Author Topic: Nitrogen deficiency?  (Read 5683 times)

Citradia

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Nitrogen deficiency?
« on: September 17, 2018, 05:28:21 PM »
Dunstan citrumelo. Has lush green sucker coming from base and rest of tree is yellow. Been fertilizing with miracle grow and super thrive. Suggestions?




Citradia

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Re: Nitrogen deficiency?
« Reply #1 on: September 17, 2018, 05:32:25 PM »
More pics:






Millet

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Re: Nitrogen deficiency?
« Reply #2 on: September 17, 2018, 09:29:59 PM »
Yes, sure looks like nitrogen deficiency. The symptoms of nitrogen deficiency  are......Totally yellow leaves with no variation of color, or yellow orange veins with some green out on the far sides.

Citradia

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Re: Nitrogen deficiency?
« Reply #3 on: September 17, 2018, 09:44:41 PM »
Thanks, Millet.

Isaac-1

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Re: Nitrogen deficiency?
« Reply #4 on: September 18, 2018, 02:46:34 AM »
Do you know your soil pH, it may be an uptake issue

Citradia

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Re: Nitrogen deficiency?
« Reply #5 on: September 18, 2018, 09:22:10 PM »
Isaac-1, you're right. I should check the pH. I've checked it all over the property before and it's always been about 6.5. I should check at that site though.

Millet

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Re: Nitrogen deficiency?
« Reply #6 on: September 18, 2018, 10:54:30 PM »
Nitrogen is available at most all pH levels, from as high as 9.4 all the way down to 4.  Nitrogen's greatest availability is between a pH of 8.5 and5.5.

Citradia

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Re: Nitrogen deficiency?
« Reply #7 on: September 19, 2018, 06:49:43 AM »
Thanks, Millet.

lebmung

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Re: Nitrogen deficiency?
« Reply #8 on: September 20, 2018, 04:12:00 PM »
Can be a Nitrogen deficiency because of root damage by overwatering.

Citradia

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Re: Nitrogen deficiency?
« Reply #9 on: September 20, 2018, 07:53:05 PM »
We have had a lot of rain this year. However, my other citrus don't look like this. Well drained soil. Did have voles eating nearby guara bush roots though. The tree seems tight in ground but maybe some root damage from voles. My other theory was that it never fully recovered from winter and now the tree is trying to shed the older damaged wood and recover by sending up new suckers from base of trunk.

laidbackdood

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Re: Nitrogen deficiency?
« Reply #10 on: September 24, 2018, 10:03:48 AM »
Can be a Nitrogen deficiency because of root damage by overwatering.
yep......too wet and cold can make it go like that too........in spring they will drop just after new growth starts.....im getting some leaves like that now....dropping and we had a cold winter this year....def wasnt too wet mind and lemons tend to do that  a lot.
regardless you should remove the sucker from below the graft as that is the rootstock.
« Last Edit: September 24, 2018, 10:05:26 AM by laidbackdood »

Citradia

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Re: Nitrogen deficiency?
« Reply #11 on: September 24, 2018, 08:05:28 PM »
Mine is not grafted but from seed.

lebmung

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Re: Nitrogen deficiency?
« Reply #12 on: September 27, 2018, 02:12:30 AM »
Overwintering is tye main cause usually, I had the same problem with citrus in pots then when I examined the pots the roots were dead. Not all of them though.
The root rot is not from water stagnating, but by a fungi called Phytophora. Even if you have sterile mix in pots, rain splashes from ground soil can reach the pot soil.
Or īn my case I used store bought composed which I didn't sterilised.
To kill it you need to drench the soil with a fungicide or take the tree out wash the roots and change soil. Once the fungi in in the soil it will attack when wet and cold conditions occur.

Sylvain

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Re: Nitrogen deficiency?
« Reply #13 on: September 27, 2018, 10:41:23 AM »
Phytophthora.

lebmung

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Re: Nitrogen deficiency?
« Reply #14 on: September 28, 2018, 04:47:10 PM »
Phytophthora.

correct name, sometimes I write from my phone and make spelling mistakes

Lory

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Re: Nitrogen deficiency?
« Reply #15 on: September 29, 2018, 01:30:45 PM »
For me it does NOT look like a nitrogen deficiency. Millet is right, nitrogen is readily absorbed in a wide range of pH and it highly mobile element so i would expect deficiency to show first in older leaves.
Moreover the sucker is of a brilliant dark green and the affected leaves show  yellowing veins not typical of a nutritional deficiency.
I hope for you it's not Phytophthora, did you check tree trunk?
http://idtools.org/id/citrus/diseases/factsheet.php?name=Phytophthora
Lorenzo

Citradia

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Re: Nitrogen deficiency?
« Reply #16 on: September 29, 2018, 08:31:37 PM »
I did notice a small crack in base of trunk on south side that I figure is from winter trunk split damage but there is no discoloration or gummosis or sunken areas anywhere on trunk. The article Lorenzo shared mentioned phytopthora living in citrus-producing areas, which is definitely not where I live. Perhaps phytopthora can live outside subtropical regions too? I planted this citrumelo in a spot where I had a large native crabapple that progressively died of a disease that worked it's way systemically from the distal parts of the branches eventually down the trunk, with leaves and bark wilting and turning black; I figured it was a bad fire blight infection that took hold despite pruning and treatment with agromycin. It's nearby sister crabapple died similarly the year before from what local extension agent told me was slime mold disease in trunk that originated from split branch near trunk where infection set in. I replaced it with a rowan tree that grew well for a year or two and then died from the base of the trunk up but tried to come back from base of trunk. Extension service told me the slime mold disease doesn't reside in soil and shouldn't infect another plant planted in the same spot. Don't know.

Citradia

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Re: Nitrogen deficiency?
« Reply #17 on: September 29, 2018, 10:32:54 PM »
Well, after reading more on phytopthora, that or some other root rot is probably what I have here. Despite have well drained soil and being on top of a mountain with no really flat ground to cause ponding of water, we have had a lot of rain this year and even my rhododendron bushes are dying back some. My antique roses in a raised bed are dying back also. Maybe I'll lose everything. We will see. Thanks for the info guys.

Lory

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Re: Nitrogen deficiency?
« Reply #18 on: October 02, 2018, 06:10:48 AM »
You're welcome. I really hope you can manage to solve it. Root problems are really bothering and sometimes can be lethal  :(
Lorenzo

lebmung

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Re: Nitrogen deficiency?
« Reply #19 on: October 02, 2018, 03:11:59 PM »
To test if the deficiency it's coming from Nitrogen, I suggest foliage spray of urea.
Low biuret urea applied is absorbed at a 24% rate within an hour for citrus plants. Keep the plants out of direct sun. Apply at lower than 25C, early in the morning or late in the day, but not during the night.

Laaz

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Re: Nitrogen deficiency?
« Reply #20 on: October 02, 2018, 03:47:09 PM »
This time of year trifoliata & most trifoliata hybrids start losing leaf color & will soon drop their leaves... Some of mine will start changing color in late August.

Citradia

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Re: Nitrogen deficiency?
« Reply #21 on: October 02, 2018, 07:42:25 PM »
Laaz, my tree never fully greened up or grew this year. Just put on leaves but no height. All my other citrumelo and trifoliate hybrids died except a Thomasville and citradia that surprisingly came back from the roots. One citradia leafed out, started growing, and then within a few days just died to the roots. I won't be surprised if this last citrumelo dies this winter. I plan to replace it with a lilac or native hydrangea.

Millet

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Re: Nitrogen deficiency?
« Reply #22 on: October 02, 2018, 09:11:44 PM »
As Laaz wrote above, my in ground Trifoliate tree is starting to turn yellow.. After all it is October.

Millet

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Re: Nitrogen deficiency?
« Reply #23 on: October 05, 2018, 06:58:42 PM »
I don't think I would spry an in ground citrus tree with urea, or other nitrogen sources, in October. Especially in an area as susceptible to cold freezing weather as Citradia's location.

Citradia

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Re: Nitrogen deficiency?
« Reply #24 on: October 05, 2018, 07:37:19 PM »
Thanks, Millet. I concur.