Calamondin leaves turning silvery - sunburn? disease?
michael_ames
9 years ago
I moved my calamondin tree outdoors (south-facing patio, lots of sun) a few weeks ago after having over-wintered it with grow-lights inside. I'm in the PNW - night temps have been no lower than 40F, day temps in the 60s and 70s. Repotted about three weeks ago into 5-1-1 mix.
I discovered yesterday that some of the leaves were dropping, or only weakly attached to the tree, many of which had a slight grey or silver tinge to them. It doesn't seem like the tinge wipes off (it's not filmy). Anyone encountered this before? I wondered if it might be sunburn, but it's a recent development (and the tree's been in full outdoor sun for a while).
Photos aren't great but I think you can see at the margins what I'm talking about. Any help diagnosing or combating this would be much appreciated.
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Comments (15)
Danny Reyna
9 years agoRelated Discussions
Leaves turning white
Comments (16)It looks more like sunburn to me. Wait and see if your plant sends up new leaves that are used to the full sun, now that they have been transplanted. Usually nutrient deficiencies show up in a more pronounced way much farther from transplant than just one week. White leaves means either sunburn in young plants, or a severe nutrient deficiency in older plants. White leaves could also be the result of disease, but that's unlikely for such young plants. Unless you are growing in SEVERELY depleted soils, nutrient deficiency really can't be an issue for a young plant which requires relatively few nutrients. Nutrient deficiencies show up closer to when the plant is middle aged, producing seed without enough nutrients to complete the job....See MoreSunburn/stress or Disease?
Comments (2)Sunscald is what you have: Large leaved rhododendrons are susceptible to sunscald if the plants do not receive enough moisture before the soil freezes. The leaves curl in cold winter weather, exposing the central part of the leaf but not the edges, resulting in the area near the main vein becomes desiccated and turns brown. To prevent this, water plants thoroughly before the first hard frost, protect from drying winds, apply mulch, and locate in partial shade. Windburn: Wind and cold damage is indicated when the edges of the leaves become distorted and turn brown. This occurs frequently in plants that may be in a colder climate than recommended or in a location with severe exposure. Provide protection from winter winds and winter sun. Note, boron poisoning or fertilizer burn will create the same symptoms except uniformly over the plant rather than just on areas exposed to the sun and wind. Here is a link that might be useful: Rhododendron Problems and Solutions...See MoreRhododendron Leaves turning white
Comments (6)Not leafminers. Not a disease. But ran short of water last year, then the leaf tips dried back. The rest of the story is as I explained for sunburn, above. Over the winter, the breakdown of those dead cells continues. A white layer, which flakes off later on, develops. Both photos show just that. Especially the 2nd one, where the dead cells have fallen out. Oh yes, thanks for the pictures. Because of them, you have an accurate diagnosis rather than several guesses....See MoreCan citrus leaves be sunburned? Seems odd to me...
Comments (13)Goodmorning everybody! Actually Jean is most likely on target since most of the time she is. I tend to side with her on this. That very same thing happend to mine a few years back when I put a couple of mine on my hot flat roof, especially after a cool period. Within one day the leaves turned like that. As for over fertilization? The damage to the plant would always start on the leaf tip and then onto the margins. They would either turn brown or yellow and recede back further. Also you can get sudden light green compacted growth in the full sun which then declines rapidly. I would of actually thought it was fertilizer spray damage, but you don't fertilize this way. You can grow a plant in pure sand, if you fertilize almost everyday, so I am going to guess if anything, that plant is not fertilized often enough even with the slow release osmocote in the mix. If the weather gets too hot, it doesn't work, and if it gets too cold, it does nothing for your trees which is exactly what you described. Your fertilizing regimend is very good as long as the temps cooperate. You may still have root issues going on with that one if root damage was a problem as recently as the last few weeks. It can take a long time for recovery. Ps. Nothing wrong with spraying your plants down as often as you want with water any time of the day and in fact it is much welcomed for everyone one of mine:-) For some reason I just don't make it a practice to spray mine after dark. Mike...See More
hoosierquilt USDA 10A Sunset 23 Vista CA
9 years ago
BarbJP 15-16/9B CA Bay Area
9 years agolast modified: 9 years agoYep, I concur. Spider mites. Sun scald in my experience, looks more like tan to brown patches here and there on the leaves, like the leaves are desiccated in spots. Everyone needs to get a magnifying loop to check for critters smaller than the eye can see. You can get them at many popular internet shopping sites for $10 or less. Don't leave home without it! ;)
ianna
9 years agoBarbJP 15-16/9B CA Bay Area
9 years agohoosierquilt USDA 10A Sunset 23 Vista CA
9 years ago
hoosierquilt USDA 10A Sunset 23 Vista CA
9 years agoThanks, Josh. Here are more examples of sunscald.
Patty S.
michael_ames
9 years ago
tom1328732
9 years agogreenman28 NorCal 7b/8a
9 years ago
Andy Mathey
3 years agoSilica
3 years agoAndy Mathey
3 years ago
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ianna