Seedling problems - disease?

[Stephanie3701]

Hello everybody,

I've grown seedlings and many of them have become discoloured. I wonder if it is a disease. I've attached a picture. Does anybody know what this is?
Much appreciated,
Stephanie

[applestar]

It looks like sucking insects -- maybe spider mites? Is there any webbing under the leaves? Does it seem dusty and when you rub with your fingers, are there black or red streaks on your fingers? Try holding a white paper underneath and tapping.

The plant itself looks spindly needing more light and air movement.

[Stephanie3701]

Hello,

I don't see any webbing. There isn't any black or red streaks on my fingers. The leaves feel quite thin and somewhat dry. I did see something crawling on the soil so maybe that could be the spider mite

Thanks,
Stephanie

[imafan26]

Tap the leaf over a sheet of white paper. If you see paprika on the paper that moves, then they are spider mites. There are other kinds of mites too, llike broad mites.

Other insects that cause rasping of the leaves would be thrips. Those you won't necessarily see without magnification

Both are common now especially in hot dry dusty weather.

Spider mites and thrips can be hosed off by shooting a jet of water under the leaves. You won't be able to get them all but you will get a lot of them.

Thrips are not hard to kill with insecticidal soap or horticultural oil. Oils cannot be used on very hot days or there will be a chance of burning but since your plant is in a container, you can use the oil and keep the container out of the hot sun for a day.

Mites are harder to get rid of. They are tiny spiders so they are not soft bodied. Oils will smother them. Use of pesticides is a two edged sword. It usually does not work very well on the mites, but does a good job of killing off the mites' predators.

Keeping plants as healthy as possible helps against any pest attack and attracting and preserving habitat for beneficial
insects. Plants need to be keep well watered as drought stress aggravates the provlem

[Stephanie3701]

Thanks so much for all the advice!