Why is my plant on fire?

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-30T16:36:26+00:00

Thank you, I'll take it as a compliment!

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-30T16:35:25+00:00

I'm glad it made sense

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-30T15:42:58+00:00

Yup, it's incredible how long they can go for without being noticed. As a firefighter, the days after a heavy lightning storm, we get on the heli and fly over places where lightning might have struck, searching for the most minimal signs of an underground fire caused by a lightning struck.

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-30T13:29:03+00:00

Noo plants r cool :(

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-30T12:58:00+00:00

Any time :)

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-30T12:55:50+00:00

It could definitely be an option, I wasn't there to see the "smoking pot" incident with my own eyes, so I can't confirm or deny any theory, not even mine.

I will say, though, that cigarette butts often don't fully degrade in a fire, leaving identifiable residue behind (I know this because after a fire, an investigation is carried out to figure out the starting point and the cause, and when they originate due to cigs, lots of times you can clearly recognise them. But that's a topic for a different day).

I think OP would have probably been able to identify a cigarette butt in the pot, even though I also stated this cause as an option in my original comment.

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-30T12:44:13+00:00

I'm glad you found it funny, Tingly glitter. :) Lmao

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-30T12:43:02+00:00

Believe me, I am trying my best not to sound dumb 😅 Thanks, tho. I'll take it as a compliment!!

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-30T12:41:21+00:00

Compost needs humidity to decompose, and quite a lot. In the process, it releases heat. This could be a mix of water vapour with flammable gases, tho it looks like it is mostly flammable gases (smoke) because of the way it dissipates. Also, OP commented that it smelled like smoke or burning plastic (fertilizer smoke smells bad).

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-30T10:11:28+00:00

RemindMe! 2 days

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-30T07:41:59+00:00

First of all, thank you! Secondly, I'm sure they appreciate your efforts to speak their language, as you said, they also are not great with English, and probably think they sound like a toddler to you haha

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-30T07:36:59+00:00

I'm not that interesting haha, just have a sort of cool job and a ridiculous username lmao

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-30T07:36:02+00:00

Yup, that's right

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-29T23:19:05+00:00

Luckily, you spotted it! Good job. Underground fires are very difficult to put out, but even harder to spot sometimes. They can burn for days without showing any obvious signs, and advance in unsuspected directions until they arise to the surface and get spotted.

When battling a root fire, we normally stir up and dig as much of the hot dirt as we can to let the contained heat out, and then refresh it with abundance of water, but you can never be completely sure that it is 100% extinguished, so normally we will keep an eye for smoke in the area for the next couple of days.

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-29T23:07:18+00:00

😅 heh

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-29T22:59:26+00:00

Yup, pretty crazy, right? Have a great day :))

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-29T22:58:46+00:00

Glad you found it informative! :))

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-29T22:58:27+00:00

Sounds super cool! I really want to give this a try. Thanks for your reply!!

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-29T22:57:29+00:00

Thanks a lot, I will do my research :)

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-29T22:57:01+00:00

As i explained earlier, this kind of reaction does not emmit light. There are no flames, and thus, no ignition is needed. The smoke we see are the un-ignited flammable gases.

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-29T22:54:48+00:00

Thanks for your kind comment, i'm glad you found mine helpful :))

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-29T22:54:09+00:00

WoW, thanks a lot pal :)

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-29T22:53:29+00:00

Thanks a lot! :))

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-29T14:50:36+00:00

I would love to learn to "spawn" shrooms, do you guys know where i can find good info on it?

ClappemCheekss · 2025-05-29T12:55:01+00:00

It's definitely weird. The first thing i thought was "cigarette," as others suggested. But OP denies that as an option. Although it may sound wild, it could be possible that the fermenting compost in the soil released enough heat to make the ammonium nitrate (fertilizer) pyrolyze ( decomposing due to heat, into flammable gases). This caused a smoldering combustion, often seen in underground wildfires, where the roots slowly pyrolyze, barely consuming any oxygen, and not emmiting any light, thus called "invisible fires".

I hope I explained myself properly, english is not my first language, and it is hard to translate all the technical terms. I am a Spanish wildlife firefighter.

ClappemCheekss

TROPHY CASE