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Green stuff on my potting mix and dying Drosera leaves


Arvetis

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I recently moved my Drosera pots to a place with more direct sunlight (they had previously been under a lamp) and at first they loved it. My Capensis has too many new leaves to count, and my Spathulata started actually producing dew, which it hadn't done since I got it. Now I'm seeing some worrisome things though. A lot of leaves on the Spathulata, especially towards the edges, are turning brown (though it still has lots of new ones unfoling in the middle) and there's this weird green coloration on the surface of the potting mix. Is this some kind of algae? Could the sunlight be burning the plants?

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Guest Aidan

Thread moved to Sundews forum.

The green colouration on the compost will be algae or moss - something we all suffer.

The dying leaves could just be that.....old leaves dying. It might also be caused by a sudden change in humidity and/or as you suggest the increase in the amount of light.

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Don't worry this happens all the time with some Drosera like spatulata or capensis when older growth dies off a bit when moved into a sunnier position. As long as new growth remains healthy, its perfectly fine.

The green growth on your medium is probably algae or live sphagnum moss. Nothing to worry about.

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There's my thread! Sorry about that, I was originally going to ask about my VFT also, which is why I put it in General. After I posted this, I noticed there's also a little white growth on the edges of the pot... I KNOW that's bad! I physically removed what I could see, but how can I more thoroughly get rid of it? I keep the pots in a tray of water; is that too moist?

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White "growth" could also be just minerals from your water / soil. Evapouration draws these up to the surface where they crystalise.

Could be harmful in the long term. Are you using rainwater? Could try watering from above and discarding the water that flushes through the pot.

I get this with soil mixes containing pearlite but no harmful effects as far as I can see.

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I generally consider green colouration of compost a good thing when buying a plant at an open day etc.

It means the plant has been in the pot for a while, if the soil is too clean then it was probably potted up just in time for the sale so who knows if it is going to settle in or drop dead.

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White "growth" could also be just minerals from your water / soil. Evapouration draws these up to the surface where they crystalise.

Could be harmful in the long term. Are you using rainwater? Could try watering from above and discarding the water that flushes through the pot.

I get this with soil mixes containing pearlite but no harmful effects as far as I can see.

I use RO water, so I don't think it's mineral deposits.

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Guest Aidan

It is unlikely to be Botrytis as this fungus lives on plant tissues rather than in the soil. However, if not mineral deposits then it is most likely fungal. It is not necessarily harmful to your plant. I often notice fungi racing across the surface of compost and it rarely harms plants. Botrytis is the one to worry about and is easily recognisable. See the photo in this thread:

http://www.cpukforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2253

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