white fuzz

[dipasquo]

Within the past few weeks I have seen a white fuzz showing up at the base of several of my plants. Of about 40 total (all grown inside my apartment), I have seen a white fuzz on 4 or 5 of them. These plants are not in close contact - 3 of them are in different rooms - and are different types. We have had a lot of rain and, I presume, greater humidity on the whole. The fuzz has been on the roots or at the base of the plant and so far the plants show no other symptoms. It washes off pretty readily with fresh water but then shows up again a day or two later. Attached is a picture of said white fuzz on at root of a phal that I bought as a rescue about 6 months ago. The other picture attached is the same plant, showing two spikes! I don't want to take any drastic action while the plant is spiking, but I'd hate to have anything spread and get worse. Thoughts on what this white fuzz is, whether I should worry right now, and if so how to get rid of it? Thanks,

Dan

[BillC]

Hi, this appears at first sight to be a fungal growth but it is outside my experience with my own plants. I have heard that fungal growths might be the result of high humidity and certain fungi will grow on plants which are suffering from rot. One of the forum members will be able to assist you who knows about this particular problem.

Bill

[Tobi]

Hi Dan,
Looks like it's a surface mold that you have. Although it's not overly harmful, it usually
exits when your media is consistantly moist and you are not getting enough air circulation.
Monitor your watering and keep good air flow around your plant. If the problem persists,
you can repot with fresh bark. I have cleaned the roots with a mild dish washing
detergent (Dove) when I water and that seems to help. Just remember, molds will
grow in moist conditions with improper light and poor air circulation.

[articuno75]

That is mold. Good 'ol mold. I got that stuff on a plant that my son gave me (Marigold) last May. I kept it too wet in the cup it came in an then the sad day came when it died on me. What a bummer to croak the Mommy's Day present, huh? You need to increase the air flow for your plants and probably treat with a fungicide. I'd check for root rot to be on the safe side. When the mold came the critters came soon after (mites).

[kmarch]

I agree with Tobi that it looks like a mold of some kind but also that it probably isn't really very harmful. I occasionally get a little "bloom" of mold in some of my Paph pots. If it is a lot fo mold, I give it a spray with some fungicide which usually cleans it up with one spray. It probably wouldnt' hurt to leave it either.

[sandra]

Sorry Dan, I lost total track of your post as soon as I saw that double spike! Beeeeeautiful...

[LouisW]

Surface mold often grows like everyone said in bad circulation and wet conditions feeding on any fertilizer left in the medium or on the roots. I don't think the mold is hurting the plant but the conditions that caused the mold to grow cant be good news.

[articuno75]

It wasn't the mold that got my plant, it was the nasty bugs. It can give you a warning sign though.

[dipasquo]

Thanks for the heads up. Seems like I can afford to pull back a little bit on the watering schedule as long as the weather stays like it has been. I'm also going to try to get a little more air movement, but that's hard since the plants are all spread out. I was thinking about buying a few of those cheap battery operated personal fans and stationing them near the plants that aren't near a window that I can crack open for more natural air. I'll be keeping a close eye and hopefully the next update I'll post will be pictures of the spikes as they develop further. Thanks,

Dan

[Brooke]

Dan - hydrogen peroxide you buy at the drug store will kill the mold without harming your roots. The next time it is time to water, pour peroxide over the mold, wait a few minutes and flush the pot with water. You can also apply cinnamon to the mold and it will kill it. Make sure you don't get the cinnamon on any growing tips of the roots.

I agree air circulation is the problem.

Brooke

[11Orchid126]

It also looks like the beginning of a bad mealy bug infestation. In the beginning, before the individual bugs are dilineated, they look like mold. In the circle on the first picture it looks like several bugs on one of the roots.