Growing problems.

From: "Cooper, Susan L." SLCooper at scj.com> on 2002.09.06 at 19:34:23(9353) Hi all, I have been having some problems with a few plants this summer. I put in raised beds and planted my Amorphophallus tubers out. My problem is some plants have "rotted" right at the top of the soil, causing the plant to tip over. The odd thing is, the rest of the plant and bulb looks fine. Foliage looks great. +More This has happened in some "easy" plants, like a large konjac. And while one plant may be affected, another right next to it will be fine, so I don't think the problem is over-watering. Could I have the bulbs planted too deep? (I don't think they are but you never know). Could it be the soil itself? I haven't seen this problem before. Thanks for any help! Susan

From: ". ." iamwhatiam52 at hotmail.com> on 2002.09.07 at 03:16:39(9358) Reply-To: aroid-l@lists.ncsu.edu To: "AROID-L (E-mail)" Subject: [aroid-l] Growing problems. Date: Fri, 6 Sep 2002 14:34:23 -0500 Hi all, I have been having some problems with a few plants this summer. I put in raised beds and planted my Amorphophallus tubers out. My problem is some plants have "rotted" right at the top of the soil, causing the plant to tip over. The odd thing is, the rest of the plant and bulb looks fine. Foliage looks great. +More This has happened in some "easy" plants, like a large konjac. And while one plant may be affected, another right next to it will be fine, so I don't think the problem is over-watering. Could I have the bulbs planted too deep? (I don't think they are but you never know). Could it be the soil itself? I haven't seen this problem before. Thanks for any help! Susan No insight into what your problem IS, But It ISN'T planting too deep. I've planted up to 18 inches deep (to prevent frost kill) with no similar problem. Mitch _________________________________________________________________ Join the world?s largest e-mail service with MSN Hotmail. http://www.hotmail.com

From: Paul Tyerman ptyerman at ozemail.com.au> on 2002.09.07 at 07:03:19(9360) At 02:34 6/09/02 -0500, you wrote: >Hi all, >I have been having some problems with a few plants this summer. I put in >raised beds and planted my Amorphophallus tubers out. My problem is some >plants have "rotted" right at the top of the soil, causing the plant to tip >over. The odd thing is, the rest of the plant and bulb looks fine. >Foliage looks great. Susan, Has teh plant rotted, or has something munched around the stem at ground level. This is just a guess, but I've heard of various types of cutworms (that is what i have heard them called) that tend to munch around the base of a stem of a desireable plant, effectively killing off everything above the soil. Not knowing much on what specific insects do this (and of course that could vary in your climate as well) I cannot suggest specific culprits, but it might be worth investigating to see if there is evidence of damage at the soil level, rather than it rotting from within. If damage happened like that, anythign below the soil surface would be left perfectly healthy, just as you describe. It might be worth investigating. Hope this might give you a lead to work from. Cheers. Paul Tyerman +More Canberra, Australia. USDA equivalent - Zone 8/9 mailto:ptyerman@ozemail.com.au Growing.... Galanthus, Erythroniums, Fritillarias, Cyclamen, Crocus, Cyrtanthus, Liliums, Hellebores, Aroids, Irises plus just about anything else that doesn't move!!!!!

From: "Petra Schmidt" petra at plantdelights.com> on 2002.09.07 at 15:30:43(9362) We sometimes see bacteria/fungus problems at this time of year with Amorphophallus petiole rot...leaf mushes out quickly as well...sometimes the spread is so fast down the tuber that there's nothing to do but get rid of the whole plant. We've got some curious ponderings in regards to why some plants/collections may be more inclined to show bacteria/fungal problems...let me ask you this, Susan...do you smoke cigarettes? Petra +More ----- Original Message ----- To: Sent: Saturday, September 07, 2002 3:03 AM Subject: Re: [aroid-l] Growing problems. > At 02:34 6/09/02 -0500, you wrote: > >Hi all, > >I have been having some problems with a few plants this summer. I put in > >raised beds and planted my Amorphophallus tubers out. My problem is some > >plants have "rotted" right at the top of the soil, causing the plant to tip > >over. The odd thing is, the rest of the plant and bulb looks fine. > >Foliage looks great. > > Susan, > > Has teh plant rotted, or has something munched around the stem at ground > level. This is just a guess, but I've heard of various types of cutworms > (that is what i have heard them called) that tend to munch around the base > of a stem of a desireable plant, effectively killing off everything above > the soil. Not knowing much on what specific insects do this (and of course > that could vary in your climate as well) I cannot suggest specific > culprits, but it might be worth investigating to see if there is evidence > of damage at the soil level, rather than it rotting from within. If damage > happened like that, anythign below the soil surface would be left perfectly > healthy, just as you describe. > > It might be worth investigating. Hope this might give you a lead to work > from. > > Cheers. > > Paul Tyerman > Canberra, Australia. USDA equivalent - Zone 8/9 > mailto:ptyerman@ozemail.com.au > > Growing.... Galanthus, Erythroniums, Fritillarias, Cyclamen, Crocus, > Cyrtanthus, Liliums, Hellebores, Aroids, Irises plus just about anything > else that doesn't move!!!!! > >

From: "Cooper, Susan L." SLCooper at scj.com> on 2002.09.09 at 13:22:31(9368) My leaves do not mush out. It is only at the soil level. The petiole turns a dark color and shrinks (this affects 1/8 inch to 1/2 inch at the most). After the petiole topples the upper part can look normal for a few days. I haven't smoked cigarettes (this year). My boyfriend (a microbiologist) is going to check out the next one under the scope and I'll keep you informed. Susan +More PS Paul, I didn't see anything that looked like it was eaten. It almost looks like an invisible rubber band was tied around the base of the plant, getting tighter until it is so small the diameter is not large enough to hold the plant up. I'll look closer for bugs next time, and try to get a picture too.

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