Possible problems when growing cyclamen: causes and ways to eliminate them
Florists who have cyclamen in their collection of domestic plants know that this plant is quite demanding, which means that the slightest error in care immediately affects its appearance. We bring to your attention a brief instruction on the problems arising when growing cyclamens, and how to solve them. Flowers - they are like people, they also get sick and need our attention and care. Having corrected the mistakes and neutralized the "enemy", in most cases it is quite possible to keep the pet and save him from death.
Why do cyclamen leaves turn yellow?
But if the cyclamen does not belong to deciduous, and also turns yellow in the phase of active growth and flowering, you should be alert and carefully examine the bush. Yellowing of the leaves can be triggered by such factors:
- The bush has "outgrown" its pot and is cramped for it. You should change the flowerpot to a wider one.
- The flower lacks moisture as a result of poor or missed watering, as well as low air humidity. It is necessary to establish a watering regime and install pallets with wet pebbles near the cyclamen.
- If the leaves of cyclamen turn yellow and dry during flowering, it means that there is a lack of nutrition on the face and the bush must be fed with complex mineral fertilizer.
- The room is very hot.
- Direct sunlight and burns as a result.
- Cyclamen was chosen by pests.
- The plant is affected by a fungal or bacterial infection.
Where did the short stalks come from?
Irrigation regime is of considerable importance for cyclamen. The soil should not be allowed to dry out completely and vice versa - to fill the flower to the state of a swamp. The combination of such conditions, together with the low temperature of the plant, leads to the fact that the peduncles of the cyclamen are shortened.
If your flower has inflorescences under the leaves on short peduncles, you need to adjust the watering.
Cyclamen disease
Cyclamen, like any other houseplant, is not immune to various diseases. If you do not start treating the flower in time, you can lose it.
Among the diseases of cyclamen, it is worth noting such infections that affect the flower most often:
- Gray rot... Signs: the leaves turn yellow and are covered with a gray bloom. Reason: high humidity and low temperature of the plant. Treatment: removal of all affected parts of the bush and treatment of cyclamen with Fundazole. In addition, to prevent gray rot, overflow should be avoided and the room should be regularly ventilated.
- Fusarium. The disease is also called fusarium wilting. Signs: first, the leaves turn yellow on one side, then the infection spreads to the entire leaf plate, and then it dies off. Gradually, the leaves of the cyclamen all wither. Reason: fungus. Treatment: cut off diseased leaves, water the bush with Fundazol solution, and spray the remaining leaves abundantly with Topsin-M.
- Wet rot.Signs: the bush begins to fade abruptly and quickly, spreading a putrid smell. Reason: watering with contaminated water or a sick plant standing nearby. Treatment: if the bulb is damaged, it is very problematic to save the flower. You can try to clean up rotten areas, treat with a fungicide and transplant into fresh soil. Otherwise, the cyclamen must be isolated from other crops and destroyed so as not to spread the infection.
What insects like to feast on cyclamen?
Another problem when growing cyclamen is pests. The succulent leaves of cyclamen attract the attention of not only flower growers, but also various insects. By establishing who exactly attacked your flower, you can help it get rid of the "intruders". This can be done with a magnifying glass or by the nature of the changes occurring with the bush.
The appearance of a cyclamen tick is easy to notice by the following signs:
- at first, the leaf plates begin to lose their shape and bend ugly;
- then they stop growing and become tough;
- the inflorescences fade, and the peduncles are deformed (bent).
Unfortunately, most often it is impossible to get rid of the insect, since ordinary insecticides and fungicides do not have the desired effect on it. It remains only to voluntarily "kill" the plant in order to avoid contamination of all the flower collection.
If thrips appear on the cyclamen, the leaves of the plant:
- first covered with white dots;
- then they merge into gray-silvery spots;
- begin to curl;
- gradually die off.
In the fight against thrips use Aktar or Fitoverm. At the initial stage, when there are not very many pests yet, drugs can help get rid of them. With a massive defeat, the flower dies.
One of the most dangerous pests of cyclamen is the scale insect, primarily for the reason that it is generally impossible to get rid of it with the help of drugs. Often, flower growers do not even notice it until the flower begins to disappear. If you see bulging growths on the petioles, peduncles or the back of the leaves, this is not a deformation of the plant, but a very dangerous enemy. The scale is covered from above with a strong semicircular shell that protects it. The insect is firmly attached to the flower, literally merging with it into one, and no chemicals will help here. You can get rid of the scabbard on the cyclamen only mechanically, manually tearing it off.
To facilitate the process, before removing the pest, it must be wiped with a swab dipped in alcohol. During the removal, the soil under the bush should be covered so that the shield does not fall into the pot.
Frequent "guest" on cyclamen and aphids. These small white insects suck the juices from the leaves, as a result of which they begin to curl and deform, becoming covered with a sticky bloom, and young leaves appear small and also curved.
You can free the cyclamen from aphids by regularly washing the leaf plates with a solution of green or laundry soap, additionally spraying the bush with Fitoverm.
Why doesn't cyclamen bloom?
Despite the fact that the plant has very beautiful and decorative leaves, their color and shape are not the main decoration of the bush. Still, the cyclamen is grown for the sake of its lovely butterfly flowers, and it is very annoying when they do not want to appear.
The reason for the lack of flowering in cyclamen can be the following factors:
- low level of humidity in the room;
- poor watering;
- high temperature of the content (he does not like this);
- too spacious a pot;
- the corm is completely buried in the soil (in varieties for which this is unacceptable).
By adjusting these errors and creating a comfortable habitat for the plant, soon it will be possible to see its flowering.
As you can see, we ourselves create most of the problems when growing cyclamen, without providing the plant with proper care.Fortunately, this can be corrected by timely paying attention to the changes occurring with the flower. Surround your cyclamen with care, and he will delight you with gorgeous flowering.