>From: "Rodger Whitlock" <totototo@telus.net> > >Hans-Werner Hammen <haweha@hotmail.com> mentions the bulb >scale mite Steneotarsonemus laticeps. Remember that the concept >of spontaneous generation was disproved centuries ago. Hi Roger; it sounded really unbelievable to me and I first confirmed the term to be indeed identical with the German "Urzeugung" meaning that little critters are dirt-born. Well I appreciate (in this very case) that my message gaves space to you for such a wild speculation - where, did you say, was my message keeping this information? Nevertheless, the facts relativate, what could at first sight be regarded as joke: I experienced practically the entire bulb material I purchased from the Nederland's sources to be infected with the tarsonemid mite. This animal is able to spread very easily in an amaryllogene plant collection. It has to be regarded in its spreading behaviour - close - or better apparently related - to microorganisms. I read that sciarid flies can transport several mites. To say nothing of a possible transportation by a windstream - a ventilator wind stream, for example. I assume that many infection occur by contaminated soil and contaminated hands. I lost an entire hippeastrum collection when I was 19 y old- due to the fact that I did NOT know about these things I have *ggg* the honor to generously inform you of. I am in fulll concordance with Veronica Read (Hippeastrum - The Gardener's Amaryllis) about the significance and the relevant properties of the tarsonemid mite. Lucky those people who never have faced any problems with this disastrous animal. On the GardenWebBulbForum there where many cases of postulated "red blotch" but all image material provided so far revealed clearly that the mite was the deeper reason for plant disease observed. I do not know why some collections are not bothered by mites. Although I do not believe that these are fully uncontaminated For my part, I always experience a high infection pressure, from mites which (want to) emerge from the substrate upwards into the bulb scales; and therefore I have to spray the substrate surface and the bulb surface thoroughly and regularly in order to avoid serious damage. And as essential message I repeat: It is an important difference; To worry about red blotch - or to worry about the tarsonemid mite. I have decided to worry about the latter, or better to concentrate my efforts on the fight against the true reason of the most important hippeastrum disease. Certainly I cannot afford to set the wrong priorities - as I have just begun to introduce H.papilio germplasm from my regenerated 4ploid hybrid obtained from H.papilio x "Donau" - into other, bigger blooming tetraploid hippeastrums, the first being "Susan" as mother plant - the first time that this wonderfull big pink did not refuse seed formation at all! Hans-Werner