The Henrico County Extension Office offers a service to help local gardeners with their problematic plants — the Armour House Eastern Diagnostic Clinic, in the carriage house at Armour House and Gardens at Meadowview Park, 4001 Clarendon Road.
The clinic will offer free identification and diagnosis of plant disorders and diseases by Henrico master gardeners; laboratory work, if necessary, will be provided at no charge as well. The clinic will operate annually from March 31 to Oct. 31, with services offered 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Monday through Friday; appointments are not necessary.
Extension Agent Lisa Sanderson said the diagnostic clinic expands a service that has been available to residents through the Extension Office at the Henrico Government Center complex on Parham Road. The length of the drive often made it difficult for eastern Henrico residents to bring in a plant sample and take advantage of the service, Sanderson noted.
“The additional clinic location at Armour House is designed to better serve folks living in the eastern part of the county,” she said.
A key to diagnosing a plant disorder such as disease or insect damage is having a good sample to examine, Sanderson said. Clinic users should provide at least a limb of the distressed plant, preferably a segment showing the transition from the healthy to the damaged portion. A leaf typically is not substantial enough to provide a sample, she said.
Phone service will not be available at the Armour House Eastern Diagnostic Clinic. For more information, contact the Extension Office at 501-5160 or henrico.us/extension.
