Stagonospora infection - collected threads

[kentish_lass]

It was recommended to me by 'ombersleyplants' on ebay after I loss the Boyd's Double that I bought from him.
He says it works    Time will tell.  I must admit it was too much to spray them all in one go and I lost track of which ones I had sprayed so many got missed.

[johnw]

Provado (Intercept in Canada) seems to work well if applied as a drench here in mid March, that's about 9-10 weeks before the leaves die down.  One must keep the mix evenly moist for 10 days afterwards.

Neem is not so successful here, it seems to work best in warm summer climates.  So I guess for NBF the temperatures would be too low at that time of year to have much if, any, effect.

johnw      - -2c at 8:12 am

[Alan_b]

Johnw, so you are drenching the soil whilst Jennie is spraying the leaves?  Is this to combat narcissus fly or do you suffer from some other insect predator?

[johnw]

Johnw, so you are drenching the soil whilst Jennie is spraying the leaves?  Is this to combat narcissus fly or do you suffer from some other insect predator?

Alan -  re: imidichloprid

For NBF. I think the bulbs will uptake more by drenching.  The amount absorbed is surely less when the foliar is sprayed. Having said that if you are speaking of bulbs outdoors foliar spraying may be the way to go as it is difficult to get a 10 day Spring stretch without rain. 

johnw

[kentish_lass]

I chose the foliar spray as I dislike drenching the soil with anything toxic.
Believe me, it took a lot for me to even foliar spray but love my snowdrops so had to try something 

[Ulla Hansson]

Yes, I have tried once, not on the Snowdrops, but on a Clematis alpina, which was in the pot, to see if I could protect it from the clematis leaves stekel (Rhadinoceraea ventralis). It did not work.
 Maybe I sprayed too little.

[kentish_lass]

This is another method I tried to stop the NF getting to my most expensive ones.  I used old metal hanging baskets and sewed shading cloth around them (net curtains could be used & possibly dyed green or brown?!) - they would be easier to sew.

I then bent some metal into hooks and pinned the basket in place.  It does make the garden look a bit like the land of Telly Tubbies but it seems to have done the trick on the ones I covered up.

I will be doing it again this year on new expensive ones that are single bulbs as they seem the most vulnerable.  I also use these baskets with or without net over newly planted snowdrops to stop the creatures of the night digging them up as they seem to love freshly dug soil.  So far that has worked a treat too.

Jennie

[Tim Ingram]

I used to use imidichloroprid against swift moth caterpillars that infested hellebores on the nursery. It was very effective, but also very expensive and long winded to apply pot by pot. Using it on freshly planted very special snowdrops does seem a good idea because these do seem especially vulnerable to swift moth and narcissus fly. But I like Jennie's idea with woven netting, clever and simple and protects fresh plantings from rabbits which seem to love digging around loose soil where something new has been planted!

[Alan_b]

Provado is a trade name for Imidacloprid in which case Tim can vouch for its effectiveness against Swift Moth larvae and Jennie can (I presume) testify that the snowdrops she treated with it last year have come back, in which case we have evidence that it is safe for snowdrop use.  Imidacloprid is said to have low toxicity towards mammals but is highly toxic towards bees (which, as an insecticide, is hardly surprising).  As I have a major problem with swift moth larvae I am very tempted to try this treatment late in the snowdrop season. 

[steve owen]

A small group of Boyd's Double (or Boyd's Green Horror if you prefer) growing in the ground were showing browned tips, so up they came, soil off, washed and examined. No sign whatever of stag on the bulbs - all six were clean under the tunic - but four of the six had either noticeably brown tips or, where they had grown slightly more, brown edges to the top of the split sheath. So maybe not stag after all.

Anyway, they've been soaked in jungle juice and potted in clean JI + grit in a lattice pot, and into the infirmary where I can check them regularly. The remainder of my collection are going to come out of the ground and receive this treatment, starting in May. At least I broke the back of the job in 2011. I wish I'd started like this ten years ago.

 

[daveyp1970]

A small group of Boyd's Double (or Boyd's Green Horror if you prefer) growing in the ground were showing browned tips, so up they came, soil off, washed and examined. No sign whatever of stag on the bulbs - all six were clean under the tunic - but four of the six had either noticeably brown tips or, where they had grown slightly more, brown edges to the top of the split sheath. So maybe not stag after all.

Anyway, they've been soaked in jungle juice and potted in clean JI + grit in a lattice pot, and into the infirmary where I can check them regularly. The remainder of my collection are going to come out of the ground and receive this treatment, starting in May. At least I broke the back of the job in 2011. I wish I'd started like this ten years ago.

 

Could this have been due to the early root growth with lack of water this winter?

[steve owen]

Davey
Don't know. Just one of the many mysteries on the long march to growing snowdrops healthily.
Steve

[Carolyn Walker]

I wish that as many members as possible would post really good photos of stag infected snowdrops so others could get a good idea of the symptoms.  I know there have already been some photos but the more the merrier.  If this comes to my garden, I want to be able to ID it immediately and probably dispose of the infected plant (unless it is the only one I have). 

With reference to johnw's comment about slugs on hostas.  I specialize in hostas at my nursery, and I find that the more toxic chemicals gardeners use to eliminate slugs, the more slug damage they have.  I theorize that this is because the slugs are attracted to plants weakened by chemicals and "natural controls" for slugs are damaged by the chemicals.  I run my whole nursery, display gardens, and production beds where I grow plants in the ground to sell, organically and am hardly bothered by any pests or diseases.  I will now need to find wood to knock on.  I think this is relevant to the garlic discussion, which sounds like a great alternative to some of the nasty fungicides people have mentioned.

Jennie--Allium 'Purple Sensation' will grow and flower in dappled shade so would be good to try with snowdrops.

Carolyn

[mark smyth]

Do you grow miniature Hostas also?

Stag infections can be simply paler leaves with kinks usually to one side. The kink may turn reddish or the leaf tips turn red

Is this a symptom? - flowers can abort and turn greyish in the spathe.

[johnw]

Is this a symptom? - flowers can abort and turn greyish in the spathe.

Mark - I think I mentioned this problem some years ago and you said it was symptomatic of stag.

I would imagine if the plants in pots have gotten too dry that buds would be the first to go.  I can confirm that it has been a precursor of stag here or at least indicating problems underground.  I notice 'Alidah' (?) has aborted its flowers this year yet the bulbs were spic n' span in August. Hopefully they got too dry in my new mix, they will nevertheless get a good drench shortly.

By the way, what is Jungle Juice   - the garlic extract?

johnw