Q. I have a beautiful Loquat tree where the leaves have
suddenly started to turn yellow and fell off.
Most of the fruit has also fallen off. The tree was located in the
middle of grass. I had the landscape converted to desert rock in September. At
the same time watering schedule was changed. I suspect it is being under watered.
But before I increase it I want to ask if the cold winter we had here could
have caused this yellowing.
A. Thanks for the pictures. It is probably not the cold. In a lawn situation the roots go everywhere and anywhere and usually spread to about 1½ to 2 times its height away from the trunk.
In drip
irrigation we usually place the emitters a foot or so from the trunk. This
bypasses about 80% of the root system it created when growing under a lawn.
So, yes, it
probably is drought but perhaps not because you are not delivering enough
water. It is more likely that most of the tree roots are not receiving water.
You can place emitters over a greater area under the canopy of the tree. But I
would also reduce the size of the root system.
Try root pruning
the tree to reduce the size of the root system so it is closer to the emitters.
Keep tree roots contained in the area directly under the canopy. Wet the soil thoroughly
under the canopy and vertically slice the roots in a circle all around the tree
at the edge of the canopy. This can be done with a sharpened spade.
Leaf drop of established loquat due to replacement of lawn with rock mulch and drip irrigation. |
At the same
time, thin the canopy by removing wood. This reduces the tree’s demand for
water. A tree that size will probably require 20 to 30 gallons each time you
water. With the lawn now gone, the tree will actually use more water since the
cooling capacity of the lawn has been removed.
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