[Kleftiwallah]

Good morning everyone,      I have a strange appearance to my brussel sprouts and PSB.  The initial leaves are in great shape but the later leaves look as though they have not formed correctly, the stalks are there but the leaves are not appearing but curled up along the length of the stalk giving the plant a curios appearance.

 Some leaves are scorched around the edges.   I think there is a plant called the resurrection plant that grows in the desert.  Could this give you some help?  Over to you knowledgeable people.  I haven't managed to work out sending snaps on our new computer prorgam (Windows 10).    Cheers,   Tony.

[JayG]

Can't help you with your question Klefti (the only brassicas I do are radishes!)

I'm sure a picture would help those who do have the appropriate experience - the guide to posting pictures is HERE, but basically if you could post them using Windows 7 or 8 you should be able to do the same with Windows 10 (File Explorer is still there to help you find your pics...)

[jezza]

Hello from your description of the leaves  it's a deficiency  the nearest I can find to the problem in my Pest  Disease and disorders book is Leaf blades narrowing, leaves appearing whip-like ,Molybdenum defficency usually  only found in Broccoli and cauliflower    increase pH treatment by lime application or on water affected plant beds  use ammonium or sodium molybdate at rate of 2.5g/ 0.5l/square metre  jezza

[Kleftiwallah]

It sounds as though you've hit the nail directly on the head Jezza, I shall research following your suggestion.

No aminopyralid in the compost at all.

Cheers,  Tony.

[Kleftiwallah]

By the wonders of modern technology...I'll be surprised if this has worked! 

Well wadya know !

 Cheers,   Tony.

[grinling]

Add lime but it might not work, please let us know if you get brussel sprouts

[AnneB]

I don't know what a molybdenum deficiency looks like, but that looks like aminopyralid damage to me.

Are any of your other plants affected?   

I had a few tomatoes affected last year, using a widely available commercial compost.  Plants grew ok for a short time then turned feathery.

[Yorkie]

I do not think it is aminopyralid damage.  This affects tomatoes, potatoes and beans, and is not known to affect brassicas.

https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?PID=477

[Kleftiwallah]

Good evening everyone,   
I've applied garden lime to the recommended ratio but researching the problem makes me think I may be too late for the lime to take effect this year.

I 'had' (past tense) a row of swede that never looked happy, hoiked them out and popped in some pointed cabbage, fingers crossed!

Cheers,  Tony.

[JoshP]

Could it be swede midge having nipped out the eye of the plant?

[Kleftiwallah]

Swede midge? The same symptoms are on my PSB as well!  I shall research that one.  Many thanks.

Cheers,   Tony.

[Kleftiwallah]

Hello again peoples,
That's it...I'm going to dig up (or pull up) our ailing brussel sprouts and PSB and plant spuds for Christmas.  Can I send the affected B.S.s and P.S.B.s to the composter?

The varieties I've gone for are Charlotte, Maris Peer and Nicola.I've ordered them through Seed Potatoes Direct.  Going only by their website...fingers crossed.

Cheers,  Tony.

[Aunt Sally]

This might help:

https://www.allotment-garden.org/vegetable/brussels-sprouts-growing/

[Subversive_plot]

It sure looks like aminopyralid damage, but since those herbicides were banned in 2009, I would wonder where that would have come from.

I'm just wondering if you received mulch or compost from some place where those substances could have been used?  Composted or spoiled hay perhaps?

I would keep those plants out of the composter.


If the problem is molybdenum deficiency, increasing the pH with lime should increase the Mo availability to plants.  There is a fine line between adequate Mo and potential Mo toxicity through consumed crops (by career, I am a scientist that has studied Mo in crops, and plant availability).  I would not attempt to add Mo to a garden plot without a soil test that specifically looks at available Mo test levels, adequacy for plant nutrition, and specific supplementation requirements based on the soil test.

[Outdoorsy]

Aminopyralid weed killer was banned in 2009 but then that rule was overturned and it was allowed back on the market a few years after. Several people have reoported to Charles Dowding that they have found Aminopyralid in their shop bought compost this year - if you google the above you will find what brand(s). It has been found also in horse manure as the horses ate hay / straw that had come from fields treated with the weed killer containing Aminopyralid- it doesn’t break down at all and passes through into the horse manure and composting doesn’t break it down and so goes on to cause serious damage to plants- severe leaf curl is a common symptom and the plant doesn’t grow correctly