Q.
A few months ago you told me how to help my grapes and other fruit trees
(thanks for featuring my yard on the blog)! My citrus is turning black and dropping. The
main issue I am having now is my peaches are turning a dull yellow, almost like
a brown but not really. The photos don’t really catch it. I dug about 1 foot
away from the plant to see if the soil was too damp and found that it was moist
about 3-4 inches below. With the last watering cycle happening about 3 days
prior. The plants get 5 gallons in the morning and 5 at night. 2 times a week. I did put some of “stress
tonic” and a little iron just in case, but far less than the recommended
amount.
A few months ago you told me how to help my grapes and other fruit trees
(thanks for featuring my yard on the blog)! My citrus is turning black and dropping. The
main issue I am having now is my peaches are turning a dull yellow, almost like
a brown but not really. The photos don’t really catch it. I dug about 1 foot
away from the plant to see if the soil was too damp and found that it was moist
about 3-4 inches below. With the last watering cycle happening about 3 days
prior. The plants get 5 gallons in the morning and 5 at night. 2 times a week. I did put some of “stress
tonic” and a little iron just in case, but far less than the recommended
amount.
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| Readers peach tree |
As
far as my tomatoes go, most of them are done or dying but produced heavily so I
am pleased. I had a few watermelon which were quite tasty and they may reproduce
again. My citrus are having a bit of a rough time most of the fruit turned
black and fell off (in containers and get a few hours of partial sun.) although
the plants are shooting new growth and even flowered again. Although this time
not fruiting.
far as my tomatoes go, most of them are done or dying but produced heavily so I
am pleased. I had a few watermelon which were quite tasty and they may reproduce
again. My citrus are having a bit of a rough time most of the fruit turned
black and fell off (in containers and get a few hours of partial sun.) although
the plants are shooting new growth and even flowered again. Although this time
not fruiting.
Any
advice or thoughts? Also should I prune them back any?
advice or thoughts? Also should I prune them back any?
A.
Fruit dropping can be a sign that your citrus may be going through excessively
dry periods before they are irrigated again. It can also be a sign that your
trees are just too young to support fruit development yet and so the fruit was
aborted. Citrus leaves can discolor, turn kind of a bronzy yellow, due to
damage from the sun. You won’t see as much of this if they are growing in the
ground and the surface of the soil covered in wood chip mulch. You can use an
inexpensive houseplant moisture meter to get a very general idea what the
moisture level of your soil is. Stick it in several locations so you get an
idea of how the water is distributed.
Fruit dropping can be a sign that your citrus may be going through excessively
dry periods before they are irrigated again. It can also be a sign that your
trees are just too young to support fruit development yet and so the fruit was
aborted. Citrus leaves can discolor, turn kind of a bronzy yellow, due to
damage from the sun. You won’t see as much of this if they are growing in the
ground and the surface of the soil covered in wood chip mulch. You can use an
inexpensive houseplant moisture meter to get a very general idea what the
moisture level of your soil is. Stick it in several locations so you get an
idea of how the water is distributed.
All
fruit trees need at least six hours of full sun each day to produce an adequate
amount of fruit. Roots of fruit trees growing in containers have the largest
percentage of the roots that take up water and nutrients in the boundary area
between the root ball and the container. This is also where the drying of the
root ball occurs first. And containers exposed to direct sunlight will overheat
the root ball on any side that is in full sun unless it is protected. You could
lose as much as 50% of your root system if that root ball overheats from direct
sunlight on the container.
fruit trees need at least six hours of full sun each day to produce an adequate
amount of fruit. Roots of fruit trees growing in containers have the largest
percentage of the roots that take up water and nutrients in the boundary area
between the root ball and the container. This is also where the drying of the
root ball occurs first. And containers exposed to direct sunlight will overheat
the root ball on any side that is in full sun unless it is protected. You could
lose as much as 50% of your root system if that root ball overheats from direct
sunlight on the container.
I
looked at all of your pictures. All of the growth that I saw looked good for
this time of the year. There was a lot of leaf cupping on your peach which can
be due to heat. It was showing some signs of some water stress. This can be the scorching on the edges of leaves.
looked at all of your pictures. All of the growth that I saw looked good for
this time of the year. There was a lot of leaf cupping on your peach which can
be due to heat. It was showing some signs of some water stress. This can be the scorching on the edges of leaves.
I did not see wood mulch on the soil beneath the trees. Your
fruit trees would benefit 1000% if you can apply a layer of wood chip mulch,
not bark mulch, on the soil surrounding the tree in a circle about 6 foot in
diameter. The mulch should be 3 to 4 inches deep.
This
was an unusually good year for tomatoes. Don’t expect this type of production
every year. When the spring months jump from cool to hot very quickly, tomatoes
will not produce as well. Tomatoes produce much better if they are protected
from excessive wind. You can do this by deflecting the wind away from the
garden or putting up windbreaks.
was an unusually good year for tomatoes. Don’t expect this type of production
every year. When the spring months jump from cool to hot very quickly, tomatoes
will not produce as well. Tomatoes produce much better if they are protected
from excessive wind. You can do this by deflecting the wind away from the
garden or putting up windbreaks.
Fruit
trees do quite nicely with one or two applications of fertilizer year. This
is usually in the late winter and perhaps a second application after
harvesting. I tell people to fertilize their vegetables and herbs monthly.
trees do quite nicely with one or two applications of fertilizer year. This
is usually in the late winter and perhaps a second application after
harvesting. I tell people to fertilize their vegetables and herbs monthly.