Blackening medium

[nepguy]

Does anybody know what is effective on the stuff that blackens the medium in CP pots and looks like mildew? Does anyone know exactly what that is? Some came in with a plant I got from someone, and now I have it on the medium in several pots that are out in the open. I've never had this problem before, and I need some advice. The odd thing is that there doesn't seem to be a problem in any of the tanks, which are a lot more humid. I need something that would be safe for nepenthes and drosera.

 

[DavyJones]

I have not had to battle any black fungus, but, when battling gray fungus on the surface of the media, I have found that dabbing with a q-tip that is dipped in rubbing alcohol works very well. You do need to re-apply whenever the fungus returns, but it does an excellent job of cleaning up!

 

[nepguy]

Thanks for the reply, and thanks for the tip. I actually still have some old Benomyl that I use for anything gray or fuzzy and it works really well for that, but I don't know if it will be effective for this.

 

[nepguy]

This is an update. I saw online that some people spray a diluted solution of white vinegar on the surface of the medium to get rid of mold in their potted plants. I tried it, and it seemed to have an effect right away. I will post an update as things progress.

 

[SDCPs]

Good, I want to hear about it. All of a sudden, my propagation chamber is under attack!

 

[nepguy]

Good, I want to hear about it. All of a sudden, my propagation chamber is under attack!

I'm sorry to hear that. I hope you can get it under control. This morning I had to flush all the pots I sprayed with diluted vinegar. My advice about the vinegar is: TRY SOMETHING ELSE!

I left it overnight, and it didn't seem to affect the nepenthes at all, but the drosera were injured from over-spray. After seeing that, I think it's a little too dangerous to do this with neps, and it may acidify the medium too much. I may flush the pots again in a couple of days.