Ficus Problem

//Ficus Problem

The white “speckles” you see are special cells called lithocysts, a type of cell in the epidermis of certain plant leaves; these are normal in Ficus species. The red/yellow spots at the leaf tip (although difficult to tell from photos) could be a disease symptom, possibly cercospora leaf spot, caused by a cercospora fungus. Avoid overhead watering of plants to minimize wet foliage and avoid spreading the disease. Water the soil only. You can wipe non-infected leaves with a clean cloth to keep them free of dust, but don’t put water on the leaves. Provide good air circulation in the canopy (among the leaves); you may want to thin them out just a little. Carefully dispose of infected leaves and/or fallen foliage to keep the fungus from spreading.

By | 2016-04-11T10:44:49-07:00 April 11th, 2016|Trees|1 Comment

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  1. Gregory Macosko September 23, 2022 at 1:08 pm - Reply

    My ficus has been healthy for 30 years. Every summer I’ve put it on my New York City balcony where it flourished. It lost a leaf or two every few months, I spray it daily and have rarely let the soul get dreamy. Early September a few leaves got what looked like black bugs on the undersides. I brought it inside and carefully wiped down each leaf. My ficus looks healthy overall, but I’m losing about two leaves per day. Would appreciate any advice.

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