What's new
TerraForums Venus Flytrap, Nepenthes, Drosera and more talk

Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

Would you like fungus with that?

A few days ago I found 3 nice beautiful 18" S. flavas at a local store.
(local meaning about 1 1/2 hour drive away)
When I went to re-pot my flavas tonight I discovered that what I thought were three are actually 8 individual rhizomes.
Yipee!
However, almost all of them have the white fluffy mold, or fungus, or whatever it is. :mad:
What to do?
It is down on the rhizomes and the roots.
I loaned out my neem oil some time ago and it never came back.
(it said it was fungicide and insecticide)
The local stores (meaning only a few minutes away) are out and won't get more until next spring (planting season is over they said).
Do I make the long drive to find some fungicide or is there something else I can do? I can rub much of it off with my fingers under water, but surely much still remains.
Obviously I don't want to pot these plants until I get rid of the creeping crud. Can I store them in a bowl of water for a day or so until I get this fixed?
What is the best thing to do here?
:help:
 
Its quite likely you're looking at baby mealy bugs between the growth points. Take a really close look. Squish the white stuff between your fingers. Is it orange-cicle colored?
 
Well since fungicide isnt around Rubbing alcohol and hydrogen peroxide will work for now but get some fungicide as soon as you can! Just pick off as much of it as you can and apply one of the above or both if you want. It's not a permanent remedy. It really only deters for a little bit.

The bowl of water wont really do anything either : /

I'd send you some sulfur based powder fungicide but I'm not up to date on what the deal is about sending chemicals through the mail. Maybe if someone here know more about whether or not it's legal I can get some to you in time : /
 
Rats! I already washed all of it off that I could so I don't have any left to crush.
The rhizomes were buried way down at the bottom of the pots by the way.
The bowl of water idea was just to keep them hydrated while I figure out what to do. I didn't expect it to help with the crud problem.
I think I'm going to grit my teeth and make the trip for the fungicide.
Dang!
 
Well hang on if you're feeling lucky, I've also heard a while back that cinnamon works as a fungicide...the effects of using it though ??? I'm not sure if there's a potential of increasing the TDS in your soil as it breaks down. You may wanna try to split the 3 and do a cinnamon treatment for 1 and a nothing treatment for the other and see if it works ?

Forgot to add as well: Placing them outside will get rid of the mold on the surface but as for the roots you'll have to cross your fingers that it doesnt survive or that your plant fights it off.
 
Thanks for the suggestion but all the stores around here are closed, and we don't have any cinnamon.
I'm not really feeling too lucky at the moment anyway.
Road trip time.
What's the best way to apply a liquid fungicide?
Spray the rhizome and roots until soaked?
Plant it that way or let drip dry?
Sorry if I sound stupid, I've just never dealt with this before.
I'm about to head out the door so go ahead with replies and comments, I'll be back eventually.
I'll check back here before I do anything.
Thanks y'all!
Oh, in case it's the mealy bugs, I do have some Ortho Systemic that I use on my other CP, would that work?
 
For the mealy bugs: Yes that works, as well as Neem oil

Hopefully you get the Neem oil if they have it at the place you're going it's easier to apply, my sulfur fungicide tends to clump. You can just apply as they state on the bottle or use more ( i tend to use more but Neem stinks)

As for the application you can spray the roots really well and let soak. The neem does break down after a few days so you'll to reapply pretty often (like every 2-3 days for a week or 2).
As for the roots just pour a little bit in the soil, my sarrs havent noticed any difference.
If you get the sulfur based fungicide one application will be good enough for the roots, just keep a close eye on the surface of the rhizome. Good luck!
 
Thanks for the help.
I found some Garden-Safe need oil spray and gave them a good spray-down.
Hope this does the trick.
 
Let me guess. Was it Lowe's?
Did you see meaily bugs? Put a Q-tip in alcohol and dab it on them.
 
  • #10
Cinnamon works pretty well in my experience. I suppose that alcohol or peroxide may work to kill the fungus, but not sure about peroxide's effects on the plants and media. If you don't have cinnamon, you could probably ask your neighbors for some. You don't need a whole lot, just enough to get the media sparsely covered.
~Joe

PS - Er, just saw the post about finding neem oil, so I guess it's a moot point. Best luck with it!
 
  • #11
Yes, they came from Lowe's.
They sure were beautiful when I brought them home, but when I un-potted them..., ugh!
Now that I have then re-potted they look like they have had a bit of a hard life. I hope they perk back up.
I didn't see any mealy bugs, but to my knowledge I have never seen any mealy bugs, so am not sure what they look like. I didn't see anything moving about. I'll Google mealy bugs so I'll know what to look for next time.
After the rains let up I'll give them a dose of Ortho Systemic for just in case.
 
  • #12
Well the flavas are all re-potted.
For a while they were all droopy and sad looking but now they are perking up.
I would like to re-use the 3 1/2" pots they came in, they are just about the right size for some Pings that need re-potting.
Would a good soak in some strong bleach water get rid of any mold spores that might still be lurking about?
 
  • #13
Yup it sure would. Though you'd probably be ok with just a rinse, disinfecting is a sure bet to a safer medium especially if you are going to grow inside where fungus is more of a pain than inside. I spray mine with bleach and rinse them thoroughly and let them dry after being wiped clean. I know some ppl that microwave them if the plastic is microwave safe.
 
  • #14
I have fungus go around in my pots sometimes, but I've never gone so far as to use bleach. I usually make pots ahead of time and let them sit outside in the elements with nothing growing in them. I rinse them with boiling water when I first make the pot, and then again shortly before I get ready to plant. I'm pretty sure I've got some beneficial microbes circulating in my collection so I don't want to impede any probiotic activity. I can't recall ever having any problems with rot except when transplanting damaged or diseased plants. I get mushrooms in my pots but I'm not sure I've ever lost a Sarr rhizome to fungus, and only a few VFTs and other genera.
Which is not to say sterilization is bad - I'm just not compelled to do it under most circumstances. I'm busy enough trying to manage mosses and other weeds.
~Joe
 
Back
Top