I bought what was supposed to be B. arborea. The original plant died, but I managed to salvage and root 2 small cuttings. I have them on a top shelf in my orchid greenhouse. Until the last week, they were growing well. This is what the new growth looks like today. This is a photo of one of the cuttings. The leaves are malformed, thick and the tip has become a tendril. What is causing this? Should I pinch the malformed growth? Do I need to spray?
This is a photo of the other B. arborea plant. It's doing the same thing only not to the same extent. Is it the heat? I have a swamp cooler in the greenhouse that keeps the temperature between 10 - 15 degrees cooler than the outside temperature and increases the humidity to at least 60%.
Any suggestions?
Oh how distressing, Bettydee :( Here you spend hard earned money and probably 'baby' the heck out of the thing and then....this??? I'm no expert but from the looks of things....my guess would be Mites...probably broad mites. You can never really see these critters with the naked eye. Also.....Your pic doesn't show any webbing like you'd see if you had the other mite relatives. A miticide treatment with subsequent follow-up applications may just do the trick for you. A good one, like Avid, should be able to handle many different mite species ....IF that is what's causing your problem.
It could be an Arborea. Arborea leaves are darker green and fuzzy. And those leaves of yours have lots of fuzz. LOL. You have a GREAT camera!!
I say mites also. Whenever I get deformed, mottled leaves I say mites to myself whether I can see them or not. And I spray with Neem. 99% of the time they then grow normal. The other per cent I think the mottling due to a virus.
Renee and Kell, thank you for the advice. I have Neem Oil. So tomorrow morning I'm going out there and nuke those buggers to death.
Spoken like a true brugee. LOL
