An unidentified virus destroyed my entire violet collection like a Biblical plague. Testing for INSV is expensive, so I cannot say for sure what sort of virus was responsible for this infection but I have determined that it was viral in nature.
The myriad of symptoms I'd been experiencing throughout the entirety of this year has resulted in the complete loss of my collection. I never noticed any pests either directly or indirectly, so I am under the impression that I unknowingly introduced an infected specimen into my collection which led to cross-contamination. Looking back on photos from this year has given me some insight into the progression and presentation of this infection over the months.
I initially assumed I was fertilizing too much, so I repotted and withheld fertilizer indefinitely. No improvement. I then thought maybe light exposure was too intense, so I installed a diffuser and decreased the length of exposure time. No improvement. I was also under the impression that the frequency of sporting in my collection was due to natural genetic instability, but I discovered that viruses are incurable and known to cause unpredictable and unstable mutations. Furthermore, the leaves I tried to propagate took forever to emerge and produced unusual, deformed, and stunted pups. This is ultimately what led me to this conclusion.
I've only ever purchased my violets from a local nursery that I last visited at the beginning of this year which is also when these issues began. A month ago, when I realized my collection was dying, I went back to source replacements and noticed a violet for sale with an obvious necrotic lesion. Make of that what you will.
Anyway, that's that. It is time to begin again.
by h0rrorhead
5 Comments
Oh, Hun! I’m so sorry! This IS the nightmare.
Sending you a hug and I hope your new collection is bringing you joy ASAP!💜
Depending on the symptoms ….. fusarium and several other diseases can wipe out entire collections in a short time. Knowing what it was can help because in the case of fusarium you need to allow for the pathogen to die off over about a years time and do extreme deep cleaning with bleach before adding new plants.
Oooohhh, so sorry your work and care got hit. 😔
So sorry!
Thrips are often the vector for INSV and other viruses. Hope all of your new violets are healthy and prosperous when you are ready to restart. Sorry this has attacked your collection. I use a Zevo bug light to catch flying insects. More effective than sticky traps alone.