Pests and diseases of the Brazilian trunk
Photo – Flickr / Forest and Kim Starr
Brazilian tree trunk, also called water stick, is a perennial plant widely used in interior decoration. It can reach a very high height, reaching 2 meters and even exceeding it if given the opportunity, and since it does not take up much space due to its relatively lean trunk, it looks great in any room. However, we need to know that sometimes you will get unwellbecause no living thing is exempt from suffering from some disease throughout its life, no matter how much or how well it takes care of itself.
So if you want to know what are the pests and diseases of the Brazilian trunk? and what you need to do to recover, in this article I will discuss it.
Brazil water stick trunk This is a plant that is not always simple to care for and keep it robust: it needs a lot of lightweight, but not direct, lightweight soil so that the roots are not soaked with water during watering, and nutrients which he must receive throughout the spring and summer.
In addition, it is vital to control irrigationbecause although it is sometimes called a “water stick”, in fact one of the worst things you can do to it is to put it in a pot without holes, full of water, because it is not an aquatic plant and therefore, it is not adapted to to live in such conditions.
But we also can’t forget about the weather: many plant pests are more dynamic when the weather is warm, i.e. in spring, and especially in summer. And if we combine heat and dryness, our Brazilian trunk could kill some in less time than we could imagine.
Having said that, Let’s see what pests and diseases can harm our plant: :
Red spider
Image – Wikimedia / Gilles San Martin
Despite its name, the La Red spider is a mite (not a spider), measuring about 0.5 centimeters. It feeds on leaf cells, so you’ll find it on the underside of leaves where it will leave petite discolored or yellow spots that will later turn brown. You will also see that it weaves a kind of fine web that passes from one leaf to another.
To combat this, you can do two things: first, operate an insecticide that is also an acaricideSimilar to this spray de Compo, i.e. spotless the leaves with water and neutral soap, but this last treatment is only useful if the blight is not too widespread; that is, if you only saw a few spider mites.
Mealybugs
Photo – Flickr / Katja Schulz
There are many types of mealybugs such as mealybugs, ribbed ones, those known as San José lice… All of these damage plants. But the one that attacks the Brazilian trunk the most is the cotton one. It’s called that because it looks like a cotton ball and breaks very easily. They sit on the underside of leaves and feed on their sap.
Symptoms vary: sticky leaves, lightweight green, with some discoloration, and even deformed and/or honeydew leaves. In some cases, a bold mushroom appears because it is attracted to molasses. When this happens, a kind of blackish coating appears on the leaves, which is more unsightly than anything else: once the mealybugs are removed, the plant will regenerate.
To do this, should be treated with an insecticide against cochineal like the one they sell here, or if you prefer with diatomaceous earth, of which we leave you a video:
Aphids
Aphids These are very petite insects, measuring about 0.5 centimeters, that breed quickly in spring and summer. In fact, if we think there are only one or two on the plant, there may actually be several more. The worst thing is that they quickly become a grave pest that It feeds on the sap of the leaves, which causes them to become sticky due to the honeydew secreted by them and deforms them.
This molasses also attracts black fungus, but as we said earlier when we talked about mealybugs, once the infestation is eliminated, the fungus will disappear. And how to fight aphids? You can do this with the same insecticide we just recommended (this) or with other natural ones such as neem oil, which you can buy here.
Mushrooms
Image – Wikimedia / IT specialist
Mushrooms appear when the plant receives too much water or when its leaves are sprayed every day despite the high relative humidity in the place where it grows. There are many types, but the one that damages the Brazilian trunk the most is septoria, which produces gray-brown spots on the leaves. But others can also affect you, such as powdery mildew or powdery mildew, which coats leaves with gray mold.
To do? In these cases, apply a systemic fungicide as east of Flower and remove what is damaged to prevent the spread of infection. But also, risks should be more controlled, trying to lower the ground a little before pouring water over it again. And just in case, I advise you to check the level of humidity in the area, because, as I said, if we spray the plant with water where it is very high, fungi will appear quickly.
To do this, simply enter “relative humidity X” in Google, replacing X with the name of the town where you live. Although it is much better to buy a home weather station to always have information like this at hand:
I hope this has helped you learn about Brazilian stump pests and diseases and their treatment.