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Curling fuschia leaves
Nicola37
Posts: 2
Can anyone help identify what is wrong with my fuschia? All the new shoots are distorted and curling as in the picture. I've inspected the plant all over and can't see any bug infestations! The veronica spicata next to also has developed distorted leaves and some of them look like they've been eaten, but again can't see any bugs!
0
Posts
Looks like it could be fuchsia gall mite, which are too small to see with the naked eye:
https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?PID=512
http://www.gardenfocused.co.uk/plants/fuchsia/pest-disease.php
Bad news if it is.
Oh dear. Do you know if this affects other plants as it looks as if a few other types of plants in the same bed are suffering the same fate? Thanks for your reply
Not that I know of Nicola. Aphids also cause distorted leaves though, so check your other plants for those. It's possible that they may now have been eaten by ladybirds or other predators, so you may not see many. The only other possibility I can think of which would affect most plants is soil contamination - have you put anything down recently, such as manure or compost? There is currently some about which is contaminated with a weedkiller called aminopyralid which you can read about here:
https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?pid=477
Interesting point by Bob the gardener about the manure. We almost gave up veg growing for a few years. Couldn't understand why our veg was so poor. We live in the back of beyond by the wash and always used the manure left for free collection at farm gates. I discovered the link to weedkiller and manure a couple of years ago and stopped using stable manure completely. The ground has taken a while to recover but this year everything looks promising. All the birds are back feeding on the produce again, along with the rabbits, pheasants, partridges and anything else who fancies a bite to eat, liberty hall here! Lovely to watch them though every thing from goldfinches to woodpeckers,even little muntjacs deer.