Help identify the cause for this happening to the leaves... (Pics)

Hi,

I planted a Fuyu Persimmon tree last weekend. Before I planted it I noticed the leaves were dry on the ends at some leaves and there were holes through some of the leaves. They were still firm and it was not yet dropping the leaves.

I planted the tree slightly elevated in an area that drains well and I added a couple handfuls of bone meal to the dirt in the hole and mixed it in well in hopes that it would help to entice the roots to grow outwards. (its grafted to a lotus root stock if thats any help). The hole that I dug was about 2' x 2' x 2'. I removed the soil and put in a much richer soil in that hole similar to what was in the pot that the tree came with. I watered it well post planting and was hoping i would see improvement with the leaves.

Mind you it's only been a week but I see the brown spots are now on the branches as well and I'm worried that the issue is not due to being in a small pot or drought, like I originally thought.

Can anyone confirm if this appears to be due to deficiency of nutrient, pest related, or a fungal issue?

Right now I've noticed its starting to drop the leaves and leaves on some of the branches are starting to get soft and wilt.

Thanks for your insight and knowledge. I really appreciate everything that you can add to help me make sure the tree gets back on track and healthy again.

Patrick.

 

Possibly a leaf blight?

Leaf Blight Disease and Persimmon Trees

If so, looks like that sunny spot should take care of the worst of it over time. From wherever you purchased it, was it in the shade / poor air circulation / subject to water being retained on the leaves?

 

Thanks for the reply Daniel,

Leaf Blight looks like it could be a possibility. It had few leaves when I got it and they were all healthy at that time. I got concerned because I saw change once it was in my care. I've been reading lots trying to figure out what makes a "Well drained soil" and I may have surrounded it with too much organic matter. From what I understand (and I am still quite new to this and figuring a lot out as I go) that will retain too much moisture and I should add some dirt and sand to the mix to improve drainage a bit more. I'm hesitant to uproot it to do this but I may be able to hand dig around the sides, getting close to the roots to help pull away some retained moisture, then replace the mulch that I used with a mix that I can make to fit the description of "Well drained soil" a little better.

When I planted it I filled the hole with a mulch which wassimilrar to what was in the pot from the nursery. But having watered it a few days ago now and digging down 6" to a foot I find it is still quite moist. The internet tells me that mulch isn't really suitable for a well drained soil. It looks like over watering or poor drainage can also cause similar results to what I'm seeing so I'm worried that might be part of the issue too.

 

Ah, sorry that I missed that you replaced the on-site soil. That will be a challenge for long-term growth, see:

https://s3.wp.wsu.edu/uploads/sites/403/2015/03/soil-amendments.pdf

Do you still have the original soil around? It'll be coolish weather for the next few days, uproot, remove the amended soil, replace with the soil that is there.

For what it is worth (and these are both different species of Diospyros I am referring to), but the one here at UBC garden grows right beside a pond and the one on campus grows in relatively compacted soil from people walking around it.

 

Hi Daniel,

I did happen to have the original soil right next to the tree still so today I was able to lift it up and scoop out the organic matter and put back the original soil. I also took the opportunity to raise the height of the tree slightly more to help with soil drainage. I expect it won't be happy with the second disruption to the roots but hopefully in the next few weeks I will see some more healthy looking results :)

Thanks again for your reply,
Patrick.

 

Just to follow up on this post...

The tree unfortunately didn't make it through the winter so I've planted another in its place and it is doing significantly better than the last one that I had planted. I planted the new tree deeper into the ground to give it more of a fighting chance in the winter cold, and I plan to pile a deep layer of bark mulch over the roots later this year to better insulate them from the wind driven cold and frost.

I also lost a well established cedar tree last winter, soil samples came back that showed little issue or reason to have caused it to die. The arborist figured it was because of the early thaw period with a sudden frost that occurred a while after, possibly causing its death. The arborist also figured it was the cold that eventually got the young persimmon last winter as well.

Cheers :)

 

Well, I have good news! The 2nd persimmon tree has done well through this last winter! :)

However, I do notice some black spots on the leaves this year. Does this look like anything I should be concerned about?

There are not any flowers on the tree yet but if I recall from last year I believe this starts to bloom later in august or September... I don't really recall to be honest.

Thanks!