Need Help Identifying Brown Leaf Spots on Young Fruit Trees

7 years ago

My wife and I planted an orchard of 18 bare-root dwarf and semi-dwarf fruit trees in early May. The trees all came out of dormancy quickly and have been doing quite well. Most now sport new shoots 6-8" long along the trunk.

I've made it a habit to stroll through the orchard every day after I get home from work. Just yesterday, I noticed some rather severe brown spotting that was affecting primarily my two Starkspur Golden Delicious apples that are on M9/M26 rootstock (Stark Bros. couldn't confirm which). The Fuji, Gala, and Honeycrisp apples do not display these spots and are interspersed between the two Golden Delicious trees. Photos of the spots are below.

Can anyone help me identify what's plaguing these two trees? They appear otherwise healthy and vivacious. The spotting literally appeared in a span of 1-2 days.

I also noted 1-2 blackened leaves on my Stanley Prune Plum tree. The Fellenberg plum next to it does not display these symptoms. Photo below.

Any and all input as to what may be causing these issues would be appreciated!

Featured Answer

wolfridgeil

7 years ago

Interesting because the damage is mainly at leaf tip. I see few pictures on the web that show the same type of damage. But I believe I may have seen something similar on my apples, though I spray regularly and cannot recall the last occurrence. If you can find some eggs on your trees it might help the identification process.

Seems to be some sort of leafroller (duh)...

http://www.gardeningknowhow.com/plant-problems/pests/insects/leafroller-damage-control.htm

also scroll down on this page...

http://cesantabarbara.ucanr.edu/?blogstart=6&blogasset=26598

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (6)

schwartzy18510
Original Author
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
By way of an update, I initially began exploring the symptoms of fungal diseases such as cedar apple rust, apple scab, alternaria leaf spot, and entomosporium leaf spot. However, none of the photos I could find of these infections exactly matched the leaf spots on my trees.

Yesterday I checked the trees again and found that the brown spots appeared to be forming raised areas on the leaves. In an effort to identify what was going on, I broke one of the small brown "pockets" open and found a larvae inside, about 1/4" long. I opened several of the other raised areas on the leaf spots and found a larvae in each. Any idea what insect these could belong to?
Related Discussions
brown sunken spots on meyer lemon fruit ( container grown )
Q
Comments (20)
Josh, no determination has been made as to Birdman's pH of his water. Just that it is municipal water. And he doesn't need to test it, just contact his municipal water district for the pH value. If his water is 7.2 or below, no need to add any vinegar. I consistently water all my container citrus with my municipal water out of a hose which is about 8.0 (acceptable range is 7.8 to 8.5 for my WD) with zero issues in micro uptake (see photos above). I pot my plants in EB Stone Cactus Mix, which I believe is on the acidic side with Fir Bark, Lava Rock, Canadian Sphagnum Peat Moss, Sand, Redwood Compost and Mushroom Compost, and eventually, I'll have to re-pot, if the soil starts to degrade and compact, or the trees get too big for their current pots, so that will start the cycle all over again, as far as total soil pH goes for me. If you feel better about acidifying your water, you can do that, but citrus are remarkably adaptable plants. I think we are probably more guilty of "over love" sometimes, with container citrus. From what I see with Birdman's tree and fruit, I am still concerned that he is dealing with Phytophthora. He needs to contact his extension agent and get a definitive diagnosis. If it is Phytophthora, he really should consider replacing the potting soil (despite this perhaps not being the best time to re-pot, it now becomes essential to remove the organism from the soil and exposure to the roots), and then treat the canopy as well, with Agri-Fos, which actually travels down to the roots, and continues to protect the roots from any leftover Phytophthora. We're sort of swerving away from Birdman's original concerns of his infected fruit, and overall poor condition of his little tree. All fruit really should be removed to help the tree survive, which I know is hard to do, but the tree is struggling to be healthy and putting all its energies into trying to produce fruit at the detriment of the tree's overall health and vigor. pH isn't the issue here, I don't think. Patty S.
...See More
Rubber Tree Dying! Brown spots and shriveling browning leaves
Q
Comments (26)
Generally speaking - and I'm no expert here, just have a few houseplants and have been learning a lot from this forum - some plants such as the softer leaves ones will show their displeasure and happiness quite quickly by wilting or perking up quite quickly. But I think some of the thicker leaved firmer plants can look ok for some time even when declining (more water reserves, stronger leaf structure,etc), for example sansevieria (snake plants), so maybe rubber plants are like this too. What I'm trying to say is it may have been going downhill for longer than the two weeks of obvious symptoms. Plus it's possible really high numbers of fungus gnat larvae could have munched on the really fine feeder roots. Although I thought the roots looked good overall. I don't know about the white bugs, you'd need to be sure what they were to know if they damaged it. And the (necessary) repotting was another stress on the plant. Many factors to consider, playing plant detective. It may well be the additive effect of several things. You've had lots of good advice from the experienced people above, on light and soils etc. Personally I would now put it in a bright warm draft-free spot inside, and wait. Don't let the roots dry right out while they're recovering but don't let the soil stay damp either. To achieve this, try using a spray bottle of water on a gentle jet to target where the pruned rootball is, and at the times when you do water more thoroughly leave the pot tilted at 45 degrees (even 30 degrees will help) for 15-20 minutes afterwards and then sit it on towels or paper pushed up against the drain holes for a couple hours. This isn't to remove all the water you just put in, it is to reduce the saturated layer that occurs at the bottom, the "perched water table" (yes, it has a name) Dont fertilise until you see new leaves growing and don't sunburn it by putting it in direct sunshine outside if it's not used to it. Good luck!
...See More
Need help identifying issue/disease of rubber tree tineke
Q
Comments (1)
My rubber tree tineke that I ordered online looked fine the day it arrived and I immediately transplanted it to a new pot with drain holes. I did not watered as I want the plant to settle first on its new environment.A day after, I watered it thoroughly and misted the leaves. Then I saw a small brown spot near the leaf tip. As the days went by, the browning spread further and when I checked on the leaf underside, there are some grayish things underneath. They are circular and seem to be wet and oozing out from the leaf.I've attached a photo of the leaf in the comments below.Can you tell me what are those thingsunderneath the leaf? Is it some sort of fungi or bacteria that I should be worried about?Please give me advice on how to deal with it as I really want to grow the plant.
...See More
Needing help to identify bad ugly spots on Phal leaves.
Q
Comments (10)
I’m glad to hear your opinion Jane. From all appearances the roots look ok, so I think I’ll dive into repotting and then isolation. I do like an occasional challenge! I always enjoy your posts. I’m a NY born, S FL raised girl and got my start in orchids there when I was very young. Grew them outside on trees, etc. many many years ago. Moved to N FL then back south again to Ft. Lauderdale. Probably had close to 50 until hurricane Wilma wiped us out in 2005 and we had 3 storms go through that season. We moved to N. GA in 2010 after retirement and I slowly started acquiring phals. Hubby built on a sunroom for me to winter them but now I keep them in all year and they do great! I just have 10 and 1 paph. Funny I couldn’t grow a Phal to save my life when in FL! Ha! ;-) I do miss growing orchids of all kinds outdoors all year long. Thanks!
...See More
Bradybb WA-Zone8
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
I planted some bare root stone fruit trees in containers,earlier this year.It's been getting hot here on some days.Some of the trees leaf tips look like the ones in your photos.Mine may be doing it because of the inability of the root system to adequately provide enough water to the plant,during the hottest days.I'm not really concerned,because overall,they are growing and looking good. Brady
schwartzy18510 thanked Bradybb WA-Zone8
schwartzy18510
Original Author
7 years ago
Wolfridgeil - I too thought it odd that the damage started primarily at the leaf tip. My suspicions right now are either the Spotted Tentiform Leafminer or the Apple Leafminer, but I'm still not sure I have a positive ID. The damaged leaves visible in the second link you provided look very similar to the leaves on my trees, although the larvae were much, much smaller than the caterpillar pictured.

In an effort to rid the trees of the problem, I took the time to pinch each "tent" that had formed, with the intent of killing whatever larvae resided within. Barring a second generation of the pest, this should rid my trees of the problem for this year. Interestingly, it primarily affected only two of the six apples trees.

Bradybb - If you have fruit trees that are displaying similar symptoms, be sure that small "tents" aren't forming on the leaves. If they are, I encourage you to open one up to see what you find.
wolfridgeil
7 years ago
Any chance it is the Apple Leafcurling Midge?

http://www.tfrec.wsu.edu/pages/opm/ALM
schwartzy18510 thanked wolfridgeil
schwartzy18510
Original Author
7 years ago
The small larvae of the Midges look a lot like the ones I found on my two apple trees, but none of my leaves exhibited the leaf curling illustrated in the photos available at the above link. That's a pest I hadn't yet heard of though.

Need Help Identifying Brown Leaf Spots on Young Fruit Trees

wolfridgeil

Comments (6)

schwartzy18510
Original Author

Related Discussions

Bradybb WA-Zone8

schwartzy18510
Original Author

wolfridgeil

schwartzy18510
Original Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

Need Help Identifying Brown Leaf Spots on Young Fruit Trees

wolfridgeil

Comments (6)

schwartzy18510Original Author

Related Discussions

Bradybb WA-Zone8

schwartzy18510Original Author

wolfridgeil

schwartzy18510Original Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

schwartzy18510
Original Author

schwartzy18510
Original Author

schwartzy18510
Original Author