Bugs?

Hello everyone,

I have 3 plummies in the ground about 2 weeks now. They seem happy and have new growth on the tops...no signs of blooms yet but seem to be doing good. This morning before heading to work, I noticed that 2 of the three plants have orange colored specs on the under side of the leaves...Some kind of mite or bug of some description. I can supply an image of it later after the work day is done...Without an image, anyone know this pest and what can be done about it??? I work in town and would like to get treatment for it today if possible if there a solution...Thanks in advance folks,

aurabest,
john

John, It's probably rust. a good fungicide will help in this regard..It plagues most of mine late in the season.All leaves that drop off with the Rust on them in the fall should be collected and disposed of in the trash and sure not composted.I've heard two sides of the rust debate.One is that it's systemic in most all cultivars and will eventually surface.The other is that control with proper treatment of fungicide will keep it from spreading to unaffected varieties.I don't have all that many differant cultivars so I'm not a good one to make an accurate decision or to take sides.Your much nearer the equator and probably don't have a seasonal leaf drop or as much of one .I'd probably try and get it under control as soon as possible. Don

I agree that its rust. I don't get rust here in Southern California due to the dry climate, but most plumerias in humid locations like Thailand and Florida get rust. It is Coleosporium: http://www.plumeria101.com/problems/rust.html You'll need to remove the most affected leaves and spray the remaining leaves with a fungicide with Bayleton, Benomyl, or Oxycarboxin: http://www.theplumeriasociety.org/spps/ahpg.cfm?spgid=22 It spreads by spores so bag and trash the leaves, as Don said, when removing them to keep the rust from spreading.

Thanks Don and Clare! I am grateful for the info, as I hope to share some blooms with everyone soon!!! I am going to walk over to the nursery that is next to the shop and see what they have in the mentioned fungicide...Thanks again folks!!

Aurabest,
john

Well, none of the mentioned fungicides are available on island. I purchased this product.
Triple Action Plus, made by ferti-lome.

the active ingredient is:
Clarified Hydrophobic Extract of Neem Oil 70%
Other Ingredients.......30%

Mix 1 oz. per 1 Gallon of water, 14 day spray schedule.

Sound like it will do the job??

aurabest,
john

John, I am trying to get a few posts in here on Sunday as I have a few minutes to spare today. Neem is a natural fungicide, and I don't know if it will work as well as Bayleton, but it is something. You won't need to use it for 14 days. You will need to remove as many of the infected leaves as possible, that have the orange spores, and bag them up and put them in the trash. Spray the remaining leaves lightly on the underside in the evening when the sun is going down. If you use Neem Oil during the day when the sun is strong, you could burn your leaves. Just spray the undersides of the remaining new leaves, and that should keep rust at bay. Rust is not harmful, but it is unsightly.