Here's what my crinum is looking like these days. A few of the leaves have fallen off since the last shot. I talked with a few people about the office about its decline and Tom suggested it could be spider mites.
Bingo! I had seen some webs on the plant but had assumed they were from beneficial spiders. When I looked more closely, sure enough, there were spider mites on the undersides of the leaves. Apparently they were sucking the plant dry.
It was too late that night to take chemical measures, so I blasted the plant with the hose, which is often a good first line of defense against insects. Then later I treated the plant with a pyrethrin-based insecticide. I would have preferred an oil-soap spray, but I happened to have the other product handy.
I'll reinspect in a few days and see if the mites have disappeared. If not, I'll need to treat them again.
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4 comments:
I'm glad you figured it out! Crinums have a reputation for never dying, so it will probably bounce right back once the mites are gone.
@wicked gardener: That's what I'm hoping!
I'm having the same problem with mine now! Is it better now?
It did start to recover last fall, but then the foliage burned back with the cold weather we had last winter.
It's interesting that you commented today -- just yesterday I checked it out and realized it has mites again! The poor plant just isn't happy. Too much shade, too many mites. I'm thinking that I might try transplanting it.
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