Virus In Amaryllidaceae

[JoshY46013]

Hi Guys,

    I've grown a lot of plants and I've found Amaryllidaceae to be the most prone to virus infection, has anyone else noticed this?  I always make sure to discard of them immediately so they don't spread but it seems as if I can't buy anything from most vendors as it's all virused.  I have the best luck with fellow collectors as we're aware of virus and how it's spread. 

   How do you guys feel about this topic?  I've noticed it's a touchy subject with a lot of people and I think it's because they aren't familiar with it, I think it's important to educate everyone who grows these plants, especially the rarities that a lot of us have as there may only be one clone in cultivation. 

   I've had some wonderful advice from Alberto Castillo who also frequents this forum, he informed me that it's best to quarantine plants when you first acquire them until you're as sure as you can be that they're virus free.  I use this method and I'm very happy I have.

Josh

[Paul T]

The other problem is that many plants don't show virus symptoms until severely stressed, like when moved to your property.  I think a lot of vendors may not even realise that they have virus in their stock, as it never shows for them in their gardens/premises.  If you don't notice it the first year you grow the plant it may not show in your garden again either, so vigilance in that first year is very important.  I am aware of plants I have/have had that showed virus their first year and have never shown it again..... I am now to the stage of wondering whether some of the virus we see is symptoms triggered by the change in environment and not virus at all, but I am not dismissing virus in any way.  I just do wonder how many plants have been thrown out with virus that don't actually have it, as the particular environmental conditions the year you bought the plant produce a leaf streaking that looks like virus?  I have certainly got plants in a particular part of the garden (my area for things I can't bear to throw out, but keep them well separate from the other Amaryllids) that have never again shown any symptoms.

The other reason I have to wonder how much environment plays a part is that this year I have had pretty much every Sparaxis I own show virus symptoms, despite being in various parts of the garden and nowhere near each other?  If I throw out every one showing symptoms this year then I rip out every Sparaxis I own.  Do I do it?

Just throwing about some ideas to see what people think?  I know how important it is to have healthy plants, and a good dose of paranoia is a big help if you're trying to keep virus out, but I am wondering just HOW paranoid is good? 

[Heinie]

Interesting reading.

What type of virus are you guys referring to, leave or bulb infections? I cannot say that I have ever noticed anything resembling a virus on any of my Amaryllidaceae plants unless I am overlooking it. There are no spots or patches on the leaves I have ever noticed. I have well over 300 pots planted with various Amaryllidaceae species, including many from different countries around the world, as well as a lot in the ground too. Am I overlooking it so badly? A photo of such virus will perhaps help me identify the possible virus. A name can also help then I can read about the viruses.

Thanks for the topic

[pehe]

Heinie,

In this thread http://www.srgc.org.uk/smf/index.php?topic=6041.0 you find more information and pictures of virus infected leaves.

Poul

[jshields]

Virus infections are fairly common in Amaryllidaceae.  Mosaic viruses are the most common, members of the poty group.  I agree that the symptoms seem to come and go, but once a given leaf shows the mosaic patterns, it never loses them.  I find that Hippeastrum are the worst at this.  If you feed the broad-leaf Nerine species and hybrids with nitrogen-containing fertilizers, you usually see mosaic patterns appearing in their leaves. The late Sir Peter Smithers was convinced that there were latent endogenous viruses in the genomes of the broad-leaf types, but so far as I know, no one has demonstrated that they are in fact virus-infected.  Amaryllids grown outdoors here in the American Midwest in summer tend to eventually come down with virus symptoms, possibly from Tobacco Mosaic Virus.  I did try getting tests once with some samples from Clivia leaves that looked mosaic-infected to me, but the lab results were negative, including a screen for a half-dozen types of poty viruses.  There is a specific Crinum Mosaic Virus, I believe, as well as the better-known Hippeastrum Mosaic Virus.