3 potential problems in Caladium cultivation and how to overcome them
Caladiums sport some potential problems to gardeners. Some of them are soil-related while a few others are weather and pests related. Whatever be the problems, caladiums can be grown successfully if adhered to a proper planting, watering and storing process (during winter). A few of the potential, cankerous problems in caladium cultivation are:
1. Tuber Rotting: Caladium tubers rot if they are not kept in proper soil or weather conditions. They may decay during storage or during the growing season, after plantation. Several micro organisms cause this tuber rotting. While bacteria cause a soft, slimy rotting of tubers, fungi cause dry and chalky rotting of the same. Reducing tuber rots can be difficult, but such a situation can be prevented in advance – during the choice of tubers. Choose tubers that are large, disease-free and perfect in health. Do not choose anything that looks deficient and lacking. Store tubers properly to avoid high humidity and cool temperatures. If you bought your tubers in early spring, plant them indoors, in room temperatures before you reach the ideal climate for planting them outdoors.
2. Spots in leaves: Leaves are the assets of any caladium. Caladiums are grown primarily for their rich foliage and the vibrant hues they lend to shade gardens or indoors. If you are not careful, your caladium’s leaves can develop spots and look frail and worn out. A fungus named anthracnose can cause lower leaves to develop light tan to brown spots. These brown spots can develop all over the plant’s leaves and make them look ugly and unkempt. Since this leaf spotting is not a severe disease in caladiums, there are no chemical repellents for it. All you can do is detect early and pluck the affected leaves from the plant. Better if you check the plant thoroughly every once in a while for such diseases.
3. Leaf Burning: This occurs when your caladium is exposed to direct sunlight. Earlier varieties of caladiums were completely sun intolerant. But the new cultivars are different. They have resistance to sun at least for a maximum of two hours. However, the more under sunlight, the more the caladium grows into a plant with large green leaves. Only humidity, shade and partial sunlight can give a caladium the kind of colors for which it is loved. Other than these, there can be burning of older leaf margins and scorching of leaves. This maybe due to foliar application of fertilizers, lack of water or too much dryness. If your caladium has thin leaves it can be highly prone to such problems due to lack of phosphorous or potassium. Older leaves can suffer due to lack of water.
