this post was submitted on 24 Jul 2025

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What's eating my alocasia? (infosec.pub)

submitted 1 week ago by philodendron90@lemmy.zip to c/houseplants@mander.xyz

5 comments fedilink hide all child comments

Looking for the wisdom of the more experienced. I have what I think is pest damage on my alocasia. I was suspicious of spidemites, but haven’t visualized any pests on the plant. I have been showering it and treating with insecticidal soap. The last leaf came out facing upwards and bowed, and it’s working on a new leaf now. It’s been next to another alocasia (that I’ve also been treating), but I’m not having issues with it. I also did accidentally let its water reservoir go dry. I don’t think that helped anything, but I don’t think it was the cause.

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[–] Guenther_Amanita@slrpnk.net 2 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

For me, it looks like a deficiency. What fertilizer and water do you use?

Also, how do you use the pon? AFAIK, pon needs to cycle between dry and wet, or else the roots might suffocate. Do you use a submerged, or a wick setup?

The roots should be buried, or else they might dry out and get damaged. Is that on purpose?

Do you flush and soak it regularly? It looks like there are some residues on top.
The nutrient solution is drawn up and then dries out on the surface, because the substrate is highly wicking.

I also made similar experiences and decided to not use pon anymore, because it just doesn't work for my type of (submerged) setup. I personally prefer LECA instead.

[–] philodendron90@lemmy.zip 2 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Thank you for your response! It could definitely be a fertilizer issue. I have been using AeroGarden by Miracle-Gro, with the plan to upgrade to General Hydroponics, when I felt more comfortable with semi-hydro. I felt really intimidated by having to determine the appropriate ratios for the General Hydroponics. My hoyas and philodendrons have been growing pretty well, but I know alocasias tend to be hungrier.

I use tap water that has been filtered through a ZeroWater pitcher for my nutrient solution, however, I have been flushing with plain water. That you see mineral buildup on the surface tells me I need to be flushing with filtered water : )

Also, I do not control for ph, and I’m wondering if that could be part of the problem. I actually went with the pon (mine is DYI, without slow release fertilizer) instead of lecca, because of the buffering effect of the zeolite, with the hopes of keeping the semi hydro routine as simple as possible. The plant is in a wicking setup. It had looked like the exposed roots had grown in like that, but it is possible some pon could have gotten displaced. I will top it off to cover them :)

Thanks in advance for any insights!

[–] Guenther_Amanita@slrpnk.net 1 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Your routine sounds like it already is ideal, great! :)

In my experience, flushing only often tends to remove residues not quite as well as it should be. Do you see those brown colourations on the pumice? Those are waste products of decayed roots.

Maybe you could soak the whole pot for a few hours in lukewarm water. The minerals and exudate are often inside the substrate too, at least I had it in pon.

Also, I now found the culprit of those spots:

Do you see the ingredient list? It's super short.
It lacks all micronutrients. This fertilizer is trash. It isn't "plant food", it's the equivalent of a slice of white toast.

Definitely get a proper fertilizer, like the one you mentioned from GH.
I personally like Masterblend, because I have a lot of plants and it's super cheap compared to pre-dissolved ones, while being pretty much the same.

Those "good" ones are usually two part systems. They include ALL plants need, including trace elements.

I made a post over at !hydroponics@slrpnk.net on how to make the mixing way easier, without having to measure volumes. Check it out to save some time ;)