Happy New Year! As promised, I snagged some pictures and posting them. I've noticed some of the trees have rebounded a bit. There was definitely a bit more promise this go-round, I've started noticing some changes on the bougainvillea. I think the only thing I've started doing more was monitoring moisture levels and I specifically kept the bougainvillea moister than before. I didn't allow it to dry out so it was almost like a daily misting and that coincided with the appearance of new foliage growth.
The grow light was not turned on during this picture. I have two studio lights I used to illuminate the entire interior of the tent. Note the elevated base, they are crates that elevate the entire base off the bottom of the tent 9". This way the trees aren't sitting in a puddle of water for an extended period of time. In last year's experience, that puddle of water definitely evaporated by the next day so it may have helped keep the trees hydrated longer. With the bougainvillea as an indicator with leaves crisping up and dropping, the light might be too strong for it.
You can see how bad the bougainvillea got once placed indoors.
Here is a closer view of the older growth. Note the new growth peeking through! I am pretty stoked about it. This is where I'm at, this is the point where I am wondering maybe I'm not fertilizing enough. Last year I didn't fertilize at all and saw some yellowing as well but def not as bad as this. Def still new to this as this is my second go-round with the tent. Also, note the portulacaria leaves off to the side.
Signs of life, the fertilizer I've been applying is in teabags and is from
Happy Frog. The fertilizer I'm using is for maples with a ratio of 4:3:4. I started applying this fertilizer a few weeks back, starting 12/12. So a few weeks in, this is probably due to the fertilizer I've applied and it's kicking in.
From my understanding, this is a ficus rubiginosa, and it seems to have yellowing globally.
Here is my portulacaria. I've found the leaves started dropping maybe a month in. But the yellowing started around that time as well. No dried tips as the old leaves have fallen off and the fine tertiary branching is still in good standing with newer growth. The canopy has the most yellowing, while the lower pads don't have the level of yellowing. Even if I were to call this change in foliage color, it's not all yellow. There is a very slight hint of red which sort of signifies to me that this is a different type of change. My possible reasoning is as listed below with some background information in parenthesis:
Reason 1: When the plant is exposed to a lot of sun, especially full sun. (My yard is a north facing yard, the time this tree came in was in October and even at that point, the sun has dipped below enough where the house casts the winter shadow over the yard, this tree is not getting the full dose of very strong light since October)
Reason 2: When the weather turns really hot or really cold. You will notice your plant turning red or changing colors during the hot summer months and cold winter months. (The tent is definitely above 45 degrees which is the threshold for most plants. The tent rarely gets below 60.)
Reason 3: When the plant is watered sparingly. When the plant is not receiving regular watering it starts to appear less green and you will notice it turning a different shade. (This is possible, it definitely is allowed to dry out quite a bit before the next watering. In the summer it is barely allowed to completely dry, possible exposure to this prolonged watering schedule of mine may cause the tree to turn colors.)
Reason 4: When the plant is not well fed. When you do not feed or fertilize your plant regularly, you will notice the color changes in your plant. (This tree is well fed during the summer growing season, but in the grow tent with intense lighting may cause this tree to definitely feel a bit hungry and a missed fertilization period during the winter months is probably making this tree hangry.)
Reason 5: When the plant is in poor soil. Along with not fertilizing regularly, when your plant is sitting in infertile soil or soil that is not rich in nutrients, you will see these color changes more. (Not likely that it's in poor soil, but coupled with no fertilization is a very viable reason.)
Lower branches below the canopy.
Closer inspection of the canopy foliage.
In conclusion, I think I will have to water my trees a bit more now since I feel like the elevation change of this year's overwintering elevated it off the puddle that kept the tree hydrated by half a day longer. At least observe the soil moisture conditions daily. Fertilization seems to be the key. I use the
happy frog fertilizer because it's not excessively high in nitrogen but is an all-around fertilizer for overwintering plants. Nothing seems to add up if I were to consider adjusting the red and blue light. It seems apparent, I'm forcing the trees to grow with this intense light but no food for them to take nutrients from to rely on. If you go back to the first picture, note the upper left corner of the two trees. Those are still in nursery pots and they definitely have osmocote in them from the sellers which makes sense because they're still green.
Another example I've seen where fertilizer was missing, is in this juniper. I asked the seller regarding the foliage coloring and she said it is a lack of fertilization indicator.
Sure enough, midway into the growing season and after intense fertilization, the tree definitely rebounded.
Definitely one of those cases that took me a while to apply the process of elimination. I'd love to hear some insight from others who maybe have this issue?
