Detect sooty mildew
Sooty mildew is a fungal disease that leaves clearly visible traces on the infected plant. A black, washable coating covers ever larger areas of their leaves. It is a fine network of mushrooms. Sooty mildew does not prefer any particular plant because it does not feed on it. Rather, they settle on the honeydew that some pests leave as excrement on the leaves.
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Identify the pest
Soot thaw symptoms also indicate a pest infestation. These pests must be combated promptly so that the infected plant does not suffer major damage or even die. With their control, the soot thaw fungi are deprived of their livelihood at the same time. Usually these types of pests come into question:
- Aphids
- Scale insects
- Mealybug
- Mealybugs
- Whiteflies
Tips
Irregular, black spots on the leaves indicate another type of soot: star soot. It is not related to a pest infestation, but occurs in damp weather. Mostly on plants that are outside in the open air.
Fight pests
The identified pest must be combated as quickly as possible so that the disease does not progress or develop. other plants become infected. The control measures depend on the type of pest. In any case, the following points should be observed:
- Isolate the diseased plant from healthy plants
- Cut off heavily infested and damaged parts of the plant
- only use sharp and disinfected scissors for this
- Avoid insecticides whenever possible
- use natural home remedies instead
- z. B. Spray off pests with a water jet
- spray with soapy water
Remove the soot
The soot itself does not have to be combated directly, as the fungus dies as soon as there is no honeydew available. The black coating should still be removed from the leaves with a wipe. On the one hand, it robs the plant of its beauty, on the other hand, it prevents the light from being absorbed in the covered areas and thus the necessary photosynthesis. When you wipe the covering, the lack of chlorophyll will show up in the form of lighter leaf spots.
