At the end of June, my husband was working on the vegetable garden when he noticed something unusual on top of the wood chips (which is at the base of our vegetable garden). At first, he thought an animal had eaten something in the garden and vomited on the spot. It was a very odd-looking yellowish, bile-colored substance that resembled throw-up. Google quickly confirmed what this mystery substance was, ‘Dog Vomit Slime Mold‘! We had never heard or seen such a thing. We continued to see this substance on multiple occasions and in different areas of the garden including on top and/sides of the garden beds.
What is Dog Vomit Slime Mold?
Dog Vomit Slime Mold is one of the most common and noticed slime molds; which I learned there are many different kinds. This is the first time I heard of slime mold. It grows in warm, moist environments and is typically seen during periods of warm and rainy weather when there is a lot of shade and moisture. You may also see it during dry periods if you are watering regularly. It can be found on a variety of surfaces, especially those with decomposing organic matter. Often it is found on mulchy areas of your garden, especially on recently applied mulches such as shredded bark, wood chips, and leaf mulch. It can appear quickly, have a yellow, whitish, or tan color, and look like a foamy patch of dog vomit or scrambled eggs.
Is Dog Vomit Slime Mold dangerous?
While the appearance of this mold may raise a high level of concern, you should know is it not toxic. It will not harm your garden, lawn, plants, pets, or family members. There is no need to control it, as it is harmless,.
What to do when you find Dog Vomit Slime Mold?
When you find it you can leave it and let it dry out. If you don’t like the looks of them you can scoop them up and throw them away. The masses of slime molds will usually dry up and disappear in hot, dry weather without any intervention on your part. You can speed up the process by removing the unsightly patches in the landscape. What you don’t want to do is step on it. If you do it will spread the spores throughout the garden. Guess what my husband did?
How to stop Dog Vomit Slime Mold?
You can help prevent the slime mold from growing by turning your mulch over, approximately once a month. By rotating it, it doesn’t hold the moisture and the heat inside of the mulch.
It’s the middle of August and just as I was about to write that we haven’t seen any new ‘Dog Vomit Slime Mold’, literally at the vegetable garden this morning I came across a small patch. All the others found at the beginning of July have since dried up.
Dog Vomit Slime Mold is harmless and is not a problem at all. Seeing this in your garden is a sign of a healthy ecosystem. It does however look as gross as it sounds.
Best of all when you see this in your garden, at least now you will know what it is!
