientific research can be done to prove that these "weeds" are actually beneficial. Here's my theory: The roots go down very deep--I heard up to 17ft.; maybe that's an extreme estimate. However, they do go down deep 'cause I never seen the end of any of them! That means they are bring up all the nutrients that are washed by rain and watering. Another thing about the roots is that perhaps they are loosening the soil so that the garden plants grow their roots more deeply. Did you ever notice the spiral effect when pulling up bindweed? My garden does very well where these weeds are present and not so good where they are not present or are scarce. Yes I have to fight them all the time along with other weeds so it is not so big of a deal. Then when the garden plants mature bindweed weaken and sometimes are working for me. For instance, they hold up the bean plants by wrapping themselves around them at the base. They shade the tomatoes when they are ripening. I've got so familiar with this weed that now he is my garden friend. Bindweed comes and we chat and then I turn him away. He comes back and visits again and I turn him away again. Finally, I let him stay and we have a wonderful garden with him. Next spring I think he'll be much more lush than before. But I don't mind 'cause it's all the more fertilizer for the garden. I will miss you Bindweed if you never came back to see me again!!

Johnny, The place that Johnson grass drives me crazy is in the garden fenceline. It sprouts directly underneath the fence. I can dig it out, but then that leaves the soil at the fenceline soft and loose and bunnies can tunnel underneath it. Anywhere that we can mow or cut with the stringtrimmer, the Johnson grass remains under control. It doesn't like being mowed, so continually cutting it seems to work really well, but you cannot cut it where it springs up in the fenceline. There's one corner of the back garden that has had a bad Johnson grass problem since day one. I'm going to cover that corner with 6 mm clear plastic and solarize it this summer to see if that helps. Autheray, I have Dr. Reich's book, Weedless Gardening, and have read it. I do not have as much weed trouble in notill beds, but no-till is not a magic solution here where we live on a slope and neighbors' weed seeds wash down into my garden every time we have enough rain to produce heavy runoff. Already this year I have had over one inch of soil wash into my garden where it settles at the lower end of the garden on top of mulched, planted areas. There's nothing like coming out after heavy rainfall and finding your mulch buried under silty/sandy/weedy soil from the place next door. That's the area where I have the most trouble with bindweed too. It isn't so much of a problem in raised beds that I plant and mulch heavily, but in grade level areas that get lots of runoff from the higher ground next door, it is a real problem. I just accept that a part of every day I am in the garden will be spend yanking out bindweed seedlings. My goal is to remove them daily as they sprout, before they have a chance to grow and become established. With onions that are underperforming, I just pull them throughout the spring and use them as green onions or as young onions in cooking. If they obviously are lagging behind other onions that are doing better, I can be pretty ruthless and yank them out for immediate use. I grow so many that I don't wait for them all to size up---I use them at any size during the growing season, and we still harvest more mature, full-sized onions than we ever can eat fresh, so I end up chopping up a lot of them and freezing them in 1/2 cup and 1 cup quantities for cooking. All the onions are individuals just like people are---they are not identical clones---so some do better than others. It has always been that way and I used to be perplexed by it until I just decided that was the way it was and that I needed to get over worrying about it. fitzjennings, Bindweed is the devil! I hate it, and feel we'll never be free of it. Our place was part of a farm for many decades before we bought it, so we have all the weeds common in disturbed soil. Some people in Colorado, where bindweed seems to be even worse than it is here, have reported some success with diluting Roundup per label directions and pouring it into a cup. They set the cup on the ground next to a bindweed plant. Then they take the bindweed plant's growing tip, and put it in the cup of Roundup. They say that the plant slowly absorbs Roundup over time and it eventually kills the plant. I cannot say whether this works as I've never tried it, but some of those folks who use this technique swear by it. Dawn