Abiu not healthy (forum)

Bangkok starts with ...
This is my last abiu out of 10 and i would like to make it healthy.

The others also had very yellow/white leaves and then died, this one always looked like this but is still alive.

I have no idea how to make it look better, the new leaves look nice but always get yellow when they get older.

Does anybody have a good tip?
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Picture: 1

Time: 21st August 2015 11:25pm

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About the Author Bangkok
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A.C says...
Looking at the photo looks like salt burns.Issue with salt in water or fertilser?Either too much tap water or too much fertilser? Issue with soil? Waterlogging ?.Soil must be free draining with sufficent sand levels especially in potting mixes.Maybe clear away mulch to allow soil to dry out.

Time: 22nd August 2015 2:26pm

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denise1 says...
I have grown abiu giving nice healthy plants, and then a batch from a different source had similar leaf burn and most died. All with same tap water. Maybe some strains handle different to others.

Time: 22nd August 2015 2:53pm

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About the Author denise1
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Bangkok says...
Thanks for the help.

This is abiu Z4, the big round abiu's all died pretty quick.

I just tried to flush it with much rainwater but it doesn't drain well. Last year i gave it a toplayer of pure peat because i thought the soil-ph would be too high. I won't use peat anymore.

Now i want to change the soil but i'm scared to kill this tree.

It's making new branches very low and they look healthy. Can we graft abiu onto ross sapote or another sapote?

Or would airlayering work?

I would like to multiply it before i repot .



Time: 22nd August 2015 3:02pm

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sternus1 says...
looks like a PH problem to me. I have a few Z4 Abiu and they do tend to look ratty and straggly but they don't have that chlorosis type look to them. I'm using peat moss/cor/vermiculite. I get leaf burning all the time seemingly regardless of whatever I do, can't explain it.

Time: 22nd August 2015 5:10pm

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About the Author sternus1
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Bangkok says...
My abiu's never had sunburn, i even had one seedling in full sun all day since it sprouted. It became yellow/white after a year and finally died. That one grew faster then the rest.

I will change the soil when we finally get serious rain every day, the problem might also be our citywater but i can't change that.





Time: 23rd August 2015 1:04am

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Bangkok says...
My abiu's never had sunburn, i even had one seedling in full sun all day since it sprouted. It became yellow/white after a year and finally died. That one grew faster then the rest.

I will change the soil when we finally get serious rain every day, the problem might also be our citywater but i can't change that.





Time: 23rd August 2015 1:04am

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denise1 says...
I have seen tropical plants quite often that have preferred some shade especially when young.

Time: 23rd August 2015 7:45am

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A.C says...
I have read in other forums putting a tablespoon of vinegar in 9L water watering affected plants will help overcome salinity,also applying a Iron supplement will help reduce salt levels.

Time: 23rd August 2015 1:13pm

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Manfred says...
Don't try it at home though kiddies. The iron law of osmosis isn't suspended in the presence of vinegar or iron supplements.

Time: 23rd August 2015 8:21pm

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Bangkok says...
Manfred do you mean chlorosis instead of osmosis?

I can lower the ph by adding sulfur powder to the soil but that works slow and is risky because it's my only abiu.

I tread it with a layer of 5cm pure peat on top of the soil (since 6 months) but that didn't help much.

I don't have a good ph metre so actually it's all guessing what my ph is.

Well the abiu grows well last months its only the yellow leaves which bother me.

Ironchelate is not available in Thailand at all, they sell all kinds of chelates but no iron at all. Guess nobody needs that here in the clay soil.

I brought it from Holland but it didn't help this abiu.

Maybe it has to grow over this, at least it grows well and that's a good sign.




Time: 24th August 2015 12:32am

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Manfred says...
No Bang- I was referring to the myths about salt being less of a problem in the presence of vinegar or iron.

Osmosis is the mechanism by which plants mobilise water and nutrients, which travel from the less salty to the more salty. If the water supply is salty it will suck moisture from the plant. If you build up salts in the plant it will be more able to suck up moisture from the soil, but you have to move slowly and keep the nutrients high when you do get them built up, because the plant uses them as fast as you can (dare to) feed it once it reaches saturation.

My opinion on your abiu is roughly in line with Denise- all trees prefer shade when they are small- that's how they get started in the forest when their parents shed their seeds and shade their offspring. Even sun-lovers like eucalypts want shade early in their lives.

I have a pair of Fiji longans (taun) planted a few weeks ago taken from 80% shade into full sun which look just like your abius. They will get over it, but those bleached leaves won't. They are doomed.

I'd be keen to try the graft you mentioned too. I can't tell abiu and Pouteria campechiana (whether ross or canistel) plants apart so I reckon they would be highly compatible. No idea though, how well they take grafting. I also don't have a lot of success grafting very young wood.

Of course I could be totally off-course here. Salty water or soil, I would expect the outer edges of the leaves to die back. Since the plant is in a pot I guess you have tried keeping it shaded. That's why I haven't offered an opinion earlier.

Time: 24th August 2015 8:44am

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Bangkok says...
Manfred when i have plenty of plants (seedlings) i like to experiment with full sun or shade.

In full sun they'll grow more compact but and faster is what i learned but of course there will be casualty's.

My fiji longan (i have one left) is also having leafproblems and is in full sun since seedling. I might have overfertilized it with slowrelease pellets but also it had ants all the time ruining the young leaves by planting aphipds under them.
The ants are gone now (tanglefoot) and i pruned the top of it. It's growing back very nice now. I pruned it several times but it won't grow real sidebranches.

I also grow litsea garcia in full sun since sprouted, i read they can stand much light/water but it grows very slow. Websites told me it can grow really fast, well not here.

Same with willighbeia seeds in full sun, they grow slow but also in shade they aren't fast.

Pedalai in full sun since seed grows very well, much faster then in shade.

Dengue fever is rising it's ugly head here so i won't collect anymore rainwater for plants.

I don't want to build up salts in the plants or soil but since our climate is so hot/humid/high CO2 i think they should be able to grow very fast and also need fertilizers to do so. I stopped buying the cheap fertilizers and use organic and chemical ones now.

But some plants just act strange, i have 2 litchi tree's in the same big pot, one looks perfect healthy and the other also has light yellow leaves.
Both grow well though.



Time: 24th August 2015 2:36pm

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