Sick Euphorbia

Posted January 10, 2011 9:12 am & filed under Questions.

This plant was left outside for some cold weather and only recently was brought back inside.

Hello Peter,

Thanks for spending so much time with me and my mother last week. She is surely an opinionated woman! As a world-renowned rosarian, she does know quite a bit about floriculture…just not everything. Anyway, thanks again for being so gracious with us.

We talked about the possibility that my Euphorbia may have a virus, having been kept outside. I took a picture of each side (it’s three sided) and then two close-up pictures of the discolorations. It looks like only one side is badly marked. What do you think? Still a virus? Should I toss it? The top part that is unaffected is only about 1-2 inches tall – is that enough to bother? It’s been inside since we talked.

Thanks for you opinion on this one.

~Karen

Karen,

The plant definitely has a virus or fungus. It may be savable, with aggressive treatment. You will need to isolate the plant, and try treating it for 3 months. If the wounds do not heal over by then you should dispose of it and the pot and the soil. (You can sterilize the pot if you prefer.) I recommend Neem spray on the plant and in the soil, every 10 days for 4 treatments.

Here’s a worse off plant that we advised on last year. And another one.

Peter