Stagonospora infection - collected threads

[Alan_b]

I have a "sick bay" away from other snowdrops where I keep any that I know or suspect to be unhealthy.  In my experience bulbs that look clean after a wash will very frequently recover to full health.  With bulbs that don't look clean I'm not sure if I have ever yet succeeded but fortunately I rarely find sick bulbs these days so don't have much opportunity to experiment.

You can now buy a product called "Empathy Bulb Starter with Rootgrow".  This has mycorrhizal funghi; presumably including Trichoderma.  A product like this might be a good treatment for bulbs showing poor root growth provided you don't treat with Actinovate and kill-off the beneficial fungi.

I understand completely the trials and tribulations of having bulbs that are unique to yourself that cannot be replaced.  If I have collected bulbs from elsewhere I try to leave some behind where possible.  I also try to split them as soon as I can and then keep the two in different areas of my garden.  And I try to distribute then ASAP in order to reduce the risk, although this means that I will never make my fortune as the only holder of some new wonder snowdrop.   

[JimF]

You can now buy a product called "Empathy Bulb Starter with Rootgrow".  This has mycorrhizal funghi; presumably including Trichoderma.  A product like this might be a good treatment for bulbs showing poor root growth provided you don't treat with Actinovate and kill-off the beneficial fungi.

It's important, Alan, to stress that Streptomyces lydicus WYEC 108, the active ingredient in Actinovate, is not a broad spectrum fungicide able to "kill-off the beneficial fungi".

It's a saprophytic soil organism, naturally occurring in soils, which colonizes root tips "acting as a mycoparasite of fungal root pathogens . . . . [using] production and excretion of antifungal metabolites" to kill off those pathogens, according to the U.S.'s Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) "BIOPESTICIDE REGISTRATION ACTION DOCUMENT" about it.

At one time I read another document that posited that it (or another organism it encouraged) was able to eat infected, dying tissue - in effect out competing the pathogen, just like fly maggots in a wound. It has a pretty focused aim.

It's good, known about for over half a century, and certified by many U.S. government and organic agencies for organic gardening.

Jim

[Alan_b]

Thanks for correcting my misapprehension, JimF.  The only excuse I can offer for my ignorance is that Actinovate is not sold in the UK where I live (other than as an unofficial import).  I don't know why not.   

[PhilG]

Well that was a let down.

It was  some some nivalis 'Lady Elphinstone' from Westcountry Nurseries on Ebay instead. They claim their snowdrops are "pot grown". They are sitting in pots of dry peat with very little root growth. Avoid the Donkey Daisy

I wish I had registered on here sooner. So that I could have done a search.
Seems donkeydaisy hasn't changed in over 10 years  Just got a plant from them - looks terrible, very little root growth and the flower has been removed, so preventing confirmation of ID, which for a G. nivalis clone is really helpful. They said that was to prevent in getting broken in the post 
Never again!

As an introduction of me - mid 50's, from Kent. Grown a few snowdrops for Decades, but recently started to gather a few others.
I also grow Carnivorous Plants and have done seriously for about 15 years. But generally grown plants for most of my life.
Hopefully my future posts will be on a more positive note. Maybe even a few pic's, when I've had a look at how to do it here.

Sorry if this isn't in the right place, but wanted to respond to this other 'complaint'.

[Tim Harberd]

Hi Guys,
    Having detected a suspected case of Stag... I thought I'd try some Actinovate... referenced further up this thread. BUT it no longer seems to be available? Seems strange that a useful treatment should disappear...   Any thoughts on its efficacy  OR alternatives??

Tim DH

[Anthony Hawkins]

I had some clear signs of infection before first lockdown. My main collection is 8 miles from home, and I don't drive so I then didn't see them till June. I emptied the pots then, gave them a short soak in 5% Dettol, and repotted. We went back into lockdown before most of them came up, but we had a brief respite and I managed to look around for three hours in mid Feb. I did not see any signs of infection then. But no idea when I will get to see them again.

[Alan_b]

... I thought I'd try some Actinovate... referenced further up this thread. BUT it no longer seems to be available?

Actinovate has never been available; it is not approved for use in the UK http://sitem.herts.ac.uk/aeru/bpdb/Reports/2032.htm

[Tim Harberd]

Hi Alan,
   Thanks for the link…. that’s a fascinating webpage.
   How curious that a micro-organism originally isolated from English Agricultural Soil can be used as a fungicide in the EU, but not in its homeland!

   However…  It doesn’t currently appear to be available anywhere, so questions about its approval status are a bit academic.

   Historically, some forum members do appear to have tried it…Since no-one is leaping to its defense, or mourning its passing, I guess it wasn’t that effective anyway. 

   There are  A LOT  of bulbs in my Stag affected snowdrop clump… So I’m in a good position to run a trial… I’m currently thinking I’ll wait until dormancy and divide the bulbs between half a dozen different promising treatments..

   Apart from Actinovate, treatments suggested above include:

Dettol (Thanks Anthony)
Empathy Bulb Starter (Thanks Alan)
Garlic (Thanks Josh & Jupiter)
Serenade (Thanks Carolyn, but only available in 10 Litre bottles here!!!)
Trichoderma Harzianum  (Thanks Anne, and again Alan)
Peracetic Acid (Thanks Derryclare… think I’ll pass on that one)

   Is there anything else I should consider trying??

Tim DH





   

   

[Alan_b]

   Is there anything else I should consider trying??

Not a treatment but I would remove the outer scales that show staining.  You could also try hot water treatment, I think Avon Bulbs may have published a recipe.

[Cod]

I have some bayer infinito fungaside, any good? Or is it banned now. I have a case of grey mould. Open to all advise/ opinions thanks