Scale on Jade.

UrbanGardenDiva · Sun Mar 24, 2013 9:21 pm

Hello again helpful gardeners! I am back with another dilemma of sorts. I have recently rescued two of my grandmothers 35 year old Jades. They are beautiful plants (huge!) the only problem is...they have scale in parts. Since none of my plants have even gotten scale so I don't know what I can do? They are currently separated from all my other plants in a different room. Will this infect my other plants? Can I cure these jades, or should I just chop them? Also, if I have to chop them, how should I dispose of the plants? Thank you all

RosemarieRo · Mon Mar 25, 2013 3:56 pm

If it is scale (pix would be helpful to be sure that's what it is), you can spray with a 50/50 mixture of rubbing alcohol & water. You can scrape off any you can get to, with toothpicks, cotton swabs, fingernail file or whatever. Keep checking & spraying as needed over next week or so. Yes, they can infect nearby plants. Good to quarantine till you have the prob under control. If it's a lost cause, you can dispose of them (yard waste or compost heap-whatever you have). I would only chop & toss as a last resort. But you have to decide what is worth doing.

UrbanGardenDiva · Mon Mar 25, 2013 8:23 pm

Thanks for the response! I am 100% sure it is scale so I will try your suggestions. The only problem I might face is getting it out of all the crack and new growth. It has gotten pretty bad around the "trunk." I will keep them in the garage for the winter and put them on the porch away from plants in the summer if need be, I really don't want to chop them since it was my grandmother's plant and all.