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View Full Version : How to treat root and corm rot? (GM)


bananza
03-11-2019, 08:30 PM
Hello, I have a Gros Michel with mild corm rot and worse root rot. I just took the corm out today. I think it stopped short of seriously affecting the corm after I stopped watering.

1
Back in October 2018 I took it from my patio, where it was doing well in 5-3 celsius degree conditions and put it inside under a lamp. I then watered it till it puddled up in the planter tray. Right after the leaves began to wilt and die, then stem. I ended up cutting down the whole plant down, the brown moist stem etc. A combination of temperature change and the overwatering caused this. Your thoughts?

I then took the planter with corm still planted in it outside to drain it with water, to let the water drain out of the drain holes to get rid of any build up of harmful bacteria, viruses etc. SInce then, no watering.

2
Its now March and I decided to dig out the corm (because the soil was never going to dry out). The roots were all rotten, you could slide the outer black skin off the inner woody root. I cleaned the corm in water and took a knife to shave and drill out black spots on the corm. Not a lot of mush if any, maybe one small spot that didnt burrow deep. Mainly brown pulp rot on surface. The corm after this cleaning is for the most part "crisp" as a bulb/corm should be.

Ive wrapped the corm in a hump of paper towels. What do you recoemmend next? Also, any recommendations on treatment? I was thinking of putting calcium chalk over the bulb to dry out any remaining rot, or apply honey on it which is a natural anti-fungal. Ive even considered putting Oregano oil tincture on the corm (contains olive oil and oregano essential oil). Oregano oil is an anti-viral.


Will post photo's in a few hours from now.

beam2050
03-12-2019, 08:27 AM
keeping it way to wet.

take it out of the paper towels and let it dry for 3,4 days. then dig up the top of your wet pot [maybe the top 3rd depending how big the corm is, no part of the corm touching wet soil]. mix some dry potting soil with perlite half and half, fill the top 3rd with the dry leaving the bottom 2/3rds wet setting the corm in the dry soil leaving the top exposed. then don't water again and see if it comes back.

bananza
03-13-2019, 12:41 AM
THe corm is only about two years old a little less the size of a baseball. Just uploaded three images but not showing yet.

So just to verify, keep corm dry with no coontact with moist soil? Itss been in paper towel and completely dry right now, paper towel dry too.

beam2050
03-13-2019, 11:31 AM
thot you was keeping the paper towels wet.

sometimes just throwing the corm on top of the pot they will start to come back that way. just ask member who throw away some of their corms. plants with leaves like water, corms do not.

potting soil against the corm damp not moist not completely dry but nearly dry. the wet soil below the corm will do the rest.

got 2 pots with corms that were having trouble over the winter, one was rotted half way down. I did this setting the top of the corm level with the potting soil. both came back in a week.