Neo- brown spots on leaves

[stacey8989]

Just wanted to get your opinions on what's wrong with this neo. I've already contacted the grower and she advised to isolate the plant, but not to toss it just yet. She is also sending me a replacement.

[Halloamey]

It looks like it is overpotted in slow drying sphagnum and hence it may have lost its roots due to too much moisture.

[smwboxer]

I agree. Over potted and kept to wet.

[stacey8989]

The sphag actually completely dries out in 3-4 days. If i were to re-pot, what is the recommended medium? I've only seen Neos in sphag....

[Halloamey]

The problem is not with the sphag, but with the pot size. There is not enough air reaching the roots. You might want to consider repotting it with fresh sterile sphag in a very small container. The sphag should dry in about 6 hours. You should water every morning so that the plant dries out by the afternoon. You might also want to spray it with a fungicide.

[Brutal_Dreamer]

Yes, spray with a fungicide and repot. Check out Ron's article on repotting a neo. Very helpful.

Cheers,
BD

[stacey8989]

If I can find a smaller pot I will repot. Thanks for the great advice!
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[sadie]

If you can't find a smaller pot, just put a packing peanut (the styrofoam kind) up under the plant -- put it in the hole left by the bottle top in Ron's demo. That will allow you to use the same pot--which is pretty small, but also accomplish the objective of more air movement and less sphag.

[stacey8989]

Perfect Sadie! I was wondering where I was going to find a smaller pot + I still have the packing peanuts that came with the shipment. Now all I need is time. Hopefully the plant will survive til the weekend. I pulled out some of the moss to give the roots more air and one of the leaves fell off. We'll see what happens.

[stacey8989]

Ok, I stuffed 2 styro peanuts in the bottom of the pot, broke one in 1/2 to sit directly under the plant (these guys are tiny). I threw out about half of the moss...let's hope these guys make it!