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Carnivorous Plants/Spots developing on S Flava
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Question
Conditions
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1) The species of carnivorous plant you're growing. S-Flava
2) A concise description of a single issue.
Situation:
S Flava Plants started developing small black spots on the pitcher tubes & lids and even on new spouting pitcher.(See attached photos) This just started happening in a day or two after rain. Spots seem to be permanent damage not anything you could wipe off with a Q-tip.
Question:Any idea what these spots are or what is happen? These spots are ugly and seems to be spreading only on flava.
3) The type of lighting, water and soil you're using.
Full direct sunlight, 5 to 8 hours daily. Water is Merlin RO 750gal system; soil is 2-pt canadian spagnum, 1 pt perlite, 1-pt silica sand.
4) Your location to assess climate issues (e.g. Charlotte, North Carolina).
Coastal Southern California, Near San Diego CA.
5) A CLEAR photograph of your plant. (Not necessary, but extremely helpful. No blurry plant photos, please. The plant, not the background, needs to be in focus.)
There's nothing wrong with the plant per se. It's a form of rust spots, a type of fungus that is very common, very benign and often unavoidable. Some Sarracenia are prone to it. Others are not. The spots occur from heavy nectar secretion throughout the hood and rim of the pitcher. As the temperature increases, the nectar dries up. Fungus then feast on the dried nectar and leaves a red spot on the leaf. The fungus is extremely benign and doesn't harm the plant in any way other than cosmetically. Once the spots occur, they remain permanently, so there's no way to reverse it. It also occurs mostly on older pitchers, so as the season progresses, it'll show up on the older pitchers. Younger pitchers tend to be free of rust spots until they get a bit older, about 2 months.
It's possible to prevent the rust spots by spraying your plants with a sulfur fungicide, but you'll need to do it weekly, and it's not always a guarantee since the sulfur will wash off in a few days. Given your location, you're seeing it a bit earlier than we do in Oregon. Typically we see it in July when our weather really heats up.
While it may be unsightly, it's a very normal occurrence when some plats produce lots of nectar.
Good growing!
Jacob Farin
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Answers by Expert:
Sarracenia Northwest
Expertise
If your plant is showing poor growth, discoloration, abnormal leaves or possible infestation, the growers at Sarracenia Northwest can help! Carnivorous plant experts Jeff Dallas and Jacob Farin will help you diagnose the problem and get your plants on the right track. Their no nonsense approach has helped thousands of growers all over the world. They can help you too!
Experience
With over 40 years of combined experience, Jeff and Jacob has definitely taken a straight forward approach to growing carnivorous plants. They have encountered many types of diseases, abnormal growth and infestations related to carnivorous plants, and they know what it takes to get plants looking beautiful and healthy again.
Education/Credentials
Authors of Secrets to Growing Beautiful Carnivorous Plants for Your Home and Garden and producers of the Grow Carnivorous Plants! DVD Series. They also produce a monthly video podcast to illustrate how plants cycle through the seasons.
No terrariums. No myths. No nonsense.
Just the straight facts from guys who grow and propagate
thousands of carnivorous plants each year.
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PLEASE READ BEFORE SUBMITTING YOUR QUESTION: We no longer answer how-to questions (i.e. How do I propagate...?; How do I grow...?). Instead, we help growers by diagnosing a specific plant problem and offering solutions (i.e. Why is my sundew not producing dew?; Is now a good time to divide my Sarracenia?; Why are the traps turning black?; What's a good substitute for perlite?; Why didn't my seeds germinate?; Can you identify this carnivorous plant for me?) For general plant care, please read our care sheets on our main website: http://www.cobraplant.com/caresheets For business questions: http://www.cobraplant.com/contact |
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