The Tropical Fruit Forum

Tropical Fruit => Tropical Fruit Discussion => Topic started by: wayne23 on August 07, 2017, 06:32:25 PM

Title: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: wayne23 on August 07, 2017, 06:32:25 PM

(https://s1.postimg.cc/9uwr4u0aj/IMG_4236.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/image/9uwr4u0aj/)

I bought this 25 gal sweetheart lychee last summer.  It shed all of the leaves around November as the weather changed to cooler temperatures.  Shortly it sent out some new shoots and leaves.  The new leaves would curl alittle unlike previously flat.  Soon the leave would develop brown spots and new growths appeared to be torched.  I thought maybe it was getting too cold so I move ithe container next to a south facing wall.  It didnt make any difference but kept the tree alive through winter.  Spring came and it sent out new growth again.  Same issue.  I thought it was anthracnose so I sprayed it with copper.  Some of the leaves started to grow straight and I thought I got it.  Pretty soon all of the new growths appeared burned just like before.  Leaves would develop brown spots again.  I have trimmed off all dead branches and leaves.  Repotted with Pro Mix.  I move it under a large tree with nearly 70% shade.  It's been a month and I have not see any new growth.  What is my issue and how can I save this tree?   Thanks
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: gozp on August 07, 2017, 07:07:30 PM
It happens to my lychee. The culprit are the leafhoppers..

They tend to suck out the juice in aide of the new growth.
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: Johnny Eat Fruit on August 07, 2017, 08:37:32 PM
Try applying Spinosad every 10-14 days with a sprayer. It works well on sucking insects.
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: bsbullie on August 07, 2017, 08:47:53 PM

(https://s1.postimg.cc/9uwr4u0aj/IMG_4236.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/image/9uwr4u0aj/)

I bought this 25 gal sweetheart lychee last summer.  It shed all of the leaves around November as the weather changed to cooler temperatures.  Shortly it sent out some new shoots and leaves.  The new leaves would curl alittle unlike previously flat.  Soon the leave would develop brown spots and new growths appeared to be torched.  I thought maybe it was getting too cold so I move ithe container next to a south facing wall.  It didnt make any difference but kept the tree alive through winter.  Spring came and it sent out new growth again.  Same issue.  I thought it was anthracnose so I sprayed it with copper.  Some of the leaves started to grow straight and I thought I got it.  Pretty soon all of the new growths appeared burned just like before.  Leaves would develop brown spots again.  I have trimmed off all dead branches and leaves.  Repotted with Pro Mix.  I move it under a large tree with nearly 70% shade.  It's been a month and I have not see any new growth.  What is my issue and how can I save this tree?   Thanks

How often and how much do you water?
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: wayne23 on August 07, 2017, 10:53:15 PM


How often and how much do you water?
[/quote]

Every 2 days.  HP pro mix drains well.  Since we have 90+ weather here and it's in a container I figure it needs more water.  The soil is very mois but not wet.
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: wayne23 on August 07, 2017, 10:55:14 PM
Try applying Spinosad every 10-14 days with a sprayer. It works well on sucking insects.

I am going to try that.  I heard lychee doesn't like chemical spray which is why I stopped all treatments and no fertilizer.
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: bsbullie on August 07, 2017, 11:57:44 PM
Try applying Spinosad every 10-14 days with a sprayer. It works well on sucking insects.

I am going to try that.  I heard lychee doesn't like chemical spray which is why I stopped all treatments and no fertilizer.

When they are stressed, their roots have trouble taking up anything, sometimes even water.  They do not like to be dried out.  It may take daily watering.
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: andrewq on August 08, 2017, 02:48:19 AM
what fertilizer are you using? have you only had 2 vegetative flushes this year so far?

you might get new growth soon, take some pictures of the new growth and also of the leaves as they are starting to harden

two of my container lychees suffered nearly complete die back from damage early this year. the Mauritius promptly bounced back with growth every 5 weeks - having a warm winter/spring pribably helped. the sweetheart had much less vigorous growth for 3-4 months and even had leaf tips that eventually browned - this was very surprising to me because the Mauritius (and all my other container lychees) didn't brown.

about 1-2 months after the leaves had brown tips and even some yellowing, it has started putting out constant vegetative growths and behaving like its peers.


I've killed a number of container lychees by misinterpreting leaf changes and using the wrong fertilizer. wanted to throw in my two cents that I've seen containers lychees have "unhealthy" looking leaves as its preparing to restart growth after suffering damage. I think it might be the tree consolidating nutrients and redistributing to areas that had died back most (so that the canopy grows back in an even manner)
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: achetadomestica on August 08, 2017, 07:21:33 AM
I have had a hard time with lychees. I thought the brown burnt leaves are from salt either in the water
or fertilizer. I use to use synthetic fertilizer and on the label it says not less then 7% chlorine.  I finally got
a mauritas  lychee doing well and 3 years ago we had a 30F night and it killed it. Currently I have a ohia and
it is doing well. Last fall the leaves all burnt and I attributed it to too much fish emulsion? The only other thing
could have been a reduction of water? It has flushed a couple good growths and most of the burnt leaves
have shed. I would water daily and if possible use rain water. Check your previous fertilizer for the contents and now
I use manure and only organics like coffee grounds and compost. When you go to fruitscapes the lychees look so
damn good in the pots. They use a slow release fertilizer and water daily. One of these days I will crack the lychee
code.
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: wayne23 on August 08, 2017, 01:37:14 PM
what fertilizer are you using? have you only had 2 vegetative flushes this year so far?

you might get new growth soon, take some pictures of the new growth and also of the leaves as they are starting to harden

two of my container lychees suffered nearly complete die back from damage early this year. the Mauritius promptly bounced back with growth every 5 weeks - having a warm winter/spring pribably helped. the sweetheart had much less vigorous growth for 3-4 months and even had leaf tips that eventually browned - this was very surprising to me because the Mauritius (and all my other container lychees) didn't brown.

about 1-2 months after the leaves had brown tips and even some yellowing, it has started putting out constant vegetative growths and behaving like its peers.


I've killed a number of container lychees by misinterpreting leaf changes and using the wrong fertilizer. wanted to throw in my two cents that I've seen containers lychees have "unhealthy" looking leaves as its preparing to restart growth after suffering damage. I think it might be the tree consolidating nutrients and redistributing to areas that had died back most (so that the canopy grows back in an even manner)

Yes, it had 2 flushes this year.  one early in the year and another about 2.5 months ago.  during the first flush I thought it was fungal so I sprayed it with copper - twice, one week apart.  98% of that flush did not make it.  most young tips appear torched.  the remaining leaves started having these brown spots.  at the same time I apply liquid fish fertilizer weekly, same rate as I use on my other container tropical trees.  after I trim back on all dead branches I moved the tree to 50% shade due to the extreme hot weather as I thought maybe it got sunburned.  I continue to use liquid fish weekly on all of my container trees until the start of summer.  all of my other trees are healthy and happy, cherimoya, longan, guava, jabo, and etc.  the 2nd flush came and it was like the first.  nearly all new growths die and the tree suffer further die back as I trim off more dead branches.  the tree has maybe 1% leaves remaining and none look healthy.  I figure if I dont do something I will lose it.  so I re-pot it with Pro Mix.  I have not use any fertilizer or chemical since re-pot.  just light water every couple of days. 
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: SoCal2warm on August 08, 2017, 01:47:48 PM
I have had a hard time with lychees. I thought the brown burnt leaves are from salt either in the water
or fertilizer. I use to use synthetic fertilizer and on the label it says not less then 7% chlorine.  I finally got
a mauritas  lychee doing well and 3 years ago we had a 30F night and it killed it. Currently I have a ohia and
it is doing well. Last fall the leaves all burnt and I attributed it to too much fish emulsion? The only other thing
could have been a reduction of water? It has flushed a couple good growths and most of the burnt leaves
have shed. I would water daily and if possible use rain water. Check your previous fertilizer for the contents and now
I use manure and only organics like coffee grounds and compost. When you go to fruitscapes the lychees look so
damn good in the pots. They use a slow release fertilizer and water daily. One of these days I will crack the lychee
code.
That's not an uncommon problem with lychee. The problem where you are could be sandy soil. Make sure the soil is rich and loamy and holds water well. Also, you may want to think about using shade cloth, or planting another fast growing plant to provide shade to the lychee tree, at least for the first couple of years. It takes time for the root system to become established. Until then, the tree can be vulnerable to drying out. It may take consistent watering to keep the soil moist. Salt may also be an issue, like you said. Sometimes the soil in Florida can have a lot of salt in it. That may mean you will have to dig a very big hole and replace the soil with bagged soil and compost. It's also possible you may be giving it too much fertilizer, that can also cause leaf burn.
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: wayne23 on August 08, 2017, 01:57:08 PM
I have had a hard time with lychees. I thought the brown burnt leaves are from salt either in the water
or fertilizer. I use to use synthetic fertilizer and on the label it says not less then 7% chlorine.  I finally got
a mauritas  lychee doing well and 3 years ago we had a 30F night and it killed it. Currently I have a ohia and
it is doing well. Last fall the leaves all burnt and I attributed it to too much fish emulsion? The only other thing
could have been a reduction of water? It has flushed a couple good growths and most of the burnt leaves
have shed. I would water daily and if possible use rain water. Check your previous fertilizer for the contents and now
I use manure and only organics like coffee grounds and compost. When you go to fruitscapes the lychees look so
damn good in the pots. They use a slow release fertilizer and water daily. One of these days I will crack the lychee
code.

I sprinkle some coffee grounds on top of mulch too.  I am also unsure if it's too much salt in the water attribute to this problem.  thinking about putting some gypsum.  It kills me when I go to the nursery where I got this tree and see all of their lychee are thriving  :-[ 

Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: achetadomestica on August 08, 2017, 04:32:08 PM
Are you still giving the lychee fish fertilizer?
I had a an unidentified lychee tree that was suppose to be a Biew Kiew’ longan.
I suspected it was an emperor but never sure . I put it in the ground and gave it 10-10-10
synthetic fertilizer and burned all the leaves about 2/3 of the leaf. It took forever to flush again
and the tree never thrived. After 2 more years this spring I dug it up and replaced with a makok
sapodilla. I put it in a 15 gallon pot and watered every day. All the remaiming leaves dried up and
the tree croaked. The frame of the tree was about 3 foot tall and 3 foot wide. One day I cut it about
10 inches from the ground and threw away the dead tree in my yard waste. Next thing I know before
I pulled the dead stump a couple fresh new branches came off the stump. I trimmed off two and left the
main center leader and now the damn thing has flush 3 times and is looking good??? I am almost ready to
plant it in the ground, It's a foot tall now and doing better then it ever has before.
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: wayne23 on August 08, 2017, 05:36:03 PM
Are you still giving the lychee fish fertilizer?


Yes.  I fed all of my trees with liquid fish weekly in spring.  I dont think I over did it.  I mixed 2 tbsp per gal of water and I water like 3 plants per gal.  all of my trees are looking healthier than ever except for this one. 
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: boxturtle on August 08, 2017, 05:58:56 PM
Are you still giving the lychee fish fertilizer?


Yes.  I fed all of my trees with liquid fish weekly in spring.  I dont think I over did it.  I mixed 2 tbsp per gal of water and I water like 3 plants per gal.  all of my trees are looking healthier than ever except for this one.

do you have other lychee tree in container?  if so they are healthy?
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: wayne23 on August 08, 2017, 11:46:15 PM
Are you still giving the lychee fish fertilizer?


Yes.  I fed all of my trees with liquid fish weekly in spring.  I dont think I over did it.  I mixed 2 tbsp per gal of water and I water like 3 plants per gal.  all of my trees are looking healthier than ever except for this one.

do you have other lychee tree in container?  if so they are healthy?

No other lychee.  I did not think it was possible to grow in my area.  I heard nothing but negative experiences from friends who attempted to grow lychee.  Until last Summer I attended a Home and Garden show.  There I consulted with the experts of container growing fruit trees from tropicalfruittrees.com, and bought a bag of fresh lychee.  It was the first time in 30+ years I tasted fresh lychee.  I was convinced lychee could be grown in container and in my zone.  I bought the biggest tree I could afford thinking I could have fresh home grown lychee.  So far it's been a challenge  :-[
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: andrewq on August 08, 2017, 11:48:13 PM
if the new growths are coming out burnt, the most common cause is wind damage - excessive (esp dry) heat 100+ is also possible.

i have a number of other tropicals and lychee burns very easily. I used to use neptunes harvest seaweed/kelp but had trouble with burning and switched to Foliage Pro (best fert I've used - it doesn't contain urea nitrogen which is the culprit of fert burn).

reporting the tree can also be stressful, especially this far out from spring. it might take 1-2 months from the most recent stress for it to put out more growth.

I've also killed an established container sweetheart using foliar spraying 1 week apart at 1/2 dose.


The following are important for container lychees:
1. protection from wind (put up wind screens)
2. fertilizer that won't burn (foliage pro, Osmocote plus also good). definitely avoid over fertilizing
3. adequate watering - they tolerate wet feet. I don't think they get root rot easily
4. mid-day shade (if excessive dry heat)
5. acidic, well draining soil (eg 5-1-1, gritty mix, etc). make sure to flush the container every once in a while to wash away accumulated solutes.

lychees are finicky and seem to dislike most human interventions. many of us have killed a lot of lychees trying to induce growth.
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: boxturtle on August 09, 2017, 12:53:11 AM
I have minimal  experience with planting trees in container long term but I do have two lychee trees in ground, Mauritius and Sweetheart.   I can safely say that the extreme heat and over fertilizing played a big role in your trees condition.  Like Andrew stated lychee trees loves water so it's very hard to over water them.  If temps are above 85 water it at least once a day over 95 I would do it twice a day.  Make sure it's in the early morn or late afternoon.   I use 1 teaspoon per gallon for fish/kelp and do it twice a week.  A lil goes a long ways.   Also oscomete is a great slow release balanced fertilizer. 
      The other thing is we see something wrong and we do too much trying to fix it.   Even with the best intentions it might be fatal for lychees.  With lychees the less inorganic intervention the better. 
     It one of the most demanding tree that i have and that's them being in ground.  I could only imagine how It be if they were in a container.  If you can put it in ground. If you get another try emperor lychee they are more suitable as a container.
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: boxturtle on August 09, 2017, 01:15:37 AM
lol all that and no solution to your problem :) I would keep it in shade until weather cools down a bit.    No more fertilizer no more sprays no more anything until you see a decent flush.   Water it Once a day twice if it's above 90.   Prune off all dead branches tip until you see live wood.  Let it flush hopefully all the watering you will do will wash out most of the fertilizer.   Once you get a decent flush and it's able to mature you can post pics and update.   Also try letting the water you use sit for over 24hrs
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: andrewq on August 09, 2017, 01:43:57 AM
try to use rain water. if you use city water check how hard it is - solute build up is a problem.

btw which promix product are you using? some of them already have CRF

Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: wayne23 on August 09, 2017, 03:18:11 AM
I used pro mix with mycorrhizae.  Got it from Lowes. 
I killed one of my container atemoya couple years ago from overwatering.  So I am a bit timid of giving too much water.  I water my container avocados twice daily cuz if I don't they would be piss (leaves curling down).  But this lychee doesn't have much leaves left and I cannot tell of any indication it demands more water.  Right now it's sitting under a large tree.  Completely shielded from wind and direct sun lights.  I have a layer of pine mulch on top and the soil feels moist underneath.  I will try to increase watering daily. 
I collected some rain water early in the year.  They didn't last 2 weeks once the sun came out  8) .  It's a challenge to find rain water this time of the year. 

I have some liquid kelp and Dyna Gro foliage fertilizer.  Should I use it or wait  til I see new growth?  Also should it be in full shade or give it some sun light?
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: bsbullie on August 09, 2017, 07:08:38 AM
I used pro mix with mycorrhizae.  Got it from Lowes. 
I killed one of my container atemoya couple years ago from overwatering.  So I am a bit timid of giving too much water.  I water my container avocados twice daily cuz if I don't they would be piss (leaves curling down).  But this lychee doesn't have much leaves left and I cannot tell of any indication it demands more water.  Right now it's sitting under a large tree.  Completely shielded from wind and direct sun lights.  I have a layer of pine mulch on top and the soil feels moist underneath.  I will try to increase watering daily. 
I collected some rain water early in the year.  They didn't last 2 weeks once the sun came out  8) .  It's a challenge to find rain water this time of the year. 

I have some liquid kelp and Dyna Gro foliage fertilizer.  Should I use it or wait  til I see new growth?  Also should it be in full shade or give it some sun light?

What kind of tree is it under?
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: wayne23 on August 09, 2017, 10:21:55 AM


What kind of tree is it under?

I think it's a crape myrtle tree. 
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: bsbullie on August 09, 2017, 10:35:43 AM


What kind of tree is it under?

I think it's a crape myrtle tree.

Ok, as long as it is not an oak.
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: andrewq on August 09, 2017, 11:08:58 AM
I used pro mix with mycorrhizae.  Got it from Lowes. 
I killed one of my container atemoya couple years ago from overwatering.  So I am a bit timid of giving too much water.  I water my container avocados twice daily cuz if I don't they would be piss (leaves curling down).  But this lychee doesn't have much leaves left and I cannot tell of any indication it demands more water.  Right now it's sitting under a large tree.  Completely shielded from wind and direct sun lights.  I have a layer of pine mulch on top and the soil feels moist underneath.  I will try to increase watering daily. 
I collected some rain water early in the year.  They didn't last 2 weeks once the sun came out  8) .  It's a challenge to find rain water this time of the year. 

I have some liquid kelp and Dyna Gro foliage fertilizer.  Should I use it or wait  til I see new growth?  Also should it be in full shade or give it some sun light?

I would avoid using fertilizer. Due to stress, the lychee is redistributing its energy/nutrients away from outside of the canopy and inward - the roots will be unlikely to need/want additional nutrients until it knows where to send it. A 25g tree should have a very nice main trunk (and root system) so it should be able to grow back very quickly once the stresses are removed - nutrient deficiency is not an issue currently and probably could be harmful. If you do fertilize, i highly recommend flushing the soil at least once/week (add water until you see 20% of the added water flow out the bottom) to prevent harmful solutes/salts from building up in the soil that will cause fert burn. My advice would be to stop fertilizing, let the leaves come back and keep a close eye on the leaves. If young hardened leaves (<1 y old) become yellow DURING or preceding a flush, it might be signs of nutrient deficiency and you could increase the FP. Best practice for FP is probably 1 mL/gallon everyday. 2.5 mL/gallon twice weekly is also safe.

You also may want to consider that fall/winter is coming. You will get vegetative flushes every 6 weeks probably. I've had container lychees dieback multiple times (too much heat, not enough water, too cold, too hot... almost everything), and i've noticed that usually it takes 4-8 weeks for the first growth (don't touch them or spray them) which are usually somewhat disorganized and the growths are not that long. The 2nd/3rd growths also are separated by about 6 weeks and also not very impressive, but you might even see more growths from woody parts of the tree. Then the 4th/5th growth the tree really takes off with good strong growths. These obviously assume no stresses (wind, dry heat, dry soil, etc). I write this timeline because you'll notice that you'll be entering cooling weather around the 3rd/4th/5th growth, which can be bad - you don't want the tree to be accelerating growth in the fall, which is usually when the tree will start to decelerate and enter dormancy. Lychees that enter dormancy are more cold/drought tolerant in the winter.

How well protected from wind is the location? Even 15-20 mph winds can damage lychee, especially if it lost most of its leaves. I had my lychee with walls on the north & west and still got wind damage. I ended up building a wall using shade cloth and it's probably one of the best (if not the best) things i've done to help my container lychees grow. Below is a picture looking at the southwest corner and it's a Sweetheart up potted to a 45g container (too large), it lost 80% of it's leaves in late winter due to under watering and the picture is after it's 2nd vegetative flush i think. now it's growing very vigorously.

The pro mix HP myco is a peat based planting medium - it will hold a lot of water (watering every 1-2 days is probably enough; just stick your finger or a stick into the soil to see if it is moist). Peat moss does not drain very well though and will leave a perched water table (you can confirm this by tilting the container 30-60 degrees and seeing water flow out). I planted a lychee in 100% cow manure compost once - terrible idea - and had mud at the bottom but the lychee didn't mind it. Your other plants might not like it (e.g. avocados don't like wet feet from what others have said). Gardenweb's container growing forum http://forums2.gardenweb.com/discussions/1403195/container-soils-water-movement-and-retention-xvii?n=189 (http://forums2.gardenweb.com/discussions/1403195/container-soils-water-movement-and-retention-xvii?n=189) has a very useful thread on water flow, and formulas for good soil.

(https://s1.postimg.cc/yf6aaf2jf/IMG_3265.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/image/yf6aaf2jf/)
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: wayne23 on August 09, 2017, 11:35:43 AM
(https://s2.postimg.cc/qxezl1ag5/IMG_3831.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/image/qxezl1ag5/)

(https://s2.postimg.cc/jiu96edyd/IMG_3832.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/image/jiu96edyd/)

(https://s2.postimg.cc/6h8kgjpk5/IMG_3833.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/image/6h8kgjpk5/)

(https://s2.postimg.cc/pxta32ko5/IMG_3962.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/image/pxta32ko5/)

(https://s2.postimg.cc/ikdw440md/IMG_4257.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/image/ikdw440md/)

(https://s2.postimg.cc/asx65jwh1/IMG_4258.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/image/asx65jwh1/)

(https://s2.postimg.cc/nlla5h82t/IMG_4259.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/image/nlla5h82t/)

Top 4 images are from the 2nd flush.  Look closely at images 2 and 3 you will notice the new growths appeared torched.  Also leaves do not flatten out like a healthy lychee would. 

Images 4 and 5 show the crape myrtle tree in the background. 

Images 5-7 taken this morning. 

I did a deep flush this morning and moved it out of shade.  It should see about 6 hours of sun light.
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: andrewq on August 09, 2017, 12:12:08 PM
Thanks for posting the pics, hopefully someone will be able to make sense of it.

My 2 cents about each image:

Image 1:  wide shot of tree
- nice canopy and branching
- old leaves: hardened, dark green. no burn. black spots on the under side of some leaves??
- new leaves: starting to harden, some structural damage (wind damage?)

Image 2-3:
close up images
- new leaves are starting to harden. the left background has a leaf that is curling in the middle, which looks very characteristic for wind damage
- the browning/dried new growth: i think this is expected. The vegetative flush had been going on for 2-4 weeks already since some of the new growth is already large and starting to harden. it's not unusual for any new growths to shrivel like at the end of the flush.
- tips are browning

Image 4: close up shot of next flush
- new growth: left side shows very early growth that is healthy, no damage or discoloration
- new growth: top of the screen: leaves look large and good color. no burn
- new growth: middle back has some structural damage. looks characteristic for wind damage to me
- old growth: all the old growth is starting to show browning at the tips

Image 5: wide shot.
- new growth: none
- old growth: hardened leaves with browning at tips/edges

Image 6: wide shot. smaller canopy
- new growth: none
- old growth: hardened leaves with browning at tips/edges
 
image 7: soil
- layer of mulch (ok)
- soil looks predominantly peat moss
- perlite is tiny


Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: andrewq on August 09, 2017, 12:25:24 PM
- the leaves that were forming looked mostly healthy, some minor wind damage but not terrible. the dried tiny leaves looked to be at the end of a flush and i see that at the end of every growth cycle on my lychees.

- old hardened leaves in all the later pictures are browning. I suspect it is fertilizer burn or solute buildup. Were you flushing the soil regularly?

- what are those lack dots in the early pictures? i don't see them in the later pictures. i don't recall fungus being a major issue for lychees


In picture 4, the lychee is putting out some very nice new growths, which makes me think that it is getting enough water, it isn't too hot, and there is only mild wind. The old leaves getting burned like that looks like fertilizer burn. The tree also might have died back due to being repotted.

keep it watered, flush it out regularly. lychees don't mind wet feet, so adding a wick is optional.

also, do you have access to pine bark fines (or PB mulch?). I think you should consider making your own soil mix since it allow your plants to grow better (and its cheaper). You've got a lot of containers!
Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: Jose Spain on August 09, 2017, 02:56:26 PM
I'm seeing now that one main problem for new growers of lychees is that we become disoriented by their weird growing habit (at least in driest/hot seasons/regions). I opened a similar topic few weeks ago because when I found the dried tiny leaves at the end of a flush of my recent planted lychees I thought I was doing something wrong, and in fact I was (they were not ready for full sun). This is the topic:

http://tropicalfruitforum.com/index.php?topic=24795.0 (http://tropicalfruitforum.com/index.php?topic=24795.0)

But after reading the explanations of Andrew (thanks!) now I know that the drying of the tips in the new flushes is kind of normal and that I should not worry as much as I did. Very interesting your experience with the differences between the 1st to 3rd flushes (I'm in the first yet since I bought my trees) and the 4-5 when we should expect a more normal growing habit. The comments in this topic brought new questions about when to plant two of my lychees still in pot, but I will expose them in another topic to don't interfere with this one. Good luck with those trees wayne23. Lychees are picky, tricky trees, but without these challenges our hobby wouldn't be that funny.  ;)

Title: Re: Lychee problem - please help
Post by: wayne23 on August 09, 2017, 03:09:06 PM
- the leaves that were forming looked mostly healthy, some minor wind damage but not terrible. the dried tiny leaves looked to be at the end of a flush and i see that at the end of every growth cycle on my lychees.

- old hardened leaves in all the later pictures are browning. I suspect it is fertilizer burn or solute buildup. Were you flushing the soil regularly?

- what are those lack dots in the early pictures? i don't see them in the later pictures. i don't recall fungus being a major issue for lychees


In picture 4, the lychee is putting out some very nice new growths, which makes me think that it is getting enough water, it isn't too hot, and there is only mild wind. The old leaves getting burned like that looks like fertilizer burn. The tree also might have died back due to being repotted.

keep it watered, flush it out regularly. lychees don't mind wet feet, so adding a wick is optional.

also, do you have access to pine bark fines (or PB mulch?). I think you should consider making your own soil mix since it allow your plants to grow better (and its cheaper). You've got a lot of containers!

thank andrew. 

I've not flush regularly due to fear of root rot.  but I will try to flush it once in a while.  I've heard of lychee need to be wind protected so I had placed it in the least winded spot, next to a 20 feet height neighbor's fence. 

I stopped using fertilizer or chemical spray since the first flush died back.  the 2nd flush came out better (pic #4) then everything went south. 

I got few large bags of pine mulch from a neighbor who chopped their tree.  but probably not enough to start mixing my own soil.  I heard good things about Pro Mix so I will use it until I find something better and cheaper  :)