Brugmansia rotting or OK and I should just stop fussing with wit?

12 years ago

Ok,

A while back I posted about holes in Brug leaves and also that on branches where there is not much leaves anymore for various reasons, it starts to dry out and that always worried me even though it appears to be fairly common in Brugs.

A few weeks ago I tried Sevin to get rid of earwigs, but I think it burned the leaves. The leaves all kinda look like some chemical affected them. I tried ladybugs for reddish mites earlier in the season. Now, I tried soap and water and then washed it off. Are they at high risk for phototoxicity? I think from now on IÃ¯Â¿Â½m just gonna spray under the leaves with hard spray of water once a week to knock off any mites there might be (there arenÃ¯Â¿Â½t that many now)

One branch I cut straight off and then sprayed it with an antifungal just in case. It didnÃ¯Â¿Â½t keep drying up but then I just noticed that where I cut it is hollow and it has dried up a little, but not past any major branch yet. The other branch that had no real growth has dried up about a foot. IÃ¯Â¿Â½m just wondering if this too is commong enough to happen like it is happening to this Brug? Or is something else going on. Keep in mind the plant is about 3 feet by 4 feet in ground, second year from cutting.

I think the chemicals have affected the leaves, but the earwigs are still at it, IÃ¯Â¿Â½d try another application of Sevin in June, but I donÃ¯Â¿Â½t want more phytotoxicity problems if that is what it is. Thanks for reading!

Comments (5)

gottahosta
12 years ago
Z, a photo would be most helpful! But is sounds like dieback. I still have to go around and finish clearing out the branches that died during the winter months.
Spraying leaves is best done early morning or late afternoon.
Bug control I will leave to someone else.
Good luck- hope that helps a bit.
jardinerowa
Original Author
12 years ago
gottahosta,

I know a picture would helpÃ¯Â¿Â½, I donÃ¯Â¿Â½t really have a way to upload one right now. The thing is IÃ¯Â¿Â½m in zone 10, where it never gets really hot, but it never hardly ever if ever goes below 40 in the winter. But it sounds like Brugs has this Ã¯Â¿Â½drying branchÃ¯Â¿Â½phenomenon.Ã¯Â¿Â½ I figure if it was rot or something really serious, it would look worse fast, which it really doesnÃ¯Â¿Â½t.

Z
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karyn1
12 years ago
Without a pic it's difficult but it sounds like you might be overdoing it by using so many chemicals on your plant. Except for broad mites, which I use Forbid for, I don't use anything but a strong spraying with the hose to get rid of pests. Maybe you should strip all the foliage, cut back the damaged stems and let it put out all new growth. Then leave it alone, no chemicals. If necessary just use the hose to blast off any pests. Make sure you remove and dispose of any dropped leaves in case they are harboring pests.
dirtygardener73
12 years ago
Which zone 10 are you in...CA or FL. It makes a difference.

Brugs don't like to have too many chemicals sprayed on them, at least not here in FL. I can usually get away with spritzing the mites off daily with the hose nozzle, and I use this mixture for everything else:

1/3 cup Murphy's Oil Soap
1 Tbsp. baking soda
1 gallon of water

I spray very early in the morning, so that it has time to dry before the sun gets hot, or early evening on days when it cools down enough.

Bloom fertilizer will cause leaf drop, a peculiarity of brugs that not many people are aware of.
karyn1
12 years ago
Are you talking about a bloom booster (high phosphorus)? If so I've been feeding mature brugs with a BB for about 15 years and have never experienced leaf drop from it.