Q.
Why are the leaves of my fruit trees cupping or rolling?
 |
| Leaf roll or cupping on pepper plant even though its mulched |
A.
Fruit tree leaves of apples, pears, pistachios, tomatoes, and other plants in
full sun all day long will sometimes cause the leaves of some varieties to cup
or role. Excessive irrigation and fertilizer, high temperatures, the variety of
the tree or plant, overly dry soils, root damage and planting shock are some of
the environmental factors that can cause physiological leaf roll in fruit trees.
Over time all the leaves on the plant may be affected.
 |
| Tomato leaf (probably ‘Early Girl’ cupping or rolling |
If your plant is showing lots of leaf roll
first blame the high temperatures of summer. Leaf rolling won’t hurt the leaves
as long as they remain soft and pliable. Next, be careful of irrigations.
Irrigations should keep the soil consistently moist for most garden plants and
not allow the soil to dry out rapidly. Apply a surface mulch to slow water loss
from the soil and reduce plant stress. Woodchips, straw, shredded newspaper applied
a few inches deep will slow water loss from the soil, reduce fruit cracking due
to irrigation and conserve moisture.
 |
| Leaf roll of mockorange landscape shrub (Raphiolepis spp.) |