Help my Guava tree please!

[leomejia1192]

Hey everyone,

New here and I'm trying to help my little tree succeed. Located in the New England area of the US so it's indoors for now. I bought this tree about 6 months ago from a nursery in California while visiting family and I'm trying to help it grow indoors at the moment. It initially had to endure minor mealy bug infestation but I brought in some ladybugs to clear them out and repotted it into the 12in diameter pot in which it's now housed. Other than the soil it was grown in I added some indoor potting mix consisting of coconut coir, put in some clay balls, perlite, pumice and lava rocks to help with drainage and added in some 10-10-10 fertilizer appropriate to the volume of the pot. There's some new growth sprouting throughout the different branches but I'm noticing the existing leaves have some problems; some are dying at the edges and others have a lighter green color that looks like it could be chlorosis but I'm not sure. Any ideas/tips?

 

[Chuck]

You have two things going on. The first is that the tree has some type of leaf spot fungus. Anytime you have a brown area surrounded by a yellow halo it has a fungus. The second thing is that the tree is not getting enough sunlight. A guava is a tropical tree and Mass is far from tropical. It needs at an absolute minimum 6 hours of DIRECT SUNLIGHT. 10 hours about perfect. They hate cool weather and do best with high temps around 80F-90F. Anything less than 70F and they languish. There is no chlorosis present. It just needs a LOT more sunlight and I would also spray a copper fungicide. But just spraying with a fungicide will not stop the fungus from returning. Only a temperature change and sunlight will make the tree healthy.

A guava will grow into a plant way too big for anyone to handle much less move inside. It will take years for the tree to produce fruit and the first time it gets about 25F you can kiss the tree goodbye.

 

[leomejia1192]

You have two things going on. The first is that the tree has some type of leaf spot fungus. Anytime you have a brown area surrounded by a yellow halo it has a fungus. The second thing is that the tree is not getting enough sunlight. A guava is a tropical tree and Mass is far from tropical. It needs at an absolute minimum 6 hours of DIRECT SUNLIGHT. 10 hours about perfect. They hate cool weather and do best with high temps around 80F-90F. Anything less than 70F and they languish. There is no chlorosis present. It just needs a LOT more sunlight and I would also spray a copper fungicide. But just spraying with a fungicide will not stop the fungus from returning. Only a temperature change and sunlight will make the tree healthy.

A guava will grow into a plant way too big for anyone to handle much less move inside. It will take years for the tree to produce fruit and the first time it gets about 25F you can kiss the tree goodbye.

gotcha, thank you! Should I spray the fungicide on the leaves or put it in the soil for good measure?

 

[Chuck]

gotcha, thank you! Should I spray the fungicide on the leaves or put it in the soil for good measure?

Just on the tree. You might also drench the soil with hydrogen peroxide. This will do two things. It will kill pathogens on the soil if there are any and it will also aerate the soil giving the plant more oxygen. But spray the entire tree with copper fungicide.

 

[leomejia1192]

Just on the tree. You might also drench the soil with hydrogen peroxide. This will do two things. It will kill pathogens on the soil if there are any and it will also aerate the soil giving the plant more oxygen. But spray the entire tree with copper fungicide.

Like straight H2O2, or a diluted solution?

 

[Chuck]

Like straight H2O2, or a diluted solution?

50/50

 

[oneeye]

When you up-potted into a larger container you raised your water hold capacity. This means if you water using the same watering frequency, then you overwatered your plant keeping the soil mix too wet and exposing the roots to too much water.

Your fiddle fig is planted too deep in the container for one thing. Dig out the top inch or more to expose the root flair. Then let the top 2 inches of soil dry well before watering again. Don't let the plant sit in the discharge water in the drain tray. When the plant roots stay wet it cuts off the oxygen in the roots needed to exchange gases. That can produce perfect conditions for root rot or a fungus. Use the lift method to know when to water and double check with your fingers to keep from over-watering. Good luck friend.

 

[cpp gardener]

More light, more light , more light. Put it right smack dab in the center of the brightest window you have. Leave curtains and blinds open. You can also put a small portable heater near it to keep it warmer, especially at night.

 

[leomejia1192]

When you up-potted into a larger container you raised your water hold capacity. This means if you water using the same watering frequency, then you overwatered your plant keeping the soil mix too wet and exposing the roots to too much water.

Your fiddle fig is planted too deep in the container for one thing. Dig out the top inch or more to expose the root flair. Then let the top 2 inches of soil dry well before watering again. Don't let the plant sit in the discharge water in the drain tray. When the plant roots stay wet it cuts off the oxygen in the roots needed to exchange gases. That can produce perfect conditions for root rot or a fungus. Use the lift method to know when to water and double check with your fingers to keep from over-watering. Good luck friend.

Thankfully, I made sure to check how often I needed to water the plant once repotted by looking at the top 2 inches of soil to see if its dry.

I'll try what you said, thank you!