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University of Connecticut Plant Diagnostic Laboratory

The Plant Diagnostic Laboratory at University of Connecticut is Connecticut’s university plant diagnostic lab. Send it a sick plant, an insect or a weed and it tells you what it is and what to do about it, usually for a small fee.

Lab Details

University of Connecticut

Connecticut

Disease diagnosis
Insect ID
Virus tests
Nematodes

Open the lab's site for fees, forms and the mailing address.

Services

Disease diagnosis. Finds what is making a plant sick, from fungi and bacteria to cold, drought or chemical injury.
Insect ID. Identifies insects, mites and spiders and whether they are a threat to the plant.
Virus tests. Serological tests such as ELISA that check a plant for specific viruses.
Nematodes. Extracts and counts plant-parasitic nematodes from soil or roots.

Virus and nematode tests cost extra, and the lab asks before running anything with an added fee.

Not Accepted

Herbicide, pesticide or contaminant testing

Out of State

The lab’s site doesn’t say whether it takes samples from other states. Ask before sending one.

Sample Tips

Call or email the lab before you send anything. What a lab accepts, and what it charges, changes.
Send a plant that is still sick, not one that has died. Include the edge where sick tissue meets healthy tissue.
Bag the roots and soil and tie the bag off at the stem, so soil stays off the leaves. Wrap leaves in dry paper and don’t add water.
Mail early in the week so the box doesn’t sit in a warehouse over the weekend.
Fill in the lab’s form completely: the plant, what you see, when it started and what has been sprayed or applied.

Not sure it’s worth a lab fee? The plant health key narrows a problem down from what you see, and your county Connecticut Extension office can often look at a sample free first.

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