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Grittyville, WA

Good article in gpc newsletter. Cost of a consult with the author might be less. Put his products and info to the test...

8/20/2026 2:40:20 PM

Næstved

Hi Ian, My plant has ended up looking 100 % similar to Baloo's, with large parts of the canopy now absolutely ravaged - it look IDENTICAL to yours.

In my case I'm fairly convinced that spider mites and thrips have been responsible for the damage, they are EVERYWHERE.


Of course, that doesn't rule out Fusarium at al. There could easily be more than one problem going on at the same time.

But seeing how similar the plants look makes me wonder how much of the decline on Baloo might also be pest-related
rather than Fusarium alone ?

Have you confirmed Fusarium from a lab test, or is it mainly based on the symptoms ? And what about insect pests ?

8/21/2026 4:46:46 AM

Lymington UK

It’s the first time I’ve seen thrips this year and they are everywhere but the base of most if the leaves have gone with fusarium.
I have no red spider mite because I use friendly bugs.
Haas is booking me in to steam this autumn.
It’s relatively cheap and easy to add thrip control next year so with that in mind I’m itching to go again next year.
Thanks for your observation Ian

8/21/2026 8:46:48 AM

valtierra/spain

Ian, I've also had the problem with the base of the leaves, but the nodes are fine, until the base of the leaves doesn't contaminate them. I checked it a little with Signum, Ian did you put Signum this year?

8/21/2026 11:15:00 AM

Lymington UK

I haven’t put on any fungus sprays this year apart from two powdery mildews. The problem starts underneath the vine and works its way round to the leaves.
Typically fusarium sadly

8/22/2026 4:25:09 AM