Selecting plants for placement in the interiorscape as well as monitoring them for diseases and planning appropriate disease management strategies can be simplified if the key plants used in the interior are known and if the key pathogens on those plants can be identified.

Key plants are ones that frequently have diseases and should be monitored on a regular basis. In some locations, key plants should not be used if the amount of maintenance work required to assure the site looks well at all times must be minimized.

Key pathogens/diseases (in bold) are those that frequently occur on the plants. The other pathogens listed sometimes occur. If conditions at the planting site tend to favor the key diseases, the key plant should not be established there.

Aglaonema

• Colletotrichum
• Pythium
• Erwinia chrysanthemi
• Pseudomonas cichorii

Begonia

• Botrytis
• Powdery mildew
• Pythium
• Impatiens necrotic spot virus
• foliar nematode

Brassaia (Schefflera)

• Alternaria
• Cercospora
• Phytopthora
• virus

Chrysanthemum

• Aschochyta, Alternaria, or Stemphyllium
• Botrytis
• Powdery Mildew
• Pythium
• Erwinia chrysanthemi
• Psuedomonas chicorii

Cissus (Grape ivy)

• Downy Mildew
• Powdery Mildew

Cyclamen

• Fusarium wilt
• Impatiens necrotic spot virus

Dieffenbachia

• Phytophthora
• Erwinia chrysanthemi
• Xanthomonas dieffenbachiae
• Dasheen mosaic virus

Dracaena

• Colletotrichum
• Fusarium
• Phyllosticta

Epipremnum (Pothos)

• Colletotrichum
• Pythium
• Rhizoctonia

Ficus

• Cercospora
• Colletotrichum
• Phomopsis
• Glomerellla

Hedera (English ivy)

• Colletotrichum
• Xanthomonas hederae

Pepperomia

• Cercospora
• Phytopthora
• Pythium

Syngonium

• Cephalosporium
• Rhizoctronia
• Erwinia chrysanthemi
• Xanthomonas vitians

Philodendron

• Phytophthora
• Pythium
• Rhizoctonia
• Erwinia chrysanthemi
• Xanthomonas dieffenbachiae
• Pseudomonas cichorii
• Dasheen mosaic virus

Schlumbergera (Holiday cacti)

• Fusarium
• Pythium
• Impatiens necrotic spot virus

Saintpaulia (Aftican violet)

• Phytophthora
• Botrytis
• Powdery Mildew
• Rhizoctonia
• Erwinia chrysanthemi
• foliar nematode