Vine weevil is probably the most serious of the pests, where the grub eats all the roots, killing the plant. There are insecticides available, however whilst the modern systemic insecticides will help, none are guaranteed to eradicate problems. Like all plants, Auriculas are liable to attack from pests and diseases, the best way of preventing this is by constant vigilance to spot and treat the problem early. This balancing of compost moisture content is most important - not too dry but more important not too wet! Water well and store in the shade to recover, ensuring they do not dry out. Using only freshly mixed compost and clean pots, re-pot ensuring no air pockets are left around the roots. Shorten the carrot back to clean flesh, this also stimulates fresh roots higher up the carrot. Inspect the carrot and roots for decay and pests (root aphis and vine weevil being the worst). Using this old compost on your garden could spread disease. Take the plant from its pot, remove all the compost and dispose of. This is best done immediately after flowering (unless you are growing for seed) or late July/early August. Re-potting provides an opportunity to remove off-sets to propagate further plants check for pests and diseases and replace the compost and nutrients. Some soak the pots in bleach or a weak Jeyes Fluid solution to kill any pests, then wash them in soapy water. Prior to re-potting, ensure that the pots to be used have been cleaned. It is recommended to provide a spring feed as growth re-starts, a quarter strength tomato feed or liquid seaweed applied twice during March may encourage the required flower production. Overfeeding will produce flowers out of character for show standards. Try judging the weight of the pot by lifting it, after a little practice it will give you a good indication.įeeding is another issue where less is best. It can be difficult to determine how much moisture is in the compost. The amount of water needed varies throughout the year, see Over-watering is the easiest way to kill Auriculas. Use only the best ingredients, it's not worth using cheaper composts or re-using last years. Whilst there are as many compost mixes as growers, initially you won't go far wrong with a basic mix of equal parts peat (or similar) based compost John Innes No. For these reasons novices are advised to start with plastic until they have gained experience inĬomposts for Auriculas must be free draining to avoid roots sitting in wet heavy compost, which can cause rot and decay.
Plastic and terracotta pots are both suitable plastic are easier to clean and do not dry out as quickly.
A 9cm (3½") pot is normally the maximum size used for shows. Auriculas should be grown in as small a pot as possible to keep their roots restricted.
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