What Is Wrong With My Gypsophila?

Are the leaves, stems, and buds distorted and sticky?

Are the leaves stippled and the growth is poor?

Are the leaves greenish-yellow and the growth rate is poor?

Are the flowers covered with gray mold, leaves may be blotched or discolored?

Have the crowns or roots rotted?

Did the flowers turn black?

Distorted stems, buds, and leaves are caused by aphids. These tiny insects can vary in color, green, pink, black, gray to completely white. They cluster under leaves and on growing tips where they feed on plant sap. Leaves, stems, and buds get distorted and later leaves and flowers drop from the plant. You can control them by washing them off the plant with water spray. Insecticidal soap should be used with severe infestations.

Aster leafhoppers are greenish-yellow, tiny insects that feed on leaf undersides, giving the foliage a finely mottled look. Leaves yellow, shrivel and drop. Besides injury from feeding, leafhoppers transmit the disease Aster yellows. Use water or insecticidal soap sprays to dislodge nymphs. Encourage enemies such as big-eyed bugs and parasitic wasps. For control of severe infestations, spray plants with neem or pyrethrin.

Greenish yellow leaves followed by a poor growth is caused by Aster yellows disease. This disease is transferred by insects leafhoppers. There is no cure for Aster yellows, so the affected plants should be destroyed. Prevent the disease by controlling leafhoppers. Spray the plants with the insecticidal soap 3 times, once every 3 days.

Gray mold on flowers is probably caused by fungal disease - Botrytis blight. You can only prevent Botrytis blight disease by planting flowers in areas with good air circulation. Water plants sparsely. Infected plants should be removed. Spray weekly with a copper fungicide until the disease is under control.

Baby's breath can occasionally be infected by fungal and bacterial Crown or Root rot diseases. Crown injury and excess moisture during dormancy also increase the chances of infection. Choose well-drained sites. Add organic matter to improve soil drainage. Keep winter mulch away from crowns. Remove and discard infected plants and the surrounding soil.

If the flowers of your Baby's-breath had turned black, the cause is a fungal disease Alternaria Flower Blight. The disease occurs during humid, warm (75°-85°F) weather. Spray infected plants with copper and/or sulfur to prevent further disease development.

Some environmental issues or poor growing conditions may have caused your gypsophila unhealthy look. Plant Baby's-breaths in sites where they won't be disturbed or moved, their large fleshy roots do not transplant well. Given full sun, alkaline soil, and good drainage, plants thrive with little care. Remove spent flowers to prolong bloom. Protect plants with a winter mulch, but don’t cover crowns until after the ground is frozen to avoid rotting.