Avocado Plant Loosing Leaves - Ask Extension
Hello,
We have an avocado plant that we grew from a pit that is now about 45 years old. We have regularly trimmed it to keep it small enough to be a ...
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Avocado Plant Loosing Leaves #781283
Asked February 04, 2022, 2:40 PM EST
Hello,
We have an avocado plant that we grew from a pit that is now about 45 years old. We have regularly trimmed it to keep it small enough to be a house plant in the winter. It goes outside in the warmer weather. Several weeks ago the leaves from the old growth (before last summer) began drying up and falling off. Now, it appears to be starting in the summer's growth as well. We are in Farmington. Needless to say, this is an old friend, and we would love to have it around for many more years. Any help you can provide would be very much appreciated.
Thanks.
Oakland County Michigan
Expert Response
Hi Larry,
Your picture files were too large to come through. Please reduce the file size of each one, or try taking pictures again. The maximum size is 8M.
A close up of a dying leaf, one face up and one face down; and a picture of the overall plant is helpful. Include information about any recent changes- location, heater nearby, new pot or soil, recent fertilizers or other treatments? Any sign of stickiness on leaves, any sign of insects?
Your picture files were too large to come through. Please reduce the file size of each one, or try taking pictures again. The maximum size is 8M.
A close up of a dying leaf, one face up and one face down; and a picture of the overall plant is helpful. Include information about any recent changes- location, heater nearby, new pot or soil, recent fertilizers or other treatments? Any sign of stickiness on leaves, any sign of insects?
In this message and a following one are photos, much smaller now...
There is no sign of insects or stickiness on the leaves. This location has been it's winter home for many years. It was repotted last summer, and no treatments or fertilizer/food.
Thanks, Larry
Additional photos
The light is less than ideal. It usually looses leaves when it comes inside, but not nearly as many as this year. We did leave the summer's new growth on this year, we usually trim a lot of it back before bringing it inside, so that's a change.
Larry
Good Morning,
I found the below information for possible consequences of brown leaves:
You could also send in a sample to Submit Samples - Plant & Pest Diagnostics (msu.edu) to ensure there is no disease.
References
https://laidbackgardener.blog/2018/11/15/browning-leaves-on-an-avocado-tree/ Avocado, Persea americana - How to grow a tree from seeds - Plantopedia
I hope this is helpful. Thanks for using our service.
I found the below information for possible consequences of brown leaves:
- too much water (check the roots whether they are rotting)
- not enough water (The peaks are especially brown and crumbly)
- wrong substrate (there are varieties of avocados which do not tolerate ordinary potting soil)
- wrong fertilizer
- wrong amount of fertilizer
- pot is too small (If there are doubts, replant the plant)
You could also send in a sample to Submit Samples - Plant & Pest Diagnostics (msu.edu) to ensure there is no disease.
References
https://laidbackgardener.blog/2018/11/15/browning-leaves-on-an-avocado-tree/ Avocado, Persea americana - How to grow a tree from seeds - Plantopedia
I hope this is helpful. Thanks for using our service.
Hi Doreen,
Thanks for your quick response. The reference was very useful. It appears that the winter indoor climate is the root problem, and it has been aggravated by the last couple of weeks of serious cold weather leading to very dry air. I know that we stress it by bringing it in in the winter, and it always loses some leaves, just more this season. The soil moisture seems to be in the middle as measured on a scale of 4. So, we'll try the plastic bag approach at least until the weather warms up and it gets a bit more humid inside.
Thanks for the info. Enjoy a warm place!
Larry
