Home Garden
# Home & Garden >> Plants, Flowers & Herbs >> Plant Basics

My Donkey Ear Plant Is Dying

Originating in Madagascar,donkey ear plants or kalanchoe succulents are part of the jade family. Gardeners prize these plants for their long blooming period (six to eight weeks), scalloped leaves and upright stems. In fact, stems can grow to a foot tall with proper care. Improper care, insects, fungal diseases and viruses cause donkey ear plants to die out. Identification and treatment are essential for preventing the death of the donkey ear plants.

  1. Improper Care

    • Improper watering kills donkey ear plants. Donkey ear plants, like other succulents, retain water in their leaves. When gardeners overwater their plants, they cause diseases such as root rot. Underwatering donkey ears causes these plants to dry out. To know when to water your donkey ear plant, press your fingers into the first 2 inches of topsoil. If the soil feels dry, apply water until it drains from the draining holes at the bottom of the container. Allow the surface of the soil to dry out in between waterings.

    Insects

    • Numerous different kinds of insects plague donkey ear plants, such as aphids, western flower thrips, cyclamen mites, mealybugs and fungus gnats. Gardeners must examine their donkey ear plants for signs of leaf damage, discoloration, deformed blossoms and stunted growth. To find out what type of insect has infected the donkey ear plant, place a sticky yellow card next to the plant. Check the sticky card for insects each week. Treat insects with an insecticidal soap diluted in water.

    Fungal Diseases

    • Certain fungal diseases infect donkey ear plants, such as botrytis, myrothecium, rhizopus, pythium, phytophthora and thielaviopsis. These fungal diseases cause stem rot, unhealthy roots and a decline in overall health. The most prevalent disease to infect donkey ear plants is powdery mildew. Powdery mildew causes a thin white powder to coat the plant. Signs that the donkey ear plant has contracted powdery mildew include yellowing leaves, defoliation and stunted growth. Treat fungal diseases with a fungicide that is chemically formulated to kill the specific fungal disease. Read the fungicide's label before treating. Certain fungicides are phytotoxic to donkey ear plants.

    Viruses

    • Kalanchoe mosaic potyvirus is the most common viral disease to infect donkey ear plants. This disease is transmitted from aphids. Symptoms of kalanchoe mosaic potyvirus disease include a dark green mosaic pattern on leaves. Other viral diseases that infect donkey ear plants include yellow spotted virus, carla virus and kalanchoe latent virus. There are no available treatments for donkey ear plants. Gardeners must remove and destroy infected plants. Spraying plants with an insecticide to prevent aphids is a form of prevention.

Previous:

Next:

Plant Basics
  1. Mint Plant Is Dying
  2. Roots vs. Shoots of Plants
  3. Why Are My Cucumber Plants Wilting & Dying?
  4. Tulip Plants
  5. Agapanthus Plants
  6. Hoya Plants
  7. Calibrachoa Plants
  8. My Verbena Is Dying
  9. My Sage Plant Is Dying
  10. Mullein Plants
  11. Donkey Tail Plant Propagation
  12. My Nepenthes Plant Is Dying

Home Garden © https://www.98905.com