Annona Reticulata: is this normal or did I make a horrible decision

[Amy K]

I have custard apple grown from seeds. Almost two years old. It was doing great in 3 gallons pot under my banana trees protection

Almost two weeks ago, I repoted into 15 gallons and no longer staying under the banana trees. It is now in full sun. A few days ago, my area been hit by frost two nights in a row. and I used frost cloths to protect it of course. But then I start seeing the leafs turning black and falling off as I touch it. Idk if this is normal since it is approaching winter. Or is it being sun burn since I moved it into full sun. Or it is frost damage. It didn't lose any leaf last year when it stayed under the bananas.

Long story short, Idk if my tree is dying or is it doing normal winter shedding. Should I moved it out of the sun or no?

[elouicious]

Classic sunburn- probably not enough to kill a tree that size but it should go back under the bananas

Sunburn is a hard thing to gauge, I usually still manage to screw it up, but have the best success moving things around on cloudy days to give the plant some time to acclimate-

I would never go full shade to full sun (or LED to full sun) but try to find an intermediate spot (~3hrs of sun per day) and leave it there for 2 weeks before moving things to full sun

[Orkine]

It is not uncommon for various annonas to lose leaves as we approach winter.  I don't know if now is normal or early where you are but leaf loss will happen over the winter.  I don't know if the stresses your plant went through is accelerating the leaf drop, it very well might but my guess it the cold spell and change in season and not the repotting or removal from shade.

You may be tempted to water the plant, careful, don't overwater whatever you do.  There is a bigger chance bad things happening from overwatering these next few months until spring.

[roblack]

I agree with Orkine, annonas often start to look like shit this time of year. Mulberry too. If everything else seems alright, probably okay.

[Amy K]

Thank you for your input guys. I ended up making simi shade for it with stakes and cloths i can find around. I can't move it back to under the bananas as it is in a heavy pot now and other seedlings already replace its spot. I'll keep a close eye and hope for the best. It's my first and oldest annona tree so it's gonna be a rocky road through my trial and errors. Hope not being to rough and doing the right thing to fix it.

[achetadomestica]

I was under 32F last winter for over 5 hours and lost allot of annonas.
My seedling red custard is fine. Also my cherilata and sugarlata which
are reticulata hybrids are also fine. Your tree will be fine.
I ate one custard apple last year and the other 10 dropped during the
freeze. You may have problems getting fruit each year as they ripen in the Spring?

[Amy K]

I was under 32F last winter for over 5 hours and lost allot of annonas.
My seedling red custard is fine. Also my cherilata and sugarlata which
are reticulata hybrids are also fine. Your tree will be fine.
I ate one custard apple last year and the other 10 dropped during the
freeze. You may have problems getting fruit each year as they ripen in the Spring?

Good to know. I'll figure some thing out to prepare and protect it better next year

[IsraelCasey]

Regarding the blackening and falling leaves, it could be a combination of factors. It might be experiencing some degree of frost damage, especially if your area was hit by frost recently. The transition to full sun might have also caused some stress or sunburn, as you mentioned.
To make an informed decision, why not roll a d20 for a bit of fun? But on a more serious note, consider moving it back to a slightly shadier spot and monitoring its condition. Keep an eye on new growth and any further leaf changes. If it continues to decline, it might be worth consulting a local nursery or expert for specific advice on how to care for your custard apple during the winter.

[Tropicaltoba]

I’d be worried about the feet being too wet, especially if it starts to lose leaves. 3 gallon to 15 is a bit of a jump.  I lost my sugar apple slowly to root rot in pots, and my reticulata looks way healthier (leaves were looking yellow) when I took it out of its plastic and put it in terracotta with a drier mix. Even my 5 foot cherimoya is in a 1 gallon tall terracotta and looks really happy.

[shot]

I think it has some frost damage

[zwanif]

I have custard apple grown from seeds. Almost two years old. It was doing great in 3 gallons pot under my banana trees protection

Almost two weeks ago, I repoted into 15 gallons and no longer staying under the banana trees. It is now in full sun. A few days ago, my area been hit by frost two nights in a row. and I used frost cloths to protect it of course. But then I start seeing the leafs turning black and falling off as I touch it. Idk if this is normal since it is approaching winter. Or is it being sun burn since I moved it into full sun. Or it is frost damage. It didn't lose any leaf last year when it stayed under the bananas.

Long story short, Idk if my tree is dying or is it doing normal winter shedding. Should I moved it out of the sun or no?

Dumb question

How much it take for annona reticulata to give fruit from seed