Fiddle Leaf Fig Ficus Fungus or Root Rot signs???
pimpette95
10 years ago
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a1pha_fema1e
10 years agopimpette95
10 years agoRelated Discussions
Fungus or insects on fiddle leaf fig?
Comments (57)Not sure if the poster you addressed will reply, given his post is a year old. His images appear to be symptomatic of the physiological disorder, oedema - see below. Given your issue is in the upper (youngest) leaves, it might not be the same. It's not unusual for leaves of F. lyrata to emerge with pinhead or slightly smaller size dots covering the leaf surface nearly entirely. This often occurs when the air is dry, as it usually is in winter or when air conditioning is operating for days on end. That particular condition is simply expression of the purple pigment anthocyanin, and it will fade as the leaves mature. That's said w/o my being able to see an image of what you're describing, which would be very helpful. Oedema Oedema is a physiological disorder that can affect all plants. It occurs when the plant takes up more water than it can rid itself of via the process of transpiration. The word itself means 'swelling', which is usually the first symptom, and comes in the form of pale blisters or water-filled bumps on foliage. Under a variety of circumstances/cultural conditions, a plant's internal water pressure (turgidity) can become so high that some leaf cells rupture and leak their contents into inter-cellular spaces in leaf tissue, creating wet or weepy areas. Symptoms vary by plant, but as the malady progresses, areas of the leaf turn yellow, brown, brown with reddish overtones or even black, with older damage appearing as corky/ scaly/ ridged patches, or wart/gall-like bumpy growth. Symptoms are seen more frequently in plants that are fleshy, are usually more pronounced on the underside of leaves, and older/lower leaves are more likely to be affected than younger/upper leaves. Oedema is most common in houseplants during the winter/early spring months, is driven primarily by excessive water retention in the soil, and can be intensified via several additional cultural influences. Cool temperatures, high humidity levels, low light conditions, or partial defoliation can individually or collectively act to intensify the problem, as can anything else that slows transpiration. Nutritional deficiencies of Ca and Mg are also known contributors to the malady. Some things that can help you prevent oedema: * Increase light levels and temperature * Monitor water needs carefully – avoid over-watering. I'd heartily recommend a soil with drainage so sharp (fast) that when you to water to beyond the saturation point you needn't worry about prolonged periods of soil saturation wrecking root health/function. Your soil choice should be a key that unlocks the solutions to many potential problems. * Avoid misting or getting water on foliage. It slows transpiration and increases turgidity. * Water as soon as you get up in the AM. When stomata close in preparation for the dark cycle, turgidity builds. If you water early in the day, it gives the plant an opportunity to remove (for its own needs) some of the excess water in the soil. * Put a fan in the room or otherwise increase air flow/circulation. Avoid over-crowding your plants. Questions? Al...See MoreFiddle Leaf Fig/Ficus Lyrata newbie
Comments (16)Hi, Sarah. The cultural issues most likely to cause wilting are over-watering, under-watering, high temps, and a high level of dissolved solids (salts) in the soil solution. The later is usually accompanied by necrosis of leaf margins on lyrata, unless the high level of salts was due to a very recent fertilizing. If it wilted while the soil was still damp, your issue would probably be related to the effects of over-watering and/or the heat. Water and nutrient uptake is an energy driven process. It takes oxygen to burn (convert) the food (carbohydrates - from photosynthesis) into the energy that drives root metabolism. Too much water in the rhizosphere (root zone) means too little air means not enough O2 means the work of water uptake is compromised. The heat increases the rate of respiration increases water demand and exacerbates the issue. I would: Shade the pot to help keep roots cool if the plant has direct sun hitting it Use a wood dowel or bamboo skewer to test the soil, waiting to water until the soil is nearly but not quite dry. When soil is at first dry to the touch, there is still 10-15% additional water left that the plant can access - so a built-in margin for error. Flush the soil thoroughly the next time the plant needs watering by pouring a volume of water equal to the pot capacity up to 10 times, using room temp water; this, to rid the soil of accumulating salts. Then, fertilize the plant with a soluble fertilizer with a 3:1:2 NPK ratio. RATIO is different than NPK %s - ask if you'd like me to explain the difference. After flushing the soil, water on an as needed basis. Don't let the soil remain saturated for extended periods. I can also help you learn how to deal with soils that hold too much water, if you think that's an issue. I'll wait on your comments before I offer anything else. Al...See MoreFiddle Leaf Fig worries after root rot
Comments (19)To help you figure things out ...... if you're watering when you can still detect moisture in the soil with a finger, you can't be under-watering. If you can eliminate under-watering based on the above, it pretty much leaves you with over-watering or a high level of dissolved solids in the soil from the fertilizer you applied. What did you use for fertilizer, how much did you use, and how did you apply it? Was the plant dry at application time? I don't know if I mentioned this, but it's easy to monitor soil moisture levels with a 'tell'. A wood dowel (from any hardware or home improvement store) about 5/16" in diameter works best. They come 48" long. Cut it in half & sharpen all 4 ends in a pencil sharpener. Push it deep into the soil and don't water until the first day it comes out clean/dry. Did you read the thread I linked to upthread - the one that focuses on how to deal with unwanted water retention? The best advice I offered was to concentrate on making sure your plants are in a soil you can water to beyond the point of saturation w/o having to worry the soil remain soggy so long it limits root health/function. That means you either start with an appropriate soil of find ways to limit water retention, which brings us back around to the link that takes you to the thread about dealing with water retentive soils. It's hard to tell you precisely what to do w/o you having a basic understanding of what plants require to remain healthy. Particularly important and a prerequisite to a healthy plant is a healthy root system. All of the information you need to be an accomplished container grower fits together like a jigsaw puzzle under assembly. Each piece is connected to the other pieces - either directly or extraneously, but they ARE all connected. You probably remember that it’s easier to assemble a puzzle when you work toward getting the outer 'frame' together first. The outer frame is analogous to an understanding of the basic bits knowledge required for your success. Of the basic knowledge, most important is an understanding of how the soil/water relationship works & how the individual soil components interact relative to the whole. Basically we need to understand that a healthy root system is a requirement if the plant is to be healthy. Then, and easier to understand are a very few additional issues like the importance of light to your growing experience, how fertilizers work and what fertilizer is most appropriate ……. We also need at least a very basic understanding of how some of the other cultural conditions might affect plant growth/performance. Once this basic but essential understanding is part of your skill set, that is to say the framework of the growing puzzle completed, assembling the rest of the pieces will occur at a rate exponentially faster than the rate at which you progressed at the outset of your growing experience. Unless this basic framework is complete, you’re essentially relying on trial & error, which is probably never going to gain favor as a short cut to success. Al...See MoreFiddle Leaf Fig- Root rot? How to Fix?
Comments (14)Your plant seems to be doing well, Madeleine. Strong work! Thanks for the kindness in your words, Leslie. There are ways to put some simple science to work that can help you cope with soils that are too water retentive. Try reading this, http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/load/contain/msg0914024623640.html?37, then ask any questions you might have. When you say to 'stop the pruning cuts just beyond where a smaller root branches towards the outside of the root you are pruning'.. are there images of this somewhere that may help me understand? I hope that helps. You want to concentrate on removing large roots that aren't really necessary for anchorage so there is room for a much larger volume of fine roots. Of course, it's unlikely your tree's roots will be as well ordered as those of the guy who dreamed up the image, but you should get the gist. Recovery is much faster if you prune just distal (beyond) a fine root pointed away from an imaginary line straight down from the trunk's center. When the pruning of the roots is completed (keeping them moist during the process) and we are ready to place the tree back into the pot, does the soil need to be damp or moist? I bare-root, then root prune and let the roots soak in a tub while I prepare the pot and partially fill with dry soil (if it's gritty mix). I lift the plant with wet roots from the tub and set it on the soil and fill in around the roots with dry soil and work it into all the pockets between roots with a wooden dowel that's sharp on the end but not extremely so - like a very dull pencil. If I'm repotting with the 5:1:1 mix, I make sure it's damp enough so as not to be hydrophobic. I dampen the soil by starting with dry. Before I start the root work, I take about 1/4 of the volume pof soil I'll need and put it in a pot or bucket and add enough water to completely saturate it - so it's mucky - and let it soak for a few minutes. Then I mix it well into the dry soil and allow it to rest while I'm doing the root work. By the time it's ready to use, it's no longer hydrophobic. Do we need to water the tree as soon as we are done repotting it? Yes - whether using the 5:1:1 or gritty, water well. Water the gritty until the drainage water is perfectly clear. The only exception might be various succulents and/or cacti. Edited to say: I'm not sure why the formatting came out weird when I copy/pasted your questions. Sorry Al...See Morepimpette95
10 years agopimpette95
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