Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

We read here quite often people with deficiency symptoms on there plants,i found this little write up with a simple summary of what is mobile and immobile within the plant,i thought it might be useful to members who are trying to diagnose problems or to those like me just trying to get there head around the subject.

Effect of Nutrient Mobility on Deficiency Symptoms
The location on the plant where deficiency symptoms are expressed can help in diagnosing the nutrient disorder.

Plant nutrients can be divided to two groups - mobile nutrients and immobile nutrients. Mobile nutrients can be translocated from older leaves to younger ones, while immobile nutrients cannot.

The mobility of a nutrient in the plant affects the location of the deficiency symptom on the plant.

Deficiency symptoms of mobile nutrients will first develop on the older mature leaves. Basically, nutrients are translocated by the plant to its actively growing parts, which are the younger leaves.

Deficiency symptoms of immobile nutrients will first show up in the newer growth because these nutrients cannot be translocated from the older leaves to the new growth.

Very mobile nutrients
Nitrogen
Phosphorus
Potassium

Mobile nutrients
Iron
Sulphur
Manganese
Magnesium.

Immobile nutrients
Calcium
Boron.

@dasboot - Very Informative, thanks for sharing. To add on to the topic, this was posted by you sometime ago, i thought it should be shared and consolidated for the benefit of other members. http://www.mgofmc.org/docs/nutrientdeficiency.pdf

Thanks Curious,first sign old age is creeping forgetfulness....

Probably a sign of calcium or boron deficiency Andy.

Nah, it'd have to be one of the mobile nutrients cause it's the old gray cells that are yellowing

Or the yellow cells greying,what little hair i left has gone grey just so it looks like i have even less,if i let my beard grow even thats grey,other areas are going grey as well,old age comes at a price......

Yup it sure does, it's called wisdom.