AusBonsai

Hi everyone. I hope you can help with a problem that effects my figs. For the last 3 years I have had trouble with leaf drop and die back of branches. As soon as we have a bit of cold weather ( I'm in the far north of NSW so its does not get really cold) The leaves start to discolour and fall off leading to complete defoliation of branches and subsequent death of the branch. The figs are in full sun, good soils and regularly fertilized. This problem has only been effecting my trees for the last 3 years ( never before)
Has anyone had a similar problem and if so did you find any solution as I am at a loss to explain it.
Many thanks

Hi Aub..without looking at one s fig in person it is very difficult to analyse.

But in most(stipulate most lol) cases an infected leaf/leaves with leaf drop can be attributed to your watering habits,especially as you have stated in winter...basically excess watering with temperature drop..usually winter will cause this if your sticking to a watering schedule regime...don t do that ...water to the trees needs not yours .

Remedy... good medium/drainage..water thorough appropriate time..let medium dry out to near dry and the same in summer.

As a guess sounds like too much water!

Whats your watering regime ?..cheers my friend

Thanks Anthony, I will back of the watering and see if it has any effect

anthonyW wrote:Hi Aub..without looking at one s fig in person it is very difficult to analyse.

But in most(stipulate most lol) cases an infected leaf/leaves with leaf drop can be attributed to your watering habits,especially as you have stated in winter...basically excess watering with temperature drop..usually winter will cause this if your sticking to a watering schedule regime...don t do that ...water to the trees needs not yours .

Remedy... good medium/drainage..water thorough appropriate time..let medium dry out to near dry and the same in summer.

As a guess sounds like too much water!

Whats your watering regime ?..cheers my friend

I with Anthony, possibly the substrate is staying too wet?

I had root rot on a Morton Bay that resulted in leaves similar to this. It was a result of poor draining substrate mixed with being rootbound.

When did you last repot?

Cheers,
Pearcy.

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Hi Aub, I'm in Sydney and have a few figs bit I have not seen my leaves look like that.
Mine are also in full sun and have over watered in past but it showed different leaf effect.
I have had lots of pests that show up at this time of year so if your not already doing it
a spray of confidor insecticide may help.

Pearcy001 wrote:It was a result of poor draining substrate mixed with being rootbound.

Agree with Pearcy.

I am also in northern NSW and had this happen to a Port Jackson fig of mine for the first time last year - due to a rootbound pot which had become tight and poorly draining. Slip-potted into some loose substrate and stopped the die-back until spring when it was repotted.

Figs like a loose, well-draining and well breathing mix.

I am offering,

But please note our lows are only 66 to 68 deg.F [ 18 to 20 deg,C ] though those temperatures can hold for
12 hrs at night.

What I found was that local willow leaf type ficus and the Ficus b, prefer a simple mix of 90 % 5 mm silica
based gravel [ what we build with ] and 10 % aged compost [ held in a 55 US gallon black barrel just
moist so the weed seeds germinate and die ] BY VOLUME.
In a 2.5 cm internally deep pot.

I also use 12 N P K fertiliser into moist soil.[ watered the night before ]

Keeps them very healthy.
Laters.
Tambrand

Thanks for all your advice on this problem. I will Cut back my watering and spray for pests as well as check up on my soils and hopefully I can overcome this problem.

Nothing worse getting yellow leaves, But yours looks bit like a germ/bad fungi, May be root rot,may not be. i would pull it out of pot and look at roots, if all looks ok,no slime. put back in pot and feed with seaweed,it reduces stress and hard to over feed. dont touch roots till summer unless there is root rot...