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Avocado has enjoyed considerable popularity in recent years as a houseplant, as it is fairly easy to grow from an ordinary seed. But in its natural habitat, the avocado looks like a huge tree and without much enthusiasm for living in a room. Therefore, many lovers of growing tropical trees are faced with the fact that the leaves of avocados dry or ugly spots are found on them, and soon the plants may completely remain with a bare stem. All possible causes of this phenomenon, as well as ways to eliminate them, will be listed below.
Why do avocado leaves dry
At home, avocado leaves dry and turn black for many different reasons. And the most basic and common reason is the inconsistency of the conditions of the avocado plants with what they need for normal growth and development. It often happens that people spread their own stereotypes and thoughts on plants about how and what should be done with them in order for them to feel good. But this does not always correspond to the true needs of the plant itself.
Finally, all plants, like humans, are also susceptible to disease and parasite attacks. And those of them, whose immunity has been weakened by inappropriate care, even more than others.
Therefore, it is most important to try to initially create the most suitable conditions for avocados and carry out a variety of preventive measures, than to deal with the consequences in the form of diseases and ailments.
Unsuitable growing conditions
The main problem when trying to grow tropical or subtropical plants at home is the discrepancy between natural and indoor conditions. Indeed, in nature, these plants are adapted to a very specific combination of temperatures, humidity and the amount of sunlight. In addition, avocados, being quite large trees, form a considerable root system, which requires very spacious containers. Not every home has room for large and deep pots. Avocados are also characterized by intensive growth rates, especially in the early years. This must also be taken into account when growing this tropical exotic.
So, the first and most common reason why avocados dry, turn black and fall off the leaves is the wrong size container for planting. The pot may not be too wide, but always deep, like for palms. After all, the root of an avocado from the very first months of life begins to purposefully grow downward. The main stem also quickly begins to develop upward. As soon as the root reaches the bottom of the pot, it will have nowhere to develop, it will begin to bend to the sides. As a result, the leaves will begin to dry and fall off. In principle, there is nothing wrong with this, because in their place, with appropriate care, new leaves will immediately begin to form. But you have to come to terms with the fact that for some time the avocado will not look quite decorative.
Therefore, when transplanting in the first year, it is better to prepare a narrow but deep pot. And then increase its depth every year by 10-15 cm.
Avocado does not like extreme heat or frost. Optimal conditions for growth are around + 18-20 ° C.In winter, it is desirable to lower the temperature with a simultaneous increase in daylight hours and its intensity. After all, avocado leaves dry around the edges mainly due to low humidity in combination with high temperatures around. It is necessary to either increase the humidity of the air or lower its temperature.
And from a lack of light, which is not uncommon in winter, avocado leaves can turn pale, lose their bright and juicy color, and even brown spots may appear on them. Moreover, in natural conditions, avocados grow in the bright sun, and they need to soak up the sun for at least a few hours a day.
Improper care
For avocados, not only timely and suitable watering in terms of volume is very important, but also the quality of the water used in this. Water for irrigation should be taken purified (filtered) without excess salts and only temperatures above room temperature. Leaves can dry out and turn black from watering with cold water. And the amount of water used for irrigation is highly dependent on lighting and ambient temperature. In summer, at high temperatures, the soil in a pot of avocado should practically not dry out. It is permissible to dry out only the uppermost layer of 2-3 cm. But in winter, when kept in conditions of low temperatures, watering can be significantly reduced. But, if it is not possible to reduce the temperature of the content in winter, then watering should be quite abundant, a little less than in summer. But if you overdo it with watering, then the avocado leaves also turn black. Indeed, in winter, much less light falls on them, which means that the need for water also decreases.
In winter, it is better to pay more attention to increasing the humidity of the surrounding air, rather than the soil in the pot. To do this, you can spray the crown with warm water several times a day or place sphagnum moss in a pan, constantly moistening it. A good option is to place a group of plants with similar humidity requirements together and close to a humidifier.
All these attempts to fix the situation do not always lead to the desired result, and avocados may continue to dry and blacken the leaves. Sometimes untimely and incorrect transplantation leads to such a result.
It is necessary to transplant the plant very carefully, trying to completely preserve the earthen lump on the roots. The soil for adding to the pot is prepared from equal parts of humus, garden soil and sand, it is advisable to add sphagnum. Peat is not very desirable as avocados are intolerant of acidic soils and are very easy to add in excess.
The procedure should be timed to coincide with the spring period, when all processes occur an order of magnitude faster. But it so happens that everything is done correctly, but the leaves still could not be saved. If this happened as a result of a transplant, then you should not despair. It is necessary regularly (1-2 times a week) to spray the bare trunk with Epin or another immunostimulant, and the leaves will soon reappear, greener and more beautiful than before.
In order for the avocado to gain strength for the formation and growth of new leaves, it must be additionally fed at such moments. But there may be some danger in top dressing. Indeed, there is relatively little soil in a pot for a voluminous root system of a tree and concentrated fertilizers can simply burn its thin young roots. Therefore, for feeding, you can use any complex fertilizers for indoor or decorative leafy plants, but it is better to dilute them with half the concentration than indicated in the instructions. Optimally, after a week or two, repeat the feeding procedure.
Avocado diseases
In favorable conditions, avocados are rarely affected by various diseases and parasites.But with a decrease in immunity when kept in conditions not most suitable for it, the plant can be attacked by pests and diseases.
The most common diseases in indoor conditions, which arise primarily from improper watering, are various fungal infections.
Powdery mildew appears as a whitish bloom on the leaves. Moreover, it is the lower leaves that are the first to dry in the pot, turn yellow and fall off. And new leaves already initially climb with all sorts of deformations. The disease can quickly spread to neighboring plants, so the diseased specimen should be isolated from others as soon as possible.
To cope with powdery mildew, the leaves are removed completely and burned. The upper part of the soil is replaced with fresh soil, and the leaves and branches themselves are sprayed with a solution of soap and soda or potassium permanganate. You can also sprinkle and spray the avocado with one of the following fungicides: Strobi, Topaz, Tiovitjet.
An equally dangerous problem is the defeat of avocados by root rot and late blight. The first disease most often appears due to poor drainage and waterlogging of the soil. Phytophthora is easily tolerated with water, tools, clothing. Both of these diseases are reflected primarily in the condition of the avocado leaves. They dry, turn black, become covered with spots of different shades and configurations.
Double treatment of the soil and all green parts of the plant with fungicides Ridomil-Gold or Fitolavin will help to cope with diseases.
Pests
Under indoor conditions, with increased dry air, almost all plants can be attacked by spider mites. If the tips of the leaves dry on the tips of the leaves and at first a barely noticeable speck appears on them, then the first step is to check their back side with a magnifying glass for small black dots.
With significant damage to plants on the leaves, you can see even the smallest cobweb that covers their cuttings. If there are few pests, then a simple washing of the leaves with warm water and potassium soap will help to remove them. When a cobweb appears, the avocado should be sprayed with Fitoverm, Vermitek or Aktofit at least 2-3 times with an interval between treatments of 4-5 days.
Scabbards are a frequent guest on avocado. These tiny pests live primarily on the stems of plants or on the lower veins of leaves. They suck the juice from the green part of the avocado and the leaves turn yellow and dry. The scabbard can be removed manually with a solution of tar soap.
Preventive actions
The most basic preventive measure for keeping avocados healthy is placing the plant in the most favorable conditions for its development. It:
- abundance of sunlight and 12-hour daylight hours;
- moderately warm temperatures throughout the year;
- moderately abundant watering with warm purified water;
- sufficient air humidity.
The latter conditions are especially important for the prevention of pests and diseases.
Conclusion
If the leaves of the avocado are drying, do not immediately grab onto strong chemicals. It is better to first check the situation for compliance with all the basic requirements that an avocado makes for its content. Perhaps the plant just needs replanting or more nurturing care.
