Has anyone seen this before?

shinmai

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IMG_0357.JPG IMG_0356.JPG Over the last few days my Natal plum has had leaves turning brown, on the edges at first but then eventually the whole leaf, becoming brittle and falling or easily knocked off. When it started I thought maybe sunburn, because we had a pre-dawn deluge followed by bright, fairly hot sun. I thought perhaps the water droplets were magnifying the bright sun and causing a burn, which I've seen many times on roses. I moved the tree to a shaded/indirect place in the yard, but things seem to be getting worse. Is this possibly a fungus of some kind?
 

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f1pt4

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That soil looks inorganic. Is that just a top dressing, or is the whole soil Pumice/Akadama or whatnot?

My first thought was over watering. It looks like a root issue to me? Don't have any experience with Natal Plums, so I'm no expert with this species.
 

shinmai

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It had been in an off the shelf 'tropical' mix that was not draining well--no doubt because I didn't know how much the fine, dusty organic matter would clog up. I gently replaced most of the soil with a sifted version of the same stuff mixed 50/50 with some akadama I had on hand. I had a cupful or so of leftover kanuma and a smidge of the akadama so I tossed it on top as a dressing. This was maybe three weeks ago.
We did go through two weeks [last week and the one before] where it rained almost every night, so for about ten days I didn't Water at all, but everything was soaked.
 

Bonsai Nut

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Your roots are in trouble. When did you last repot? Look at the whole tree - it is drying up / becoming desiccated. You can see it in all the leaves as well as the stems.

First thing - get it out of the sun. Second thing - consider putting a humidity tent around it or misting it regularly to cut down on transpiration.

Next issue is figuring out the roots. I agree with f1pt4 that the top of the soil looks ok... but is that what the soil looks like throughout? When you put it in that soil mix did you clean out all the old soil? Or did you slip pot it?
 

Carol 83

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I am by no means an expert, but we do live reasonably close. I have been growing out a Natal Plum for 2 years, and although I will probably get a lot of hate about this, it is in a pretty organic mix of cactus soil, pine bark and some basic bonsai soil and is thriving. During the recent rains, I had it close to the house to avoid the deluge, and also the prior week of 100+ temps to protect from the heat. I have a cutting I would be happy to send you.
 

shinmai

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I have moved it out of the sun, and have been misting daily. When I changed the soil I cleaned out all the old soil. After sifting, what I ended up with was mostly the inorganic potion of the tropical mix. The vast majority, probably 90%, is inorganic. I was very careful with the roots, losing none of the mass, and they seemed to look normal to me.
If the roots are in trouble, should I water less/more/the same? I can easily put together a humidity tent with some garden bamboo stakes and a dry cleaning bag.
 

Bonsai Nut

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If the roots are in trouble, should I water less/more/the same? I can easily put together a humidity tent with some garden bamboo stakes and a dry cleaning bag.

When you water it, does the water flow right out the bottom of the pot? It sounds horrible to say, but many of the symptoms of overwatering are the same as those for underwatering.
 

shinmai

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Since i changed to the mostly inorganic aggregate, if I thoroughly wet the surface [ten seconds or so with a medium-fine low-pressure spray], water trickles through the drainage holes within another ten seconds. My pattern has been to come back ten minutes later, and do it half as much a second time. I've been doing this every other day, unless it rains. Our daytime temps for the last week have peaked in the mid to upper eighties, and most days have been mildly breezy, never really windy.
 

sorce

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water trickles through the drainage holes within another ten seconds

Water should move thru the soil as fast as you pour.

Sounds too wet.

But the rain weeks make that sound wrong.

Ask smoke if it's fungal.

That adds up.

Sorce
 
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