Ewww! Why am I seeing barf in my garden?

After the wet weather we had earlier this month, you may have noticed an interesting (some might say disgusting) looking substance in your garden or landscape. We've had several calls from clients saying it is “growing” in their gardens. We even found some in our Pollinator Garden here at the Agriculture Center in Modesto.

Although this substance looks like vomit and is called "Dog vomit slime mold," it is actually a living, growing fungi that thrives during moist, wet weather and is not harmful to your garden. Luckily it is short-lived and is drying up now that temperatures have warmed.

You can read more about dog vomit slime mold and other strange (or should we say ‘cool?') looking fungi that might appear in your garden or landscape on the UC IPM website at https://ipm.ucanr.edu/TOOLS/TURF/PESTS/disnusiance.html

Did you see this in your garden this year? Or in past years? Please comment below!