Hi! A dear friend has given me a white brug - don't know the cultivar - it's about 24" tall and appears to be very healthy. It is in a small pot and currently on the front veranda where it will get limited morning sun and shade the rest of the day.
Can brug experts give us rookies a list of things to do and not do in order to ensure the health of our brugs?
For instance, how often should they be repotted? How often should they be fertilized? With what?
In other words, can the experts create a sticky with the most important information regarding the care and feeding of brugs?
thanks
Seandor
simple rules for rookie
Hi Seandor,
I still consider myself a rookie but I have learned a few things these last couple of years. I would never consider contributing to a sticky though! I don't know nearly enough!
I've just taken mine out of the basement where they've been all winter and put them outside in dappled shade. I'll repot sometime this week so that the roots have room to stretch and wake up.
Right now, I'm starting with a weak MirGro fertilizer solution for each of them. I'm afraid too much would burn winter weakened roots.
Now that I'm typing this, I realize that I really don't have anything to tell you. But I will happily "watch" this thread to learn more. I must say that the brugs seem fairly easy to grow. They are so resilient that they bounce back from most things.
I know you will LOVE your brug. And if you decide you want more, come the fall I can send you some cuttings. I'm only about an hour from you.
LoraB.
so you are! Well, let's see how we do with this one. I really like the idea of a large and fragrant plant on the veranda. . .
I will buy pots today - one for the brug and one for the gardenia.
Great idea, Seandor!
I just got my first brug this past weekend. I planted it last night. I hope I put it in a good spot. I wasn't sure where, how, etc.
So, I'm anxious to learn from all the pros out there, too.
Terrie
I know the more room they have for their roots to grow, the happier they are. Do not let them get root bound in a small pot... under 3 gallons if you can go larger, do. I have seen some beauties that are grown in 3 gal or larger. Heavy feeders and water. They like lots of sun also.
I am new also .. this is just a start of what I have learned. I really enjoyed reading old posts to learn a lot!
Good luck,
Tammie
This message was edited May 9, 2007 11:13 AM
I have a HUGE pot that I bought for a rose . . . should I use that one?
I will add that you should check your leaves often for mites and aphids. Bugs seem to like these plants as much as we do.
I would not go absolutely huge unless it has a large root system already. Is the pot it is in filled with roots? They do not like to be root bound.
Your definition of huge and mine may be different. I know some people get beautiful standards growing in 3 to 5 gallon pots. I saw a pic on one thread of some growing in those big colorful tubs you can buy at the dollar store... the ones with the rope handles. Those are really big... I would like to have some big enough to go into some of those!
Tammie
I bought a sort of medium sized pot and will save the really huge pot for later :-)
The only thing I would disagree with is the love of lots of sun. Most threads I've read recommend afternoon shade. They can be grown in full sun, but the leaves will flag during the hot part of the day and require tons of water. Mine do best in afternoon shade. In pots, my Brugs need water every day during the summer.
Will my front veranda do? It is covered and faces the east. The Brug will be placed in the south-east corner where it will get about 6 hours of direct morning light and then some late afternoon light as well.
Daily watering . . . okay - but you are in Texas, so maybe that makes a difference.
Right now the brug is about 28" tall - and rather lanky looking, though it has leaves all the way down the stalk. I presume if I plant it in a much bigger pot, it will really take off, right?
I'm in Western New York, and mine need watering at least once a day in pots, sometimes twice. Depends on the type of soil you use, too.
Sounds like the veranda is the way to go, with that morning sun.
Bigger pot, it should get quite large this season for you. Try underplanting with something to give you a little color while you are waiting for blooms, and then in between blooms too.
Good luck!!
Thanks! I like your idea of underplanting :-)
Lots of water. If the leaves droop, water it and watch them pop right back up.
So, water - water - water.
Watch for those mites, they make little webs under the leaves and stems - spray if need be. I love "Voleck Oil".
Watch for catapillars. I had them toward the end of the growing season and they were little carnivous (haha) beast. HTH
Crystal
Yes, those caterpillars can eat all the leaves off a plant in a day or two.
You know now that y'all mention it something is chowing down on my brug leaves. I have a ton of these spiders on my plants they aren't what I'd call little though. They have long, thread thin legs. I don't know if they're good bugs or bad. I couldn't swear that they're what are eating my leaves either. But I know that there are lots of them.
The spiders are the ones eating your Brug leaves. They are probably after the bug that is.
I found the culprit. It's a caterpillar. I will take a pic of it to find out what kind it is this weekend. If it's a pretty butterfly I'll just have to grin and bear it.
Brugs are really so easy. Even if you totally abuse them for several years they still hang on and as soon as you start feeding them and potting them up they go nuts. The bigger the pot, the bigger the brug. I go from a 16 oz cup for seedlings to 1 gallon, to 5 gallon to 15 gallon and if it is a brug I really like to 25 to 30 gallon. If you want fast growth, pot them up to bigger pots as soon as they have filled the current pot. You can also just sit your pot on your dirt and it will root into the dirt thru the drainage holes, my new lazy way. LOL
And if your leaves drop in protest to whatever you are doing, they will all come back so fast with just a bit of TLC!
The main and HUGE negative is that mites love them.
I have a question about spent blooms.
Should I snap the small stem off, after the flower has died or let it be?
I just seems weird to not snap it off, when
I walk around the yard deadheading everything else. lol
Thanks for the help.
Mary
I just pull the wilted flower off just in case the moths have done me a favor and pollinated it for me. The plant won't look bad as the calyx remains green for a while. If the flower was not pollinated the calyx and stem will turn yellow and drop off by itself.
HELP! my brug is really sick now - It seems to have some very fine brown dust on the leaves. the leaves that were absolutely covered I pulled off. DH told me to spray with Raid - but there are still more leaves covered - especially older leaves. There appear to be very fine cobwebby stuff too.
This brug is a gift from a friend and I REALLY want it to thrive.
What do I do?
Thanks in advance :-)
I'd guess spider mites. Mine have "cobwebby" stuff too, though no brown dust. I ordered some avid online and am waiting on that to spray.
Seandor,
If you have the time, just spray your Brug thoroughly with the hose a couple times a day for a week or two. Not only will that really knock out the spider mites (though probably not permanently), it will keep any dirt or dust off the leaves and provide moisture and humidity.
I would not recommend spraying Raid on your plant. Although I don't know it for a fact, I suspect it would kill it.
Regards,
Erick
My brugs also appear to have mites, but not spider mites. No webs. The leaves are all mottled, light places all over them. The new leaves are fine, but then develop the mottled appearance. I have sent for Neem oil, as I cannot buy it here in town. I am spraying them daily, but that doesn't seem to be helping at all. Any other suggestions? Would Avid be better?
If Raid doesn't kill it outright, it will denude it. I know from experience. My DH used Raid on some plants to kill ants a while ago. The leaves turned translucent and fell off. Even the outdoor garden Raid will do some damage. Neem oil will work on spider mites. So will Bayer's 2 - N - 1. Just be careful that you use it after you have thoroughly watered the plant. The fertilizer in 2-N-1 will burn the roots. Avid is usually recommended for use on broadmites. Mites can develop a resistance to Avid so it should be used judiciously. The advantage of using Neem Oil is that they don't develop a resistance to it. It is a contact miticide.
Glendalekid, are you spraying daily with Neem oir or water? Be sure you spray the bottom side of the leaves. Do you have a good magnifying glass you can use? Can you post a photo of the leaves? I would recommend using the big gun — Avid — only when you are sure you have broadmites. It is also possible that you have a nutrient problem. I don't know that much about what the leaves would look like depending on the missing nutrient. Tonny is great at that.
Right now I'm just spraying with water. Can't buy Neem oil, Avid, Messenger or anything else like that in this town! So, I've sent for the Neem. Hope to have it the end of the week. They were doing just fine, then all of the sudden, practically overnight this problem started. I will try to post a photo if I can get the photo out of my camera and onto the computer. For fert I've been using the new Miracle Gro with the minors in it about every 7-10 days.
Thanks Bettydee for the advice. :)
Mary
Okay - I will tell DH to knock off with the Raid. I will buy some neem and knock those spider mites to kingdom come!
Thanks :-)
In a pinch Ive used soapy water in a spray bottle. It may help untill you get some Neem.