FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

I found this on my Nepenthes to day and have no clue what it is. Could it be some sort of mold and if so how do I get rid of it.


[url=https://flic.kr/p/QhWHU6]

It looks like a fungus/mold. You also have black tips on your moss. Both can be signs of high minirals. Fungus can also mean you need more air flow. You might want to get a TDS reading, increase air flow and let the surface slightly dry between waterings.

I only use rain water. I might be watering to much. How do I get rid of it

I would do all three things I mentioned in the last sentence. You can use a CP safe fungicide but you need to fix what is causing the problem.

Are you using roof-runoff rain water by chance? The white looks like some sort of chalky deposit - I agree with smooter on the minerals concern.

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I'm concerned on minerals. I would do a media change and rinse nep roots.

It is roof run off water. I bottom water all my plants so it can't be a deposit. How hard is it to repot ?

It can still be a deposit because the water and minerals will work up to the surface. I would stop using roof-run off if I wear you or at least test it with a TDS meter. Someone else on the forum used a meter to test their roof run off and it was significantly higher than tap. This is because there's all kinds of gunk on roofs, if you think about roof shingles, they are pretty much slabs of minerals.

"Shingles are made of various materials such as wood, slate, flagstone, fibre cement, metal, plastic, and composite material such as asphalt shingles."

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I don't know where to get my water tested I'll have to look in to it

You can buy a TDS meter on EBay for about $6 shipped. IMO is essential to have one. Even with 0 TDS water, media breaks down and can raise the TDS to lethal levels over time. Keeping media constantly soaked will speed up the process. You should occasionally top water to help flush the media. I only top water but that's just one way to do it.

I'm looking up a potting mix but they all have stuff in the mix I don't have

I am collecting water from the roof, but I have noticed a couple of things. If I collect it from the beginning, when it starts to rain, TDS is quite high. Not nearly as high as tap water (~250), but high enoug to cause issues, especially after using it some for time. The rain itself has some dissolved salts after a longer dry period. It's best for the first rain to wash down the roof and clean the atmosphere above, then after the rain is falling for some time, you can collect as much water as you can, it is usually low on TDS.

I also have a plastic roof from which I can collect water with a bit less solids. It does have a lot of organic matter that is building up (not steep enough) and adds a bit, but not much, because it usually dry fast and gets washed out regularly. Same thing happens with that water, first rain water has higher TDS, mainly due to rain's higher salt content and dirt that collects on the roof. After 6 hours of rain, TDS falls down to ~6. At that point it is just slightly higher than rain I collect in a clean, empty bucket (~4).

So what's the best way to repot this guy. I have a 50/50 mix of peat and perlite and some sand. Will this work?

What species is it? Peat and perlite is probably fine, but I use sphagnum moss for everything but my Lady Luck (peat and perlite).

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Adelaide wrote:What species is it? Peat and perlite is probably fine, but I use sphagnum moss for everything but my Lady Luck (peat and perlite).

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Not a 100% sure but best guess is ventrata