Avocado root rot (forum)

Jon starts with ...
I've just got two avocado trees and I'm a bit concerned about the Sharwil. The leaves seem to be droopy and a bit curled with a few brown patches, probably just from the sun.

I may just be picking at things but I just want to be really sure. When compared to my Gwen, the leaves are a lot more droopy and softer. Anyone know if it's the problem?

Jon

Time: 18th February 2009 7:52pm

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Jantina says...
Are they getting enough water Jon?

Time: 18th February 2009 8:00pm

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Jon says...
I give them a water about once every two days, maybe more.

Time: 18th February 2009 8:08pm

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Jantina says...
Are they in pots or in the ground?

Time: 18th February 2009 8:14pm

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Jon says...
They're in the ground, and the soil is well drained and a bit sandy.

Time: 19th February 2009 5:38am

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Jon says...
A few photos. I've put one of the Gwen in there for comparison. It's leaves are much more upright, and flat.
Pictures - Click to enlarge

Picture: 1
Picture: 2
Picture: 3
Picture: 4

Time: 19th February 2009 6:58am

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Jantina says...
I can see a bit of what looks like sun damage but other than that they look alright to me Jon. It doesn't look like you have mulched them , and they really benefit from that particularly in the heat. Some old hay, shredded bark (preferably not fresh pine)compost, any good mulch. Give them a good drink and pop the mulch on about 4 in. thick (keep away from the stem though) and it will make life much easier for your avocadoes. We garden on well drained sandy soil and mulching makes a huge difference and slowly breaks down and improves the soil.

Time: 19th February 2009 8:26am

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Jon says...
Okay, thanks for the advice. I have some pea straw for them but haven't got around to using it yet. That's just the motivation I need :)

Jon

Time: 19th February 2009 2:44pm

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Brendan says...
Hello Jon, I can see a bit of 'leaf-tip-burn' on some leaves. Add a fair bit of Gypsum to the soil under the mulch. You could spray the trees with 'Yates Anti Rot' as well. Follow the instructions on back of bottle. That should help.

Time: 20th February 2009 8:28am

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Jon says...
Okay, just got back from the long weekend and the Gwen is looking pretty sad. The outsides of the leaves are brown as if burnt but it hasn't been hot/sunny at all. It has got some nice new growth though.

Will take some photos tomorrow...

Jon

Time: 9th March 2009 7:30pm

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Jon says...
Here are the photos. The Sharwill is looking much better though now. I gave them both a good water but I'm puzzled as it hasn't been too hot lately. Also, I've noticed all these tiny white moth-like things are always all over the plant, along with my cucumbers and pumpkins. May they have something to do with it?

Jon
Pictures - Click to enlarge

Picture: 1
Picture: 2
Picture: 3

Time: 11th March 2009 3:26pm

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peter says...
jon,
if the moth like things fly of the plants when disturbed then they are most
likely white fly.
get some white oil from the garden centre and spray them.
it is unlikely that they are causing
the defects on the leaves.



Time: 11th March 2009 5:34pm

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Jon says...
Okay, thanks, that's exactly what they do and there are millions of them. I do have some white oil. Do you know what could be causing the problems with the leaves?

Jon

Time: 11th March 2009 6:28pm

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peter says...
no sorry cant help you with the leaf
problem.
since you have millions of white fly
the problem you are going to have is that when you start spraying them they
are going to fly all over the place and
it will be hard to hit them with the spray. check with your local garden
centre to see if they have something
that you can spray on the plant.
if pyrithium works there is a long
life one available.

Time: 11th March 2009 8:48pm

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Brendan says...
Jon, Did you give the tree a good dressing of Gypsum? You could give it a bit more, that should fix the 'burnt leaves'. I see the mulch is too close to the stem of the tree also, I'd move it away, 150 to 200mm. I use plastic rings from Bunnings (~$10), check 'em out. It could do with more mulch too. Gypsum & mulch is the natural enemy of root-rot :-) The new leaves are looking ok, that's a good sign.

Time: 12th March 2009 7:38am

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Jon says...
No, I'll be sure to pick some up from Bunnings or a nursery next time I'm there. Thanks for the advice. And yes, the mulch should be a bit further away. It's because the birds keep on scattering it so I push it back up, forgetting to leave a space.

Would you say the tree has root rot or something else?

Jon

Time: 12th March 2009 3:08pm

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Jon says...
Also, I've been using a clay breaker soil treatment mixed in with water. Would that do a similar thing to gypsum or is gypsum more effective?

Jon

Time: 12th March 2009 7:38pm

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Brendan says...
Jon, Hard to say exactly if it's root-rot or not, could be 'leaf-tip-burn'. Gypsum should help with both, the powdered Gypsum takes a while to work, but is very good. Not too happy with Yates Anti-Rot, didn't do much for my sick orange tree, but we've had a lot of rain lately, so that wouldn't help.
Hope your avo tree pulls through. I'd give it some weak Seasol (white bottle) also.

Time: 13th March 2009 7:00am

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JeffW_carina says...
Hi Guys. Just wanted to send through some info on a tree recovering from root rot.

I have a 20 year old Wurtz planted in the ground in a raised bed. Has been giving between 150 - 200 avos a year for 10 years. The tree started 2020 as the healthiest the tree had ever looked. This year with 150+ fruit we have 450mms of rain in 1 week Jan-Feb. The leaves started to brown and then fall within 2 weeks of the rain - the fruit also all dropped. (Sorry I didnt take a photo - but the tree was bare except for about 10 leaves and a few greenish shoots of new growth.

After investigation and some nice posts on this forum it was definitely root rot. After many hours reading info from all around the world, it became clear that root rot is a symptom of Phosphoric Acid deficiency.

The Yates Anti Rot should be seen by all Avo growers as a preventative measure - so aim to do a foliar spray 3-4 times a year - also on Citrus.

Back to my situation. Given my tree had almost no leaves, it was after more investigation that I took to doing 2 things.

I applied the Phospooric Acid as a soil drench - 10 litre per tree as per the directions. I also went an bout some Chemjet trunk injectors http://www.chemjet.com.au/)- I was very lucky to have the company based here in Brisbane. I highly recommend them. Injecting at the same rate as per the instructions - and also mixing on a double strength Seaweed solution.

My tree is coming back to life this spring - early days and I dont expect miracles in the first year, but the shoots popping out everywhere.

So, I would highly recommend every home avocado grower to do preventative sprays of phosphoric acid. There are studies showing you can get better fruit set as well - it is considered a fertilizer in the USA.

Thanks! Jeff - Brisbane


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Time: 19th August 2020 8:33am

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