FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

So over the past couple weeks I've noticed the older leaves on my N. Hamata cutting start to develop little black dots... they were nothing serious and I sprayed them with neem. However ever since Monday they've began to rapidly spread on the two affected leaves (the new growth doesn't seem to have it, yet). I'm thinking it may either be a fungal or bacterial infection inside the cells themselves as I already tried wiping it off with a q-tip speaker in alcohol (to no avail).



Monday



Today (same leaf)



Today (leaf #2 - still only two affected)



Underside of leaf #2



New growth


Thank you in advance!


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Also want to note that I do maintain both airflow and fresh air intake.


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It looks like black sooty mold and usually appears on plants that produce a lot of sap.

Mix a tiny bit of non-antibacterial dish soap with water and dip a toothbrush in it and scrub it with the toothbrush, it should come right off. I'll also comment that sprinkling the plant with water from the top, hitting the leaves, helps prevent black sooty mold because it is basically periodically washing the plant.

Black sooty mold doesnt hurt the plant unless so much of it builds up that it blocks the light from getting to the leaves, but it looks icky.

Any chance that is sunburn?


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Adelaide wrote:It looks like black sooty mold and usually appears on plants that produce a lot of sap.

Mix a tiny bit of non-antibacterial dish soap with water and dip a toothbrush in it and scrub it with the toothbrush, it should come right off. I'll also comment that sprinkling the plant with water from the top, hitting the leaves, helps prevent black sooty mold because it is basically periodically washing the plant.

Black sooty mold doesnt hurt the plant unless so much of it builds up that it blocks the light from getting to the leaves, but it looks icky.

That's what someone else said when I asked about it. They recommended using alcohol, so I did to no avail. I rubbed pretty hard but it didn't help. I can try with a toothbrush head though

The black looks to be a part of the leaf - i.e. Nothing is covering it and I can see what look like the equivalent to pores on someone's face... the ones with the black are still visible instead of being covering, which leads me to believe it's something inside the cells.


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FLTropical wrote:Any chance that is sunburn?


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No. I use LEDs and they don't produce any UV light


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Honestly the only concerning looking leaf is the second one, but the colors are probably not totally accurate so I can't tell if the pigment is just due to light or not.

It should be noted, I've heard and read multiple times that N. hamata I'd one of the few Neps that does not appreciate full sun/strong lighting. Under LEDs, I would expect that it could get some burn, but the newest growth looks nice and adapted. I think you should give it a few days and post more photos then. I had similar spots occur on my Heliamphora when I kept moving them in and out of my terrarium (so quick fluctuations in humidity).

Benurmanii wrote:Honestly the only concerning looking leaf is the second one, but the colors are probably not totally accurate so I can't tell if the pigment is just due to light or not.

It should be noted, I've heard and read multiple times that N. hamata I'd one of the few Neps that does not appreciate full sun/strong lighting. Under LEDs, I would expect that it could get some burn, but the newest growth looks nice and adapted. I think you should give it a few days and post more photos then. I had similar spots occur on my Heliamphora when I kept moving them in and out of my terrarium (so quick fluctuations in humidity).

All of it is 100% new growth all under the LED... this was when I got it

Vs Jan 27th


You can see the black spot on the leaf. This is not coloration or "burn" from the LED.

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Doesn't look like sooty mold to me. I see some definite necrosis of the leaf in spots - but I also see signs of normal aging. How big is the root mass? My neps with few roots tend to lose a leaf whenever they grow a new one, until they get better established.


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FLTropical wrote:Doesn't look like sooty mold to me. I see some definite necrosis of the leaf in spots - but I also see signs of normal aging. How big is the root mass? My neps with few roots tend to lose a leaf whenever they grow a new one, until they get better established.


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Should be pretty big. It was already quite extensive when I got it as the cutting listed above and I give it great white to encourage root growth.


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It really looks like sunburn to me. You can see the "shadow" where the leaf didn't burn because the stem blocked the light. The red and brown, anyway. The black spot looks like normal aging. Maybe a reaction to mechanical damage. Nothing to worry about.

The darkness on the tops of the leaves don't look like sooty mold, but the bit on the underside of the leaf does. If you scrape at it with your fingernail and nothing comes up then it's not a mold/fungus. It would either be aging or burning as others have said.

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Adelaide wrote:The darkness on the tops of the leaves don't look like sooty mold, but the bit on the underside of the leaf does. If you scrape at it with your fingernail and nothing comes up then it's not a mold/fungus. It would either be aging or burning as others have said.

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Tried, it's not. I also really do not think it's aging or burning, as that simply looks different. I could be wrong, but I'm almost positive.... in fact, I hope I'm wrong.


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Is it still alive now?
Looks like root rot to me..

Harow wrote:Is it still alive now?
Looks like root rot to me..

Yes, and it's not root rot.


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