#1 is a nutrient deficiency, possibly calcium. If it is improving, don't worry about it. Leaves damaged by a deficiency may never fully recover their all-over green look, but this is a cosmetic issue once the deficiency is corrected.

#2 is mechanical damage. Either the leaf was scraped along something as the plant was moved around, or else something came along and whacked it. It does not look concerning.

The first one is manganese deficiency, easily fixed with a foliar spray containing Mn. Agreed on the second one -- mechanical damage.

Hi Malcolm, I was wondering how you knew it is a Mn deficiency?

I have never had this problem with mine using FP which has the nutirients in it..He is practically using the same routine as me, only I use vinegar a bit more often and less Fp during my waterings. The only time I seem to get yellowing like this is when temps flucutate too much, especially when it get's to hot or too cold..

Is it a lack of the nutrient in the "fertilizer", or maybe some other cause that is making the tree avoid taking up Mn? he did say it is getting better..

Thanks for helping me understand in advance in case I run into this problem other than temp related cause..:-)

Mike

Mike -- this is a classic set of Mn deficiency symptoms: chlorosis on the youngest leaves, specifically with the veins and the areas bordering the veins greener than the areas farther away from the veins. The only other thing that could make a similar symptom would be zinc deficiencey, but in that case, the leaves would be noticeably dwarfed (less than 1/2 normal size) and often with whitish, rather than yellow, areas of chlorosis.

At least in our Florida soils, Mn deficiency is more likely due to a too-high soil pH than to an actual lack of Mn in the soil, and once it occurs, it's difficult to fix with just soil applications (although future growth flushes may be normal with soil applications, if the pH is also adjusted).
Malcolm

I should also have said that if it were Calcium, the pattern would not look just like this -- more of the margin (edge) of the leaf would be affected, the leaves would be dwarfed, and they would likely have some dead spots on them.

Dr. Malcolm,

It is awsome to know that we have someone here that has authority on knowledge of citrus trees like this, and I really appreciate you taking the time to explain to me and all you post..

I learned something new again..:-)

Mike

That's really awesome info. I learned something new!

Hmmmm,
Hello all. Been super busy here and messed up my back so sitting at a comp is not a good thing. But I saw this thread and I too have a Lime that has some leaves on the newer branches that match ottomike's. Should we add some epsom salt for the mag diff? I just started the vinegar thing too.
hope all is well with all the other citrus geeks,
Dave

Mn is manganese, not magnesium. Magnesium would be too easy!

One of my own trees has started to show similar symptoms - it's one of the ones I was watering twice a day for a while so I suspect all the nutrients got flushed out of the soil. I thought it was calcium, which would be easily fixed with bone meal and/or eggshells, but it seems not.

I've found manganese sulfate at a chemical supply company for not much money but it seems to be a hazardous chemical so I'm not sure if I am going to buy it. Still thinking on that one.

Yes, for the non-chemists, the words "magnesium" and "manganese" are unfortunately close -- the two elements have nothing to do with each other, and epsom salts is magnesium sulfate. I'm not sure why MnSO4 would be considered hazardous, other than that most chemicals of any kind are officially "hazardous" these days. While I would not recommend swallowing great quantities of it, it's certainly not particularly dangerous. Epsom salts is more toxic, apparently.

You might consider just getting a blended "nutritional spray" that contains multiple micronutrients including Mn. That could supply the needed Mn without having to special-order the single-element salt.
Malcolm

The reason I was considering getting manganese sulfate from a chemical supply place was that it is far cheaper that way than if it comes mixed into a purpose-made fertilizer. It's like $4 for a pound. My math tells me that about 3-4 teaspoons per gallon of water is what I would want to use, so I think a pound would last me a good long time.

Also, I have been unable to find any kind of nutrient spray in non-commercial quantities. Maybe my google-fu needs work.

I am judging its hazardous nature by the MSDS I found here:

http://www.jtbaker.com/msds/englishhtml/m0793.htm

Maybe the warnings are overstating things, but it really seems like something I don't want to breathe.

Thanks for the help and suggestions everyone! Since it has been getting slowly better I won't worry to much about it it the near term. I may start looking for a spray that has some more Mn though just to help it along.

Ottomike:

That is what I figured you would do.That is what I would do too...
Like I have stated, I have not had nutritional difficulties using the FP, if all enviromental factors and cultural habits are appropiate for your trees..

I would assume that another situation has affected your Mn deficiency, and the fertilizer not to blame, since it is a very well balanced fertilizer with all the nutrients needed for optimum growth....:-)

Mike

Displacer. Try www.briteleaf.com She sells citrus nutricion sprays by the bottle. Toni

Thank you! I think I'm going to get the manganese sulfate, though. I called around Louisville this afternoon and was able to find a high-manganese nutrient liquid (guy on the phone said 2.5%) for $8 per 8 oz bottle. He said you dilute it 1-2 oz to the gallon, which would make it last about 4 weeks.

On the other hand, for $12, I can get 2 lbs of manganese sulfate (including shipping) which will last me probably the rest of my natural life. If I ever become a vampire I might run out sometime around the point when warp drive is invented.

We have a respirator in the garage in case I want to get paranoid about the hazards of the chemical, but this seems like a less expensive and more direct way to address the issue.

Glad I asked. I think I will just let it grow out of the problem and continue with the FP. Do you think a stronger dose on a one time water would add what it needs or just wait? It is still putting out a bit of new growth so it can't be too unhappy.
thanks,
Dave

If it's improving, and you're comfortable with the rate of improvement, I wouldn't worry and would just keep doing what you're doing now.

I will do the field test of the manganese spray, and I'll be sure to take before/after photos so we can all judge the effectiveness. There is one large branch on my Eureka lemon that I am thinking of just cutting off entirely for symmetry reasons, and that branch will be my test subject.