I vote thrips

I'd almost say it's mechanical damage. It doesn't quite look like chloramine or sun damage (as i have seen it on my plants...)
is only the one leaf affected?

edit: i have a plant that looks virtually the same but has never bloomedso I have no ID - its leaf edges & tips were turning black too - once i started treating my tap water for chloramine, it stopped, I think...

Karin

This post was edited by froeschli on Mon, Jun 23, 14 at 22:52

Karin,
This is leaf number three in about a two week span. The first two showed blackening on the edges/tips. This one appeared literally overnight. I've had this AV in the same spot for months, so I'm baffled.

Planto

So, do you think it's possible that it's chloramine maybe?

Planto

Planto,

I think I would look into the chloramine issue.

Linda

Linda,
*sigh* That is what I was afraid of. If I bought something at the pet store for aquariums that removes chlorine, ammonia, and chloramine, can I expect this problem to go away?

Planto

This post was edited by plantomaniac08 on Mon, Jun 23, 14 at 23:26

Planto,
i actually posted a topic about this a while back - apparently the product you choose does not necessarily have to remove the ammonia (unlike if you were keeping fish).

it was suggested that a cheap vitmin c supplement would work just as well (though i had already bought the aquarium stuff myself...)

as for if the problem will go away - if the cause was chloramine, then yes, if not, you'll have to keep looking ;-)

karin

yours still looks happier than mine....

Karin,
Thanks so much for the information. I think yours looks really good considering!

Planto

Yeah, it just bugs me that, when I bought it, it was the biggest av I had ever seen, now it is almost too small for a 3" pot....

On the upside, once i started using the water conditioner, the new growth was actually green again :-) - a far cry from the outside leaves yet, so I may still need to reduce my lighting or change fertilizers....

Karin

Karin,
Mine was also the biggest AV I've ever seen at purchase. My other two had to fill in (okay, one is still filling in) due to a lack of leaves, but this one was so full looking. I realize it still is, but it's frustrating to see it just losing leaves overnight like this. I am a little bummed too, it is my favorite.

I'm not sure about the coloring of the new leaves on yours. Perhaps that is something you could make a new post and ask (if you feel the need)? I wish I had an answer for you, but I'm not sure what is causing that.

Thanks for your replies.

Planto

I am not too worried about the color, though it is a bit odd, but still a good green. The main difference is that the centre leaves don't have the pink backing.
with all that went wrong this year, and still isn't right, I am eliminating One probable cause at a time. Then time will tell if I need to look at more changes...
The pink backs may just be a maturity thing - I have leaf babies that are the right color, so that doesn't worry me too much.
Changes So far have been -less fertilizer & less light (tight crowns). More even temperature, and treating the water with chloramine stuff.
Ph is probably next on the list...

Karin

Karin,
Sounds like you have had a lot to deal with already this year. I hope you can narrow down the exact cause(s) and get back to happier growing!

Planto

One of my suckers (that I planted) isnt growing in the right color. But it is still itty bitty so I bet the red backing will come with time.

Hmm, I haven't tried growing a new plant from a red backed leaf. I guess time will tell.

Planto

The new plantlets are fine, they have the original coloring. it's just the main plant that's decided to do something different :-p
never gets boring.....

Karin

Planto,

Have you checked your water supplier to see if they use chloramine? You can find it on your county's water site or e-mail them. When I e-mailed mine, I got a reply the next day.

Linda

i can't see the pics. but i have many mature 12" wide AVs and when the older leaves decline it happens similar to what you describe. i just remove the leaves. and yes, it's often sev leaves in quick succession and it starts with top half of the leaf turning soft and black. i usually do not wait until the stem turns soft, unless i am away. but even then when the whole thing turns mushy it does not expand past the leaf.

Linda,
I did look, but only saw chlorine listed. Is this possibly a "too much chlorine" issue?

Petrushka,
Sorry, I deleted them already. Is three leaves in two weeks about how fast yours have died off? I hope I'm just not overly panicky.

Planto

Planto,
Toronto only lists chlorine as well, but they do state somewhere that they add ammonium before the water goes I to circulation, which creates chloramine...
Sneaky....
See if there is an aquarium forum for your area, they'd know...

Hmm, I couldn't find any information about ammonia either. That is sneaky!

Planto

Planto,

Here's another thought: whenever the seasons change in my area, I sometimes have a die-back of the older leaves. The more extreme, the more the older ones go. Has your weather changed dramatically recently? It seems to me your leaf problem might be environment related.

Linda

yep, 3 leaves in 2 weeks for very old leaves is not too much.
they grow in threes, but on very large plants many triples form a rough circle. on my largest i have 4 concentric circles. here's a pic of mine repotted a mo ago from 3.5" to 4.5", done with blooming, got a bit too much light in may, so crown is congested (am not worried).
it's 13"-14". that's a LOT of leaves. i don't normally keep track how many i remove. but just now i removed 2 from it - both were limp-soft and beginning to blacken on the edge. it's normal. i still have 41 leaves + 3 more coming ;). if 2 more blacken in next 2 weeks i still would not worry. but then if it continues non-stop, and the plant will not keep up with making new leaves for replacement - then i'll start checking to see if it needs more nutes, repot, etc. mine are on wicks, so water/nutes is usually not an issue (over or under). without a wick though without liquid feed, perhaps it can be over or underwatered or is lacking ferts?

Linda,
The only thing I can think of is that our air conditioner is turning on more frequently. This AV is sort of in the direction of the vent. I can look over right now and see neighboring plants moving with the "breeze" from the AC. Other than that, nothing has changed. Can that be creating an issue?

petrushka,
Hmm, I just fertilized the end of last month and am coming up on the date in which I was going to fertilize again. I allow the top layer of soil to dry just a little bit and then water again. Not to the point that the soil pulls away from the edges of the pot, but I only water again when I'm able to push around the top layer of soil a little bit and see semi-moist soil. It's kind of difficult to explain, but that's how I've always watered it.

Planto

so you are definitely not overwatering.
i wonder if mature AV culture is somewhat different from smaller starter plants? i do the same mostly.
i do allow the surface to dry up occasionally. and sometimes almost half-dry or more (water runs out...;)). but for most part for reg day-to-day my surface remains moist, since i wick.
may be you're under-watering?
what's your light situation?
my av's grow like crazy AND i keep them in dappled sun for most part of the year (which is non standard, i think).
fertilizing once a mo mature plant? isn't it recommended feeding more often? is the pot 1/3 of the diameter? my mature ones are often in smaller pots then 1/3, since i noticed that they do better in max 4". don't know why.
but i still occasionally pot in a larger pot - hoping may be they'll grow to 16" or more :)))?
hope other people can comment on how they grow their large av's, like over 12".
oh, all my plants are just reg av's from hd/supermarket (anthos) - so not large varieties. they explode in growth soon as i get them on my regime ;).

I'm not sure that I'm underwatering, as I don't allow them to dry that much. Probably 3/4 of the pot is still moist when I water again (if I happen to forget that morning to water and don't realize it until later or th next day, it's only about 1/4 of the way dry).

It's about 2 feet from a Southeast window. Doesn't receive any direct sun except for in winter. It's bloomed twice for me since purchase. It's kinda sad, it seems like it started developing these ugly leaves right after it stopped blooming the second time.

Definitely 1/3 of the diameter of the pot, it's my biggest AV.

I fertilized last month with 1 tsp per gallon of fish emulsion (it asks for 1 tsp). If anything, I spose it's possible that's too much? I'm the type that doesn't feel like fertilizing weakly weekly, so I fertilize once a month lol.

Thanks for the questions, I think we're both stumped here though. :P

Planto

I've been told/read that cold drafts can adversely affect foliage & over all health of AV's. so A/C might well be an issue for you, if it is in-line with the vent.

i don't think that fish emulsion by itself once a mo is enough. you need at least to get 7-7-7 liquid AV fertilizer.
i missed the pic, so not sure how large is your plant. if you do not have enough leaves, disbud it until you get enough new grown.
can you post another pic: just direct upload, so it stays ? you can always go edit the post later and remove it, if that's your pref.
you said you only had it for 2 mo? and it bloomed twice? my av's bloom for sev mo and then rest for a couple before another rebloom. and they do need to be fed after the bloom to regain strength. they might be using old leaves to pull out nutrients for growth.

Anon-Cdn,
I didn't think the draft was that cold (we keep the AC set to 79), but perhaps that has been the issue this whole time.

petrushka,
I have fish emulsion and sea kelp as fertilizers. I was unable to find a fertilizer in town here that didn't contain urea (even the AV fertilizers had urea).

The plant is about 8 inches across and has a ton of leaves.

Sadly, I gave my Mom the AV the other day in the fear that our county water supply was creating the issue, and I don't have the original picture anymore. He's an older picture of my plant (had to dig one up). I'm not sure it helps, sorry. I've long since pulled off the ugly leaf as it was dying.

I can't remember exactly how long I've had it, 2-3 months? I had to disbud it the first time of blooming, had an issue with powdery mildew. Took awhile after that to re-bud again.

Planto

it's a healthy looking plant - you panicked!
don't get discouraged. it's just an AV ;). get yourself another and play with it. pulling off a leaf does not hurt the plant, unless it only has 5 leaves :).
removing a decaying leaf is a GOOD thing..
i just uppotted a medium one and pulled off 6 bottom older more yellowish leaves to make it look more symmetric, which was half of the last row (was looking lop-sided).
it's only when the plant is too young or weak that you need to mind how many leaves to remove. well, within reason...of course.
a thought on watering: when you let a plant dry out too much (to 1/4 pot as you said) - that's too dry. you then need to rewater by bottom watering: letting it sit in the bowl of water for 15 min. if it absorbs all water, you need to add some more and wait another 15 min. if it sucks up all of that, give it some more!
letting it dry to 1/4 pot often is not good for av - it's too much stress. if it has a lot of leaves, it might start dropping them if it does not get enough water to maintain them.
temp:
79F is too high for av's. 70-75F is the optimal range. higher then 75F - they will need more watering. the larger the plant, the more water it will take.
consider trying wick-watering in the future, especially for larger plants. it's very easy .
well, you can still go to your mother and instruct her on upkeep!
i am not down-playing the dangers of chemicals. but it might just be that you did not water/feed it properly.