Violet is a plant beloved by many flower growers. It will become an adornment of any windowsill. This gentle, lovely plant will delight you with rich colors of its buds and dark velvet foliage, if proper care is provided for it. Otherwise, the violet will hurt. Her appearance will also become worse every day. If spots appear on the leaves of the violet, you should find out the cause of this phenomenon. This will be discussed later.
Causes of Stains
Violet or Saintpaulia - the plant is very attractive. There are a great many species of this lovely plant with flowers of the most diverse sizes, shapes and colors. Many gardeners want to see this beauty at home. And some lovers prefer to have entire collections from various types of Saintpaulia.
Those who are involved in the cultivation of violets should remember that the plant is very capricious and whimsical. It will instantly respond to a lack of attention and proper care, as well as to inappropriate conditions of detention. In this case, the spots that appear on the leaves of the violet will be an alarm. Their occurrence is easier to prevent than to cure. So, it is better to eliminate all the prerequisites of the disease in advance.
If nevertheless spots appeared on the leaves of the violet, the reasons may be the following:
- improper care and conditions of detention;
- diseases
- parasite infection.
The effectiveness of the treatment of the plant depends on how accurately the reason why the spots appeared on the leaves of the violet is established.
How to establish the causes of the disease?
So, ugly spots appeared on the leaves of this beautiful indoor plant. They may be different. To clarify their nature, you need to carefully consider the sheet, using a magnifying glass for this. You can also photograph the affected area, and then enlarge it in a graphical editor.
If black dots are found on the spot, the conclusion is disappointing - the plant was attacked by parasitic fungi. Small holes on the surface indicate that the leaves are eaten by parasitic insects. With an increase, one can notice on the plant oviposition of insects, colony of ticks, cobwebs and other signs of vital activity of various pests.
Having determined the cause of the lesion, you can begin treatment of the plant.
The easiest way to deal with spots on the leaves of violets arising from improper conditions of detention. It is enough to eliminate the cause of the lesion - and then the plant will cope on its own. Therefore, you need to know exactly what requirements are put forward for the cultivation of this flower.
Sunburn stains
Have you noticed yellow spots on violet leaves? What to do? First of all, pay attention to which side they are located. If such spots appeared on the leaves facing the window, it can be assumed that the plant was exposed to direct sunlight and as a result received burns.
A female violet does not tolerate bright sunlight and reacts to this with the appearance of rounded yellow spots, which later turn brown. Sometimes holes appear in the center of such a burn. This is an extremely dangerous condition for the plant.
First aid in this case is to eliminate the cause of the lesion. The plant should be removed in a place protected from direct sunlight, preferably on the windowsills of the north, northwest or northeast window. If all the windows of the apartment are oriented south, you need to cover the glass with a mirror film or paper.
All affected leaves and inflorescences should be removed. The measures taken will be enough to fully restore the plant. After a while, with proper care, it will regain its former luxurious look.
Need for transplant
If the violet has not been transplanted for a long time, it will certainly respond to this manifestation of inattention. Brown and brown dry spots on the leaves of the violet, located below, are a signal that the soil in the flowerpot has become alkaline. Soil requires immediate replacement.
Transplant the violet as follows:
- The plant is taken out of the pot, trying not to damage the roots.
- Carefully remove the topsoil with any suitable tool, such as a regular fork.
- They clean the roots of the adhering soil with gentle, as if combing, movements.
- All damaged leaves are removed, and places of their sections are sprinkled with charcoal.
- Throw away all the old drainage. As a new filler, moss-sphagnum is used, which will provide an acid reaction for the soil.
- The new pot should be one and a half to two times larger than the previous one.
Special soil for violets is best purchased at the store. Do not take for transplant garden or forest soil. It may contain phosphorus, which will lead to early aging of the plant.
Wrong watering
Light spots on the leaves of the violet may appear due to the fact that cold water is used for its irrigation. You can irrigate this sissy only with warm water. In addition, it is important when it is watered.
Do not irrigate the soil around the plant if it is currently lit by bright sunlight. Drops of water on the leaflets act like lenses, causing severe burns. It is best to water the plant early in the morning or late in the evening, minimizing the likelihood of burns.
Drafts
Now consider why white spots appear on the leaves of the violet. The presence of milk or light brown spots of various shapes indicates that the plant has been exposed to draft, which these whims do not tolerate.
Even in the summer heat, a stream of air from an open window, a balcony door or from an air conditioner causes severe stress for these sissies.
To help the plant in this case is very simple - you need to remove it from the place where it goes through all the time. Further, the flower will recover on its own.
Diseases of violets and their causes
The appearance on the surface of the foliage of a flower of spots of various colors and configurations may be a reaction to diseases, the most common of which are:
- powdery mildew;
- various types of rot;
- Fusarium
- late blight;
- Bronze virus and leaf spot.
The main causes of these diseases are:
- Wrong soil. Garden and forest soil is not suitable for senpolias. You should buy a special substrate for violets in the store.
- The lack of fertilizing phosphorus and potassium with an excess of nitrogen leads to the development of fungal infections.
- Violation of the rules of care. High humidity, too low or too high temperature, lack of lighting also lead to the appearance of fungal diseases.
Powdery mildew
This fungal disease affects both the leaves and buds of violets. They are covered with white or grayish-white coating, which can be easily erased. However, the leaves and buds underneath become weakened. This disease gradually takes power from the flower. The leaves turn brown and fall over time, but the buds do not bloom.
In this case, all affected areas of the plant must be destroyed, and the diseased flower should be isolated from healthy ones. With small lesions, the leaves are washed with a solution of potassium permanganate at the rate of a quarter gram per liter of water. Five days later, the procedure is repeated.
How to treat violets from powdery mildew with a severe lesion? On sale for this are many special preparations. For this, for example, the drug "Topaz" is suitable. It is often used by flower growers in case of difficulties. The drug is used in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions. They also deal quite effectively with powdery mildew "Zircon" for plants, "Epin" or copper sulphate. Processing is carried out according to the instructions for the drug.
Rot
Signs of rot are brown spots on the leaves. At the same time, they lose their elasticity and wither with the petioles. There are various types of rot. The brown variety usually affects rooted leaves, children, and young rosettes of violets. The stem of the affected plants becomes brownish brown, softens and thins. On the soil under the flower you can see the whitish threads of the mycelium.
Treatment consists in the complete destruction of all damaged areas of the plant. In order to prevent violet should be treated with fungicides. For this, the aforementioned Zircon for plants is suitable. The soil under the violet must be treated with Fitosporin.
Root rot is externally manifested by the appearance of pale spots on the leaves and their subsequent withering. If the plant is removed from the soil, you can see the softened brown roots. The cause of root rot is the high humidity of the soil with its low acidity. You can help the flower by reducing the number of waterings and cultivating the soil with Fitosporin. You can also treat the plant with Topaz. In order to prevent this disease, it is better to plant a violet in the soil that retains moisture.
Gray rot looks like a white fluffy coating on the leaves. It appears due to increased humidity and improper watering. The disease dilutes the green parts of the plant, which must be completely removed. At the same time, the affected parts of the flower should not be allowed to fall onto the ground. In order to prevent the appearance of gray rot, you need to monitor the humidity in the room, do not spray the violet, prevent the formation of condensation and stagnation of moisture in the pan.
Fusarium
In this disease , the violet roots first rot , and then the infection spreads higher, to the stems, petioles and lower leaves, which turn brown, with watery edges. This disease develops due to low temperatures (below +16 degrees), due to insufficient fertilizing with fertilizers, and also when the plant is weakened after flowering.
Unfortunately, violet infected with fusarium cannot be saved. It must be destroyed along with the soil, and the pot treated with fungicides.
In order to prevent the appearance of fusarium, the flower must be properly watered, fertilized and monthly treated with Fitosporin.
Late blight
The appearance of brown dry spots on the surfaces of the presented plant may indicate damage by late blight. Such formations spread very quickly. The leaves die off, and the rosette withers before our eyes. To combat late blight, all damaged parts of the plant are removed. The side of the outlet, which has not been infected, is cut off, treated with a fungicide and rooted. The solution should also be applied to all flowers that were nearby.
Bronze and leaf spotted
These diseases are caused by viruses and are accompanied by the appearance of mutilated brown leaves. Flowering stops, the overall development of the plant is completely inhibited. Viral diseases of violets are not treated, so the flower should be simply destroyed.
One of the reasons provoking such diseases is the colonization of the plant with parasites.
Pest infestation
The cause of various spots on the surfaces of a houseplant, their deformation and death, may be the defeat of various insect parasites. Most often, violets are attacked by a cyclamen tick, nematode, aphid, mealybug, thrips and sciaridae. You can deal with these pests using appropriate insecticides.
All diseases of violets arise due to improper care. It is worthwhile to show more attention and care to this whimsical nezhinka. She will definitely answer with beautiful flowering and healthy appearance.