Brighamia insignis 'Kirsten'

[sroberts]

Does anybody have any experience with this plant?

It doesn't seem from what I've read that this plant goes dormant at any time in the year. Mine is loosing its leaves and although there are some decent leaves on this it should look lush.

There are no pests on this that I can see and it's not rotting. I don't believe I'm over or under watering it, about once a week.

It's getting 6-8 hours of light under shade cloth per day and the weather has been cooler here in the central valley in California, 90's and even the 80's.

I know this plant is a cultivar and that it is originally from Hawaii...

Any suggestions...

Steve

[Tim Harvey]

Spider mites love them, so that may be the problem. Many suggest increasing local humidity by spraying. I prefer applications of miticides, but when problems are noticed it is usually too late. Usually the damage is limited to leaves and the damage is cosmetic.

Never heard of a Brighamia cultivar; I wonder how it differs from the species?

T

[sroberts]

Hi, Tim

Well I put on my reading glasses and used a good magnifying glass and I can just barely see red specs. Some on the top of the leaves but most on the bottom and specifically where the leaves meet the branches.

The only mite problem I've had before was the dreaded Aloe mite (Had to throw away a few plants).

The cultivar 'Kristen' was produced and patented in the Netherlands in the mid 90's. This cultivar is much smaller at only about 15-18" tall as apposed to the standard plant that grows to 6 feet or taller.

There are only about 50 or so plants left in the wild, all in Hawaii, and have to be hand pollinated as the moth that used to pollinate them went extinct.

Anybody know of a good miticide that can be purchased here in California?

[agavegreg]

I am currently trying out an organic Stylet Oil which is supposed to smother the insects and mites.

[Boo Hollow]

The Bayer Complete Insect killer sold at Lowe's and Home Depot that contains Imidacloprid and Betaryfluthrin would be a good selection. Go online and double check to see if your plant is listed as those that it may cause some phytotoxicity (probably not listed) or check the Bayer Admire Pro website data that has more phyto information.

I would have said mites the minute I saw your leaves, but you have already seen the culprit. Good luck and be aggressive with treatment.

[Walker]

I tend to use neem on plants prone to spider mite infestation. But it's more of a preventative measure.

When the mites present themselves, I try to spray off as many as possible with a directed stream of water from the hose, and then apply a more concentrated Azadirachtin-based pesticide like Azamax and Azatrol. I find them more effective (but also more expensive) than simple neem oil.

Last year I had spider mites show up on some tomatoes right before harvest, and because I was reluctant to spray anything - even neem oil - I released predatory mites with surprising success.

Here's a link for the ones I used:
Phytoline p

Good luck!

[Craig Ruaux]

I have used the Bayer Complete product on a B. insignis many times with no problems. These plants are real spider mite magnets!

For me, though, the biggest change has come from moving the plant into a greenhouse that has automatic horizontal airflow fans than run dawn to dusk. Before going into this environment I was having to deal with spider mites on the Brighamia at least weekly during the summer, I have not needed to treat since the move into the GH. So, for me at least, constant ventilation seems to be key to long term management. Which makes some sort of sense when you think about the coastal, mid-oceanic island, cliff-face environment from which these plants derive.