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Posted 2M ago by @FunnyPuriri

Why is the bottom of the leaves sticky

#CathedralWindows I just bought this beautiful girl yesterday and I don’t know much about her but I noticed that on a few leaves underneath is beading with sticky sap like clear stuff
0ft to light, indirect
9” pot with drainage
Last watered 3 days ago
That means you might have pests
You need to get a sticky fly trap and watch closely for any semblance of flys. You also need to isolate your plant as to not spread any pests
Oh boy well good thing I quarantine all my new plants anyway οΏΌ
Anything else I should keep my eye out for?
@MockingJay , my caletheas seems to be doing this from time to time, too. πŸ€”

Do you maybe know why?

I don't have pests, and I see it most in my round leafed calatheas πŸ€”

Could it be an air flow issue?

The ones that have been hit the hardest here are my 3 dotties in the kitchen, by a window that is never opened πŸ€”
@Linx I am not completly sure why they do this. But I have figured some plants do it even if they have no pestsπŸ€·β€β™€οΈ
I think it is some form of regulation of the minerals the plant has in its system, and releases excess sugars or salts through the leaves. In some form of edema.

I have heard some plants actually do it to attract ants (when it is sugary), which again will help repel other harmful pests to the plant (but it sounds a little weird to me)πŸ€·β€β™€οΈ
I know my orchids and some roses release sugary sap when they get too dry. Although I have heard orchids might do it when it gets a little cooler too, so I guess it could have something to do with temperature or airflow/drafts as you say @Linx for the calatheas tooπŸ€”
That’s so interesting.πŸ€” I’ve been keeping a close eye on her and there is no sign of pests and the roots looked just fine but she was very thirsty when I got her and the travel was colder than what she was used to
She is still releasing a lot of sticky sap like spots
@MockingJay olive trees donthis as well. Just an FYI for an olive tree parents out there. Sap is normal to these in nature but not so much for us