what's going on with my mandarin?

[Zafra]

Hi everyone, I have a mandarin tree that I stupidly let hold quite a few fruit last year, its first year in the ground. Since then it's been completely dormant while the other citrus planted at the same time have been putting on tons of growth. So that's to be expected and I wasn't worried, except that the leaves started showing the discoloration you see in the photos. For awhile it's been like this and hasn't put out a single new leaf. Now finally it's covered with buds, which is encouraging, but I'm still wondering what if anything I should be doing about the issues with the older leaves - I'd prefer the new leaves not end up looking the same. Is it a nutrient issue? I can't match it to the photos I find online of any particular deficiency. Thanks for your input!

[Citradia]

I'm sure Millet can tell you which nutrient deficiency it is, but looks to me like the leaves are a little dry and hard to tell from pics, but the stippling on leaves makes me think of mites or mite damage.

[SonnyCrockett]

Looks like the leaves on my ponkan and Valencia that had some melanose and greasy spot going on.  At least I think that's what it was.  I posted some pictures a whike back and that seemed.to be what the other guys thought it was.

Your leaves look like mine before the spots got really bad.  Maybe you could spray some copper or fungicide before it gets going.  The spots won't go away, but at least it won't spread and get worse.

[Zafra]

The description I find for greasy spot ("Leaf - foliar symptoms first appear as yellow spots on the upper leaf surface, with a corresponding slightly raised, pale orange to yellowish brown blister on the lower surface") does seem similar. The thing is the leaves don't get any worse/different than you see in the pictures. The color of the brown spots on the undersides of the leaves is red-brown and never changes to dark brown or black, nor do the spots get any bigger.

[SonnyCrockett]

Yeah.  Not sure why, but mine was like that for a while too and I didn't think much about it.  Then, I saw just a few leaves on my Valencia getting worse and actually getting that sooty black look on the undersides.  That's when I decided to look into it and take action.

[Zafra]

Hmm. Well I'll keep watching it, but I'd love to know if there are any other possible causes...

[Zafra]

could it be some kind of sucking insect damage? I see nothing with the naked eye but idk.

[Citradia]

Spider mites are tiny sucking insects that almost look like dust on underside of leaves. I can see them, but some people have to use magnifying glass to see them. Sometimes I stare at the leaf while I lightly touch the dustiness on the leaf and I can see a speck or two move. That's mites.