Basal Plates Missing

[Rick Goodenough]

Hello Friends,

This evening I was inspecting the growth of a few Galanthus I had acquired in 2014.  I was perturbed when I saw the basal plate eaten off of two otherwise nice fat healthy looking white plicatus bulbs. It was too late to get good photos so I wanted to just describe what I saw and seek your advice. I am considering “scooping” the bulbs (which are already essentially scooped) and see if they might just set new bulbils in motion.
I would like to know what it was that did the damage and your thoughts on best thing to do with the remains of these two bulbs.

Thanks,

Rick

[Alan_b]

Although chipping/twin scaling lore says you need a bit of the basal plate, people regularly get bulbils formed from the top section of the bulb that is cut-off to provide a flat surface for cutting-up the rest of the bulb.  So you could either put the bulbs back in the ground and hope or treat them as bulbs you were chipping.

I don't know of anything that eats the basal plate in preference to the rest of the bulb.  If the bulbs had started to root, your bugs/critters might have started at the roots and kept on eating. 

[Maggi Young]

I'd scoop for sure.  Like Alan, I wonder what it might have been that chomped the basal plate ? All we need is some new beast attacking our bulbs 

[Rick Goodenough]

Hoping to get a chance at a photo for you today, but it rained all day, so maybe tomorrow. Thank you Alan and Maggie for your thoughtful advice. The only thing I saw in the area when I dug then was big fat earthworms. I hope it is not some new Galanthus bug to contend with.

Thank you both! Rick

[Rick Goodenough]

OK...photos of the damage. I had put them back in the ground and now out again for photos and possible scooping.  Any other thoughts?  Rick

[Rick Goodenough]

An update:

I decided to cut into the affected area on the worst of the two bulbs and there was a grub eating out the insides. I decided I better cut the other one as well, but no grub it that one. I will soak in fungicide and then plant in a dry very good draining mix and put a liberal amonunt of Trichoderma on and round the damaged bulbs and hope for the best.

Thanks again for all of your help. Rick

[Alan_b]

The fungicide, if it works, will kill the Trichoderma.

[Rick Goodenough]

Alan...yes, agree, but my thought was to have healthy bacteria growing in the vicinity of the bulb to prevent other bacterial attacks on the weakened bulbs. It may make little sense, but that is what I cobbled together as a plan of attack.

Thanks again for your thoughtful responses. Rick

[Alan_b]

Yes, but unfortunately Trichoderma is a fungus, not a bacterium.  I think somehow we need to move towards using beneficial fungi in place of fungicides but nobody yet knows quite how to do this.  Badly damaged bulbs do sometimes survive and regenerate underground which makes me think it could be possible.

  I think your options are either:

• soak in fungicide and then plant in a dry very good draining mix

or

• Treat with Trichoderma and plant in a moist humus-rich soil that the Tricherma would thrive in.

[Rick Goodenough]

Thanks Alan!