Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

I just got back from inspecting the trees and I found some of the real small spider web stuff and maybe some of the scaly stuff. Tried to take a pic but the camera battery is not up so have to wait till later.

Make sure you are not dealing with something like gipsy moth webs.

I am intrigued. Can't wait to watch the progress.

PS Totally jealous of the tractor.

I am jealous of the pilot license. I should have gotten mine the first time I was interested. It would have only cost $300 then. and only 3 hrs of instructor time.

I took some pics today and here are some of them.
#7 is the one with the spider webs in the pot.
#6 is the leaves when they start to degrade to dead.
#5 is the one where the leaves on the plant look great and then they just turn black and die

Nothing really jumps out at me with these, it's more of a mix.

The middle photo is pretty clearly something damaged or has chewed on the leaf. I'd take a look in the evening well after dark and see if you can see what's causing the damage (although the plant looks ok otherwise). One spider under the leaf.

Can't really tell much on the photo with the blackening leaves. The description sounds like a mold or bacterial disease though.

The photo with all the webbing - there may be mites but the webbing is mostly some other critter - probably a spider or caterpillar (most likely a spider since you'd see lots of caterpillars with this much webbing). Look on the underside of the leaves, see if there are some brown specs you can easily rub off with your finger. Do the same for the trunk below the cluster of leaves - I see some brownish areas that might be mites. There's no indication from the leaves of any mite problems but usually it shows on the underside before the top and high temps accellerate the problem.

Cheers

#4 shows the leaves on some of the others just before they die.
#3 some more leaves
#2 is the stem of one of the trees that has lost all of its leaves.

Leaf miner damage?

Looks like the spread of beginning web worms. They spread fast

I do not think they are web worms. they make a much larger web strands and I have that problem in my big trees but not this year much.

Don, the pic with the spots is still to out of focus but The light oval spots could be scale insects. They will rub off and are kind of waxy. This is what they look like but there is variation in color and shape - http://forestryimages.org/browse/detail.cfm?imgnum=5112033

We could use a pic of the undersides of some of these leaves. The pics of the purple leaves do show some stippling which could be mites. Try rubbing against the surface and see if you come away with some tiny specs, usually brownish. The leaves are often sticky because the mites have been sucking the sap and producing honeydew. Mites make the leaves dry out so if thats whats happening and it's not rot then you might be onto something.

This site is decent for how to find them, I wouldn't use their control recommendations though - http://www.treehelp.com/spider-mites/

Here's a site with some photos of a fruit tree infested with spider mites. They have some control suggestions. - http://ucanr.edu/sites/scmg/Bad_Bugs/Spider_Mites_-_Tetranychus/

We may be barking up the wrong tree but there's only one way to know. This is the kind of thing where I could tell you in seconds if I were there but it's difficult doing this with pics.

Cheers

Contact your local extension service and see if they have any recommendations. They will either tell you to bring leaves in or NOT or maybe they could work from pictures. But they should have a better idea of what local pests or diseases are likely to be causing the problem or perhaps even be able to pinpoint if it is just a bad deficiency problem.

+1 on the Extension Service

If the Extension agent in your area gives you a hard time for growing in pots, go to another. Knowing you, you won't take No for an answer.

We just got a replacement Extension Agent - younger vs older. The new guy is really interested in Aquaponics, wicking tubs, and other out of mainstream ideas. Those gents get paid to use and expand their knowledge and more than likely will make a trip out to your place to check out your growing situation.

Shawn my agent has done stuff for me before. Lots of garden soil tests and identify plants and trees. He also got me a bunch of free trees when I first came here. About 20,000 of them as I remember. Various kinds of Pines mostly. They came from the forest service people. Their only requirement for the trees was to plant them all in a reasonable time frame to insure they would grow. He has helped with the fish and foul information for this locality, and helped me find the "Pond Stockers" company that supply the fish in this area for Ponds. I am going to see him today if he is in the office.

+1

Good idea, they've probably seen whatever it is causing the problems.