Hi all, I have been growing around 200 seedlings for future grafting. Some of my seedlings have big chunks of their leaves missing. I wanted to know if the culprit is a creature or the way I have treated them. Perhaps excessive leaf scorch from watering during the day? The seedlings have been kept in a shady spot behind my greenhouse getting a few hours sun each day. Any ideas? Thanks
@C Love, good evening and welcome to the Maples forum, the blackened stems gives rise more to the roots rotting. But I think more is going on here, ie Slug damage. There is a small black slug in the UK that decimates young maple saplings. A moist shady area is an ideal environment for these creatures. I place crushed egg shells around my pots to stop this problem and check regularly especially in the early Spring. You might be able to save a few, but you need to check the compost as that is where they will be. Remove them as best you can, any one you leave will continue to attack your baby trees. A gritty compost mix is also a great help, if you decide to re pot.
Thanks for this. I feared it could be slugs. They were sitting in quite a damp shady area. I will move them away and check the compost.
