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Hello all! I am really struggling with my alocasias, a few of them… | Hydroponics & Semi-hydroponics | Comunidad de Planta

Holly123

Hello all! I am really struggling with my alocasias, a few of them (black velvet and Chinese taro) are doing really well, they are in a chunky mix with added bark, charcoal and stratum with plenty of drainage. However, I had lost my alocasias frydek and Polly to root rot, they were in the same mix, plenty of drainage and I was mindful of over watering and also not allowing them to dry out. I have a wentii and dragonscale that i am trialling in leca, I have removed any rotten roots and treated with peroxide solution etc. Could someone kindly give me some advice on leca/their experience with it? I am puzzled with watering, I'm under the impression the water in resivoir is meant to be below the level of the roots, any tips or help would be so, so helpful! All my plants are so happy but alocasias seem to be my nemesis!

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9 comentarios

  1. Plantgirly

    You’re not reusing the mix right? and if you chop in any roots off, making sure that your equipment is sterilized with isopropyl alcohol.

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    • Plantgirly

      All of these plants are super sensitive. I have recently discovered this myself, ensuring that your hands and everything that your plants are going to touch is sanitized is key. I water my plants with arbor fungicide to help reduce the risk of root rot. Try not to overwater my plants, but my house is quite humid so I often do find myself overwatering them or not. I’m aware of it. (Not necessarily saying you are) chunky mixes are a lot harder to determine the moisture level, especially down in the pot so make sure you are checking with your finger really determining how wet it is before watering. I highly recommend using clear pots as they tend to cloud up from the moisture in the soil And this is a big help in determining how moist my soil is!

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    • Lynda

      I’m assuming if you see any moisture droplets on the glass, even though a moisture meter, or a wooden STAKE shows dry, that you need to wait if you’re trying to water a plant that likes to be dry. Is this correct? TIA! PS. I’m new, so this may be a silly question… Sorry!

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  2. Holly123

    Thank you for your response 🙏 not re using any mixes and have tried to be as clean/sterile as possible, I have mine in clear pots and was regularly checking them and they appeared fine, then frydek came completely off the corm 🥴 I use my finger or look for condensation, didn't have much luck with moisture meter 🥴 I'm stumped, I did all my research and all that jazz, just have not had much luck, it's such a shame, they were so beautiful, I will look into the fungicide, that's really helpful 😊🤗 thank you 💚

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  3. Danika

    Alocasia’s go dormant in temps below 55. So even here in LA, winter night temps are just too cold for them and all mine completely croaked (I gave up in my climate and not willing to recreate tropical conditions in my house for them). They also require very HIGH amounts of indirect light. Like A LOT. Also careful about not letting your semi-hydro mix never dry out in winter months. Especially during dormancy, this is what moves a plant from dormant to dead. The corms will rot if you continue to water. These are high maintenance tricky plants for anyone who doesn’t live in Hawaii or Bali or Thailand etc (Tropical environments).

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    • Lynda

      I’m just learning about switching some of my plants to PON, but I wanted to clarify what you just said. Am I supposed to let my plants in PON dry out during the winter? If it’s because of temperature, my house stays in the low 70s, all the time. I’m just trying to wrap my head around this process… TIA!

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    • Danika

      Sounds like you can rule out temp being the issue. So its probably lack of enough light. If indoors you will probably need a very powerful grow light/s for them. Even then it may not be enough to mimic the power of glorious indirect sunlight. Letting the pon go dry for a day between waterings is usually best during all times of the year, in general. But not prolonged dry. The prolonged dry would only be if your Alocasia has indeed gone dormant and has dropped all of its leaves, leaving only a corm/stump with roots. In that case, I personally think letting it be dry (otherwise the roots will rot if sitting in constant water) until somehow it thinks its spring and starts to push new growth. How long will depend on your exact conditions. I hope I explained that ok.

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  4. Holly123

    I thought that may have been the case, my zebrina was doing well, but I think has gone dormant, I think I will trial it, if it doesn't work then I won't re purchase them again, I feel bad when a plant dies in my care, it's a shame, I will try my luck in semi hydro and experiment it, thank you for your advice, that was helpful 💚 what plants do you enjoy keeping then? I like to hear what others like to grow 😊

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    • Lynda

      What substrate were you using for your zebrina? Would you recommend switching an older plant like this to PON, or not? TIA!

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