Why the apex of leaves are turning to white?

[Yi]

Hi guys,

Have you met a situation that the apex of leaves are turning to white?

I live in Xishuangbanna in the south of China, now the daily average temperature is between 12°C--33°C，dry season,sunny,but I water to the saplings of Peach palm regularly.

I found the apexes of some saplings turned to white,so I have consulted to several people. One said that is because lack of trace elements,another said that is because the sun is too strong.I confused.

I really worry about it,because the leaves of these peach palms are not as green as before,they looks like a little weak.

Have you met the situation before?Do you have idea about that?

Thanks& Regards

[Steve Mac]

There are a lot of reasons why plants do not grow well. It could be either of the two suggestions that you have already. You may need to test by putting some into more shade than others and compare after a few weeks. You could give some fertilizer and see if there is improvement. But I think that it is because you use the soil from the ground in the pots. Those pots need a better balance of freely draining organic material, compost mixed in with a bit of what you have. For best results I think that soil that you have should not be used at all, you really need better soil. Wet or dry the soil should crumble easily in your fingers and not go hard like a rock when dry. 

If you can go to a professional plant nursery have a look at the soil in their pots.

Good luck. Steve.

[NatureGirl]

I find that a lack of sufficient Nitrogen is the #1 cause of whitish leaves on potted palms. At this point I usually start applying a slow release soluble fertilizer which I mix right in the watering can a pour it on leaves and roots.

[Bennz]

My guess (only a guess!) is because it is the dry season. I think Southern China has cloudy wet season? To me it looks like the leaves are bleached by the sun. Peach palm is a rainforest species, so in nature it would establish under a rainforest canopy. If you put them outside in the wet season they would have cloudy weather. Now it is the dry season they are getting more direct sun than they would get in nature. Try a shade cloth over some of the seedlings and see if the next leaves look better (the existing leaves will not improve).

 

I think also they probably would look better if they were grown in a more free-draining soil, and had an accurate foliage test done to see if they need more fertility. BUT, I am confident that palms grown in the same soil in which they will later be grown have better establishment and growth rates once planted. Are these palm seedlings to be sold, or planted by you? If you are growing them for a final plantation I think you are doing the right thing, and as long as the damage does not get worse you are producing healthy sun-hardened seedlings that will thrive once planted. If you are growing them to sell then find out form the purchaser if they are most interested in 'pretty' seedlings, or hardy ones.

[Yi]

14 hours ago, gtsteve said:

There are a lot of reasons why plants do not grow well. It could be either of the two suggestions that you have already. You may need to test by putting some into more shade than others and compare after a few weeks. You could give some fertilizer and see if there is improvement. But I think that it is because you use the soil from the ground in the pots. Those pots need a better balance of freely draining organic material, compost mixed in with a bit of what you have. For best results I think that soil that you have should not be used at all, you really need better soil. Wet or dry the soil should crumble easily in your fingers and not go hard like a rock when dry. 

If you can go to a professional plant nursery have a look at the soil in their pots.

Good luck. Steve.

Hi Steve,

Thank you so much.

You are right,the soil here is very heavy,tok much clay.When I started my growing last year,I had no idea about this type of soil,so I lost lots of saplings.

I have changes the soil,parts of soil,parts of Pindstrup peat soil,parts of organic materials.Now they are better than before,but I think they are still weak,very easy to have an ill.

I really worry about the soil,but in my area,all.of them are laterite,it is bad for draining

 

[Yi]

17 hours ago, NatureGirl said:

I find that a lack of sufficient Nitrogen is the #1 cause of whitish leaves on potted palms. At this point I usually start applying a slow release soluble fertilizer which I mix right in the watering can a pour it on leaves and roots.

Thanks,

[Yi]

10 hours ago, Bennz said:

My guess (only a guess!) is because it is the dry season. I think Southern China has cloudy wet season? To me it looks like the leaves are bleached by the sun. Peach palm is a rainforest species, so in nature it would establish under a rainforest canopy. If you put them outside in the wet season they would have cloudy weather. Now it is the dry season they are getting more direct sun than they would get in nature. Try a shade cloth over some of the seedlings and see if the next leaves look better (the existing leaves will not improve).

 

I think also they probably would look better if they were grown in a more free-draining soil, and had an accurate foliage test done to see if they need more fertility. BUT, I am confident that palms grown in the same soil in which they will later be grown have better establishment and growth rates once planted. Are these palm seedlings to be sold, or planted by you? If you are growing them for a final plantation I think you are doing the right thing, and as long as the damage does not get worse you are producing healthy sun-hardened seedlings that will thrive once planted. If you are growing them to sell then find out form the purchaser if they are most interested in 'pretty' seedlings, or hardy ones.

Hi Bennz,

Yes,the peach palm needs free-draining soil.But in my area,there is no such kind of soil.

In my area,the soil is laterite,I really worry about it.Because in wet season(5-11),too much rain.I think it will be bad for the peach palm.

I plan them for final plantation,I am studying how to control in wet season.God bless me!

By the way,Bennz,do you think I need to use pesticide regularly? I mean if there is no significant signs of illness.I have no experience of any plant.Some vegetable and fruit farmers told me the plants need the pesticide regularly,once per two weeks.Because the pesticide can help the plant prevent the illness.What about you think of that?

 

Thanks

[Bennz]

Hi Yi,

 

I think growing the palms in the soil they will end up in is a good thing.  If they become accustomed to poor drainage early, they seem to  be easier to establish. I have found that plants grown in totally different media can struggle more when planted in final site. Free draining soil makes the palms grow faster in the nursery, but not always best when planted.

 

I do not ever use pesticide. Think about it; what pesticide occurs in nature? But you are growing these seedlings in an 'unnatural' setting, in pots with all one species.  So you may find you have some fungal disease. I cannot advise you because my country and climate is very different from yours. My practice is never use pesticides, but possibly in your climate it might be a good idea  to do so if a problem occurs. In my country there are no palm diseases,  I cannot advise you.

I think peach palm occurs in areas that are wetter than your area? How much rain do you get?

[daxin]

欢迎加入Palmtalk！

For pest control you might be interested in learning Integrated Pest Management (IPM) methods in which strong pesticides are not excluded but are always used as last resorts. You first learn to identify what particular species are the pests in your garden, then you learn about their life cycle, most vulnerable stages, and their natural predators. In most cases you can manage the pest problems to an acceptable level with low toxic methods. It can be as simple as a strong spray of water or as complicated as precisely timed pheromone traps and specific predators releases.

The low toxic ways of IPM will not match the 100% kill rate of chemical pesticides and your customers (if any) may complain about the presence of sporadic pests, you may opt for some strategic applications of stronger pesticide to get to that 100% level if that is your target. For a food crop such as Peach palm I think you will have some advantage if you grow them organically with little or no pesticide residues. 

Compared with traditional broad spectrum pesticides, IPM demands a lot of work from you. As a benefit you and your environment will be healthier and safer. Pesticide overuse is a serious problem all over the world. I have heard from my Chinese friends that they generally avoid traditional medicinal herbs unless they can trust the source. They are saying that with all the pesticide residues, the curing effects are all but cancelled. 

University of California maintains a very informative IPM website:http://ipm.ucanr.edu/. I think it can help you learn how to manage many of your pest problems plus abiotic disorders. University of Florida has a great website on palm cultivation including pests, nutrients deficiency : http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/topic_palm_care. Good luck!

[Yi]

On Thu Mar 07 2019 at 11:27 PM, daxin said:

欢迎加入Palmtalk！

For pest control you might be interested in learning Integrated Pest Management (IPM) methods in which strong pesticides are not excluded but are always used as last resorts. You first learn to identify what particular species are the pests in your garden, then you learn about their life cycle, most vulnerable stages, and their natural predators. In most cases you can manage the pest problems to an acceptable level with low toxic methods. It can be as simple as a strong spray of water or as complicated as precisely timed pheromone traps and specific predators releases.

The low toxic ways of IPM will not match the 100% kill rate of chemical pesticides and your customers (if any) may complain about the presence of sporadic pests, you may opt for some strategic applications of stronger pesticide to get to that 100% level if that is your target. For a food crop such as Peach palm I think you will have some advantage if you grow them organically with little or no pesticide residues. 

Compared with traditional broad spectrum pesticides, IPM demands a lot of work from you. As a benefit you and your environment will be healthier and safer. Pesticide overuse is a serious problem all over the world. I have heard from my Chinese friends that they generally avoid traditional medicinal herbs unless they can trust the source. They are saying that with all the pesticide residues, the curing effects are all but cancelled. 

University of California maintains a very informative IPM website:http://ipm.ucanr.edu/. I think it can help you learn how to manage many of your pest problems plus abiotic disorders. University of Florida has a great website on palm cultivation including pests, nutrients deficiency : http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/topic_palm_care. Good luck!

Thank you so much Daxin.

I really appreciate your kindness,I will study the website which you gave to me.

I made the question because the farmers told me,I need to use Fungicide regularly whatever it happens or not,due to the Fungicide does not "Kill fungi",Fungicide is better to use as prevention.

They told me I need to use Fungicide and Bactericide per 10-15 days.

So I am serching help here,to understand is it true or I do not need to use the fungicide and bactericide regularly.

很开心遇到说中文的，谢谢你

Yi

Edited March 15, 2019 by Yi

[Yi]

On Thu Mar 07 2019 at 1:43 PM, Bennz said:

Hi Yi,

 

I think growing the palms in the soil they will end up in is a good thing.  If they become accustomed to poor drainage early, they seem to  be easier to establish. I have found that plants grown in totally different media can struggle more when planted in final site. Free draining soil makes the palms grow faster in the nursery, but not always best when planted.

 

I do not ever use pesticide. Think about it; what pesticide occurs in nature? But you are growing these seedlings in an 'unnatural' setting, in pots with all one species.  So you may find you have some fungal disease. I cannot advise you because my country and climate is very different from yours. My practice is never use pesticides, but possibly in your climate it might be a good idea  to do so if a problem occurs. In my country there are no palm diseases,  I cannot advise you.

I think peach palm occurs in areas that are wetter than your area? How much rain do you get?

Hey Bennz,

In China,I am in Xishuangbanna.Xishuangbanna has a tropical monsoon climate with abundant sunshine and abundant rainfall. The dry season and wet season are within one year, and the annual average temperature is 21 °C. The dry season is from November to April, and the warm season is from May to October. There is no frost and snow all year round. The foggy day is 108-146 days. In the coldest January, the average temperature here is 16 °C.

 The rainfall is 1136-1513 mm per year,but unbalanced distribution. The wet season takes almost 80% rainfall.

Bennz,do you use Fungicide and Bactericide for palms regularly?