fungus infection? Dactylorhiza break down :-(

[Catwheazle]

... so it can go :-(
Since I had used praetermissa for about 10 years, a beautiful Dactylorhiza, but this year is probably the end of it. Whether it was the many frosts (last 2 days), or Schee or the vast amounts of water .... in any case, the plant seems to have captured a violent fungal infection. A Dactylorhiza majalis near also shows slight wear, but all the others are thankfully healthy.
I'm thinking now: I shall reluctantly destroy the plant completely, or wait until they survived? If it is a fungal infection that has already spread anyway, especially since the next few days of continuous rain are still fashionable.
2 Pictures fron 2011/12 ... and one from 2013

[Darren]

This looks like Cladosporium orchidis. The Wilsons wrote an article on this pathogen for the SRGC several years ago. If you google the name of the fungus you can find a pdf of this article. Or perhaps Maggi can place a direct link in here?

[Maggi Young]

More talk on Dact. disease in this thread, plus a link to the Wilson's article :
http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=566.msg13646#msg13646

[Catwheazle]

Yes, exactly, that's it. Thanks for your help.
I just hope that this endless winter and spring of this horrible, it was actually no time to finally end.
In my Garte I can now grow bog plants. It's been raining for weeks, more or less without a break :-(

[mark smyth]

Sadly some of mine are infected this year  Where does it come from. Does the weather contribute?

[Darren]

More talk on Dact. disease in this thread, plus a link to the Wilson's article :
http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=566.msg13646#msg13646

Thanks for doing that Maggi 

[Darren]

Mark - as mentioned in the article it seems to be made worse by both frosts (damage allowing entry of the disease) and by prolonged wet spells in spring. Pretty much exactly the conditions Bernd describes this year. Spores are probably always around in the environment.

We lost a lot of Dacts to it in our old garden but have been much luckier here so far. This garden is also better drained which helps too.
 
Incidentally, in contrast to many places our spring this year has been remarkably dry and cool but with no late frosts. And Lancaster got NO snow this last winter, twice we were almost the only green spot on the UK satellite map!

[mark smyth]

Looking at my plants today the die back started where leaves were bent and cracked by the wind. All the early ones are affected. Those facing east or hidden by other plants are OK for now

[Catwheazle]

Hi Mark,
yes, my plants seem to be similar. Hope that next year they are to survive and recover. 

Bernd