Is this fungal disease or something else?

[Ayxowpat]

Hello all,

I am seeing some rusty brownings on leaves. What are these and how can I get rid of them?

Thanks in advance.

 

[sorce]

Could be too much water.

What's the soil like?

Sorce

 

[AlainK]

Merhaba, European bonsai dost

What species is it, a Ficus ?

And where was it kept in the summer, outside or inside ?

If it was outside, it might just be symptoms of a dry environment and/or insect bites.

 

[Ayxowpat]

It is a Ficus microcarpa ginseng. I use a pumice - peat moss mix (1:1). But I encountered these on boon mix used ficuses as well. They are always kept in greenhouse, which has air circulation.

It looks like fungi to me, but wanted to make sure.

Teşekkürler

 

[Forsoothe!]

I don't think that you only have a fungus problem. The leaves look old and tired even though they are at the ends of twigs where one would expect new leaves to be looking like new. They look like old interior leaves. Is the plant putting out new growth on a regular basis? How old are these leaves? They look undernourished or as though they are growing in a pot with low fertility, possibily due to a low population of mycorrhiza. I don't like peat moss because it alternately stays wet too long or when dry is hard to wet out again. I use composted wood chips instead, but not many others do. Woodchips contain an army of mycrobes that readily convert N, P, K, & micro-nutrients that you add as ferilizer into food for plants. You may consider top dressing with composted leaves, or leaves that have been rotting in a pile someplace if you do not have access to a compost source. That would suppliment the microbe population quickly without repotting. Choose leaves NOT from the Fig family so you don't introduce a natural pathogen, too.

 

[TN_Jim]

Soil too wet perhaps, probably leaves not wet enough. The heat in winter is powerful. These are tropical species.

Try misting half of it often for a good while (the opposite of fungi treatment). See which half does better. Welcome to the jungle..

 

[TN_Jim]

I don't think that you only have a fungus problem. The leaves look old and tired even though they are at the ends of twigs where one would expect new leaves to be looking like new. They look like old interior leaves. Is the plant putting out new growth on a regular basis? How old are these leaves? They look undernourished or as though they are growing in a pot with low fertility, possibily due to a low population of mycorrhiza. I don't like peat moss because it alternately stays wet too long or when dry is hard to wet out again. I use composted wood chips instead, but not many others do. Woodchips contain an army of mycrobes that readily convert N, P, K, & micro-nutrients that you add as ferilizer into food for plants. You may consider top dressing with composted leaves, or leaves that have been rotting in a pile someplace if you do not have access to a compost source. That would suppliment the microbe population quickly without repotting. Choose leaves NOT from the Fig family so you don't introduce a natural pathogen, too.

Please indent. Why do you think this plant looks under nourished?

 

[TN_Jim]

It is a Ficus microcarpa ginseng. I use a pumice - peat moss mix (1:1). But I encountered these on boon mix used ficuses as well. They are always kept in greenhouse, which has air circulation.

It looks like fungi to me, but wanted to make sure.

Teşekkürler

What kind of greenhouse?

 

[Forsoothe!]

Please indent. Why do you think this plant looks under nourished?

Look at these leaves. They are uniformly colored. All the cells have been manufactured using the resources available and all look healthy.




Now, look back at the OP. They're supposed to look like this at this time of year. To the extent that they do not, they are deficient in some way including probably chlorotic. If only the elder, interior leaves are crummy looking, that's to be expected. If leaves less than ~6 months old look like this then something is wrong. I still don't like 50% peat as a medium, on several levels. It may be mineral deficient, maybe greatly deficient. I stand by my recommendations as above. Especially if only N, P & K are being administered, without micro-elements. I don't like feeding in low sun months because it exaggerates leggy growth, the bane of bonsai. But, in this case, go for it, plus micros. A good starting point, anyway.

 

[Ayxowpat]

Thanks for replies. I think the leaves are old and the environment is a little bit harsh for these tropical species. The greenhouse gets cold sometimes. And I think I should add fertilizers more often.

 

[AlainK]

The greenhouse gets cold sometimes.

What do you lmean exactly, where about is this greenhouse exactly, around Antalya (almost subtropical climate, at least from what I saw there), or Ankara, Istanbul...

Turkey, like France and other countries is between several seas and mountains, and continents. So diverse, and yet one. E Pluribus Unum

 

[AlainK]

The greenhouse gets cold sometimes.

What do you mean exactly, where about is this greenhouse ? Around Antalya (almost subtropical climate, at least from what I saw there), or Istanbul, Izmir, Göreme, Karaman, Ankara, ...

Turkey, like France and other countries is between several seas and mountains, and continents.

So diverse, and yet one.

E Pluribus Unum

 

[Ayxowpat]

It is in İstanbul. It is not heated and not completely closed. If it is windy and cold, it gets cold quickly. But it is generally warmer for 3-4°C than outside.

 

[AlainK]

Arkadash Ayxowpat, find a nice olive tree.

He'll reward you

 

[Ayxowpat]

I am not fan of ficus species, they are in my garden for retailing purposes only I am fan of conifers. Thanks for the advice