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Diagnosis? Stress, aphids, or water.... hmm..

Ridetsu

Gamer
Hey everyone... this will be my first post here on these forums. After a few years hiatus from growing, i decided i would try to pick things back up again.
I'v had these traps for about a month now... ordered them online, and go them in the standard way: roots wrapped in a moist paper towel, and in a ziplock baggie.
I'v had other traps around for about 5 months now.

I planted them into a mix of sand and sphagnum, maybe a bit more sphagnum than sand though (not a 50/50 split since its hard to measure correctly).

I grow them outside next to my pond - they get morning/afternoon sunlight, but after about 6:00 they are cast into shadow by a shed.

I have been watering them with bottled water that is advertised as having no sodium and chlorine. I dropped the Ph of each bottle of water to 6.0 - 6.2 (from about 8.0) using standard acid chemicals used in aquarium upkeep (no addition chemicals or nutrients in them). I'v finally found a grocery store that sells distilled drinking water, and am using that - it has a standard Ph level for about 6.0. I try to catch what rain-water i can, but it is a bad time of the year for it (I live in Eugene, Oregon).

I grow completely outdoors, so i think the problem might be aphids or some other bug. I don't think its sun damage, since i don't think the sun can cause this, to my big-mouth VFT:

Aphid-dmg.JPG



My guess is that aphids got to it while it was young and freshly developing - i have been tracking its growth since it was a baby, and it always looked warped - it didn't randomly become warped one night.
Similarly, i have had other plants that exhibit a very familiar problem - a tear on the leaf that doesn't seem to have been caused by anything (circled part)- they grow with that tear, and the tear grows with them. The tear is cauterized - or rather, it is not an open break wound - it is like it decided to tear itself while it was developing.

Another familiar ailment is something i am terming "Dead-Trap", in which the trap is freshly growing, and.. just like it was random, the trap turns black, hard, and can be easily brushed/broken off. The stem will continue to grow to normal length, but the trap will never be there.

Burnt-Tip_red.JPG


As you can see, there are 3 (yes 3 ) new traps forming - but only one of them has the burnt-tip - i simply can't understand why, unless aphids have damaged the tissue, and the trap never got any nutrients in its initial stages of growth.
This dead-trap has happened to several other traps that i end up removing - but i don't know why, or how to prevent it.

Another concern is that i have some babies growing with my big-mouth VFT (a new off-shoot, yaay!), and they are exhibiting some signs of leaf-damage very early on. here is a picture - you will be able to note that the leaf is curly and warped - this warping may become a tear within a week or so, but if i can avoid that, i will.

baby_concern.JPG



I talked with a friend of mine about the damage, and he said it might be aphids getting down into it, and feeding on the fresh sprouts as they come up, since they have a hard time feeding on them once they are matured. This feeding process damages the tissue, which leads to warping and dead-trap. I bought some ortho systemic bug-killer, mixed two tablespoons (liquid) with a gallon of water, and misted all my plants with it on the top and on the bottom (not the entire gallon mind you, but i was quite liberal). I will wait two weeks before trying again, and this is day 3 (with no visible ailment from bug-killer showing).

To show that it isn't something affecting the entire plant, here is a shot of my big-mouth VFT. The plant is about 3 years old i think because of its trap-size, but it did not flower (i have two that are pre-flowering right now, and have mighty poor traps because of it... sigh). btw, the big-mouth VFT has traps on it that i feed full-grown crickets to >.> my scorpions and tarantula are not happy with it though, since they eat the same thing!

COmparison.JPG


Anyways, your advice is much appreciated, or if you can direct me to a thread in this forum where i can see a solution that would be nice.
 
Yep, that looks like aphids, and maybe another bug as well...aphids suck the juices out of leaves, and leave them spindly and deformed...also, are the leaves sticky in any spots, because aphids leave behind a sticky sweet substance?

If it is aphids, I would buy some ladybugs from your local nursery, and release them around you growing area...lady bugs feed on aphids...

-good luck
-Gabe
 
You may also want to consider the use of a pesticide or drwoning in distilled water, just as an alternative. I like to start simple and work my way up to more complicated. With small plants I have been successful with just putting the infected pot in a larger plastic vessel and overfill it with the water, for a few days. That kills the aphids but not the plants. If it is too widespread and /or impracticle to drown them, then a pesticide would be a better alternative.
 
could you give me some advice on how to drown them? I'm worried about having to dig-up the plant and hurt the root system, as well as the plant drowning in general - as all gardeners have before, i too have killed a plant with too much water.
 
Just put the potted plant into a container large enough to hold it and fill with enough water to cover the plant.
 
and how long do you usually keep it in there without hurting the plant?
 
A couple of days is long enough to kill aphids but it won't harm the plants.
 
...though they may look a bit be-draggled for a bit when you pull them out. They will recover.
 
Yeah... like having a bad trap day... or week!
 
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