Olives still "brown tipping"......aarggh... WHY?

[Mike Corazzi]

I've been plagued with what I call "brown tipping" on this olive for a few years.

JudyB suggested it could be from cold and suggested bringing it in for the winter. Which I've been doing.
It isn't what I'd call "COLD" here, but a book I read said that when it got down to 40-50 f. to bring it in.

My local club mentor said olives want "dirt" so I added a bit of akadama to what was almost all lava.

Bringing it in SEEMS to be ....good for it.....

That plus the aka has brought forth some nice NEW growth as seen in pic #3

But...even with seeming improvement, it is still bringing out the brown tips.
As seen in pics 1 and 2

Pic 4 shows a new shoot that came in in "just the right place" for the branches and it's doing quite nicely.
All green and extending.

BUT...... what about the tips that turn brown?

Am I obsessing over something minor and unimportant?

Pic.... 5.... is of a different olive ripped out of the wild last spring and rooting nicely. BUT with also a brown tip on a couple leaves.

 

[Mike Corazzi]

Screwed up pix. Great.

 

[JudyB]

Is it possible that you're letting this dry out too much between watering? Mine is in a fairly retentive mix, and I water it every day.

 

[milehigh_7]

I just found a really cool resource. I need to read some on it as well but check this out:

http://www.haifa-group.com/turkish/.../olive_tree/mineral_nutrition_of_olive_trees/

 

[Mike Corazzi]

I'm watering daily in a free draining mix of the lava and aka and keeping it in a pan of gravel with some evaporative water.

It hates me.

 

[Mike Corazzi]

Also the NEW trees (bigger leaf variety) have those 2 brown spots. Keeping THAT bunch outside day and night.

I forget what's in there but I ...think... there's some dirt. And it gets frequent water. during the summer I did them twice a day because the pot is so shallow.

THEY hate me too.

 

[Mike Corazzi]

Maybe it needs MUD.
Aquatic Olive

Olea Drownea

 

[milehigh_7]

Read that link I posted. Lots of clues for you there.

 

[KiwiPlantGuy]

Read that link I posted. Lots of clues for you there.

Hi milehigh_7,
I guess Mike would have read the article by now but to me it looks like either Phosphorous or Potassium deficiency maybe?
Also depends on how often you are feeding, Mike? Cause if you water every day the tree gets flushed of all nutrients etc and tree maybe being starved by accident?
My 2 cents etc
Charles

 

[Bonsai Nut]

I'm watering daily in a free draining mix of the lava and aka and keeping it in a pan of gravel with some evaporative water.

Olives are Mediterranean trees. They like to be watered deeply, but infrequently. My olive trees in my landscape get no supplemental watering - so they go 6 months+ with no water. They almost like the soil to dry out completely between waterings. I can see algae on your soil which means that your soil - even at the surface - is not drying out. You need to put your tree in full sun and avoid watering it until the soil is dry. Do not keep it in a pan of evaporative water. They are almost desert plants.

Additionally, because of our poor water in California, you have to watch salt buildup in your soil. The best way to avoid this is to not water frequently and shallowly, but infrequently and deeply - so the excess salts are flushed from the pot.

 

[Mike Corazzi]

I got the pan info off of Bonsai Boy and someone maybe here said don't feed too much.



Oh, the water here is very soft and I take it out of the fishwater

 

[Adair M]

“Bonsai Boy” - there’s the problem! You probably would do better by doing just the opposite of whatever they say! Lol!!!

I’ll second what BonsaiNut said. Often the first sign of overwatering is the tips of leaves turning brown!

Looks like it’s time for some clean up! Pull off the old leaves, and any leaves on the bottoms of the branches. Cut back. As BNut said, remove the algae off the top of the soil. In fact, remove the top 1/2 to 3/4 inch of the soil and replace with fresh.

 

[petegreg]

“Bonsai Boy” - there’s the problem! You probably would do better by doing just the opposite of whatever they say! Lol!!!

They have probably all their species care guides ctrlC and ctrlP-ed, careful.

 

[sorce]

Bonsai Boy” - there’s the problem! You probably would do better by doing just the opposite of whatever they say! Lol!!!

Amen!

@Mike Corazzi your mentor keeps these?
Well?
If so....
How different is his microclimate?

Sounds like this (backwards ass too wet) theory I been seeing.....


.......

You have to remember....

That olives being so strong in the roots....

Makes them an excellent species to watch grow for mad long...
As the old roots slowly deteriorate, and the tree is living mostly as a cutting.

Living on stored energy that is depleting....

And new surface roots, (because lower is rotten)

Can keep them alive indefinitely.

But one day it may quit....

Or at repot.....




Sorce

 

[Starfox]

Is there any chance whatsoever that this may be Xylella?
I only ask as you say it is happening to two of your trees and it is spread by sap suckers.

It's just a thought anyway and hopefully unfounded, but over here they are having a big awareness campaign about this and the pictures they show to id the symptoms start with browning leaf tips.

Now that is what I call overthinking a problem.

 

[Mike Corazzi]

Nutrients sounds likely.
This tree THRIVED in the old days when Miracle Grow was my main go-to.
Also i have not fed the newbies except for some "organic" wonder stuff that's reputed to be like 2-2-2 or somesuch.
It's the only tree I have that seems to hate being treated "properly."
I think this is one of my very earliest trees.
It started as a stick.

Probably (?) in potting soil.

 

[Mike Corazzi]

I....think.... the algae on the soil is because that bunch is in a scrap pot I had and it is way too shallow so it got VERY frequent water during our past 113 degree balmy summer. It will be potted in a real pot in ...oh....about 2-3 months so I'm a gonna leave it alone for now.
But....BYGAWD..... that OLD one is gonna get force fed some fert like a goose destined for pate'.

That NEW "good" growth is the result of getting it out of the almost 100% lava and adding some aka (and I think a dollop of soil)

Oh, incidentally, purely on my own but hoping it's smart, I've quit YANKING the affected leaves off and now am cutting the small petioles instead. Maybe good....maybe of no consequence....but seems it can't hurt to snip rather than pull.

 

[Mike Corazzi]

The more I ponder this, the more I think it is fertilizer lack.

When all I knew was Miracle Grow, I had to root prune with a machete.

Now far less.

Blue junk for you, Mr. Olea!

 

[Mike Corazzi]

What's the proper ratio for mixing granulated ammonium nitrate with Vigoro?

 

[River's Edge]

When in doubt check the roots. Check the drainage. How retentive is the soil mix?
I too, feel the cause is likely too much water. That would also account for the surface appearance of algae.