secretdubai

In a matter of days, the plants on my verandah - some very healthy bougainvilleas and a eucalypt (all in separate pots) sickened and died, utterly dead. Not the sort of bougainvillea death that you can resurrect with more water.

I don't know if some sudden plant disease could have caused this - it's odd that two very different species were so quickly affected.

What I can't help wondering is that someone might have poisoned them. The reason is that they started to die a couple of days after we put curtains up - because we had a regular Peeping Tom from a nearby labour site - and my fear is that he poisoned them out of spite when he couldn't peek in anymore.

Does anyone with better gardening-in-the-gulf experience have any better ideas?

I am really upset about this, they were such lovely plants and so healthy for months

Heart of gold

What condition are the leaves? They are prone to the spider mite and scale this is not detremental to the plant and can be dealt with.

Have the leave shrivelled and dropped of at all? Sign of not enough water or to much, but over water is not that common but can happen if drainage is not suffcient enough.

Any powdery mildew deposits on the leaves... caused by not enough light and air.

Any brown marks on the leaves, did you spray the leaves with water? (Some plants need this as they breathe through the leaves and the dust clogs them up) To increase humidity, place any plant on a pebble filled tray with water and to catch any that drains throu' ( tis what I have done)

Do the leaves look scorced? This can be due to a build up of salts in the soil from fertilizer/water.

Though Im not overly green fingered, I found dealing with plants in the uk far easier than here... Its a case of trial and error, though avoiding a costly error is sometimes hard, Bougainvilliea's are plants that use to low rainfall and intense sun so it could be something very simple.

MJC

You know, we've got a resident Mrs. Percy here!!

Heart of gold

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Cant help much on Eucalyptus plant - otherwise known as gum or silver dollar tree.... Did you know this plant is poisonous anyway. The leaves and bark! Just thought Id add that bit.

Whast else do you have in pots?

Heart of gold

Almost...... I like my plants and have done research on the ones that I have!

secretdubai

Leaves are grey/shrivelled and dead.

Yes - but they were being watered every day, same amount for about three months.

Not sure but it is quite dusty here - however they get heaps of light (south-facing) and the verandah is open to the air.

I hadn't ever sprayed them, no, though this would have been a good idea. I will definitely do it with the next ones I buy.

I will check that. I don't think we had given them much fertiliser for quite a while - though they wouldn't have "starved" that quickly would they?

Thanks for your help anyway! You are clearly very knowledgeable.

snowbunny

If the leaves shrivelled but stayed on the plant, especially if the die back started at the tips, I would suspect root root. Phythoptera root rot is highly contagious and can transmit from one plant to another through either splashing of water, or the drained water from one plant being taken up by another (eg two plants sitting in the same drainage pot.

To help prevent this, keep the plant well fed but not overfed, and the plants on the dry side and not the wet. Impeccable drainage helps. This means watering more often. IF mildew is not a concern, misting the leaves helps the plants take in water through the leaves rather than the root system. For dry-climate plants like bougainvilleas and eucalyptus I would not suggest this too often and the eucalpytus probably wouldn't take up a lot through the leaves; the waxy smooth covering on their leaves is to keep water IN and not transpire.

Here in the States you can have your soil analysed for nutrients but I think looking for a particular toxin would be difficult.

Big healthy plants would need a pretty hefty dose of something toxic to completely do them in. Weed killers wouldn't do it unless it was a tremendous dose. Do you notice any strange odors? You usually would if there was a chemical applied that would be strong enough to kill a big plant.