Kathy,
At 09:45 AM 1/18/2004 -0800, you wrote:
>Is virus a problem with the pass along crinum or even purchased crinum? I
>bought some mixed crinum bulbs which have yet to flower but they show
>light green streaks very similar to the pictures of virus posted last year
>on this board. Otherwise they appear very healthy. I have never grown
>crinum before and don't know if this is a natural characteristic or virus
>induced but I am assuming the worst.
And how! I've had to discard numerous rare crinums because they turned out
to be infected with a plant virus when received. You very probably have
"virused" (virus infected) crinums on your hands.
>Can virus pass to other types of bulbs? I have no other crinums and few
>closely related bulbs. I would at least like to see these flower before I
>toss them. I have found so little on plant virus on the internet.
Yes indeed. As susceptible to plant viruses as crinums are the plants in
the genus Hippeastrum ("amaryllis"). Viruses can be transmitted by
insects, such as mealy bugs, leaf hoppers, and aphids. They can also be
transmitted by unsterilized garden tools such as clippers, and by the dirty
fingers of the gardeners themselves. Tobacco smoke is said to be able to
transmit TMV (tobacco mosaic virus) to susceptible plants.
The only solution is to immediately discard (into a land fill or
incinerator, not into your compost pile!) any plant suspected of carrying a
virus infection. There are no cures, except maybe in a university plant
physiology lab.
Jim Shields
*************************************************
Jim Shields USDA Zone 5 Shields Gardens, Ltd.
P.O. Box 92 WWW: http://www.shieldsgardens.com/
Westfield, Indiana 46074, USA
Tel. ++1-317-867-3344 or toll-free 1-866-449-3344 in USA
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