Flowering Maple problem

[Charles Woolever]

I've got a Flowering Maple:

Abutilon pictum 'Apricot'

It's not too old and has never grown more then about 1' tall. It gets sun and is outside in the summer. It's guess it to be about 2 years old.

It gets an occasional yellow leaf but now I have many leaves, both old and new, getting a mottled effect. See the scan below on leaf:

've tried fertilizer changes, watering frequency and moving it around to different windows. I just did a hard prune on it.

Any ideas?

Thanks,

Charles

[FragileWarrior]

Charles Woolever wrote in news:info- [e-mail]:

Was it a pot plant? Where did you get it?

[Charles Woolever]

Pot plant from Gurney's in Spring 2006. It was in a 3" pot. REgular green color when I got it and had been until January.

Charles

In article , FragileWarrior >

[mleblanca]

There are several varieties of A. pictum that have variegated foliage. I couldn't find 'Apricot" , but the photos I found that showed some variegation had orange/apricot flowers. Perhaps this is a plant with variegated leaves?? mle

[Charles Woolever]

Yes, I found the same thing when I was looking around but I assumed that the plant would have the variegation from the start and not just start it later on. This yellow also appears to be a faded yellow rather than the strong contrast between green and yellow.

If they are prone to virus attacks maybe mine didn't have one but now does?

Charlres

[FragileWarrior]

Charles Woolever wrote in news: [e-mail]:

I just had a seminar on trees (Master Gardener program) and one of the things the instructor mentioned was that potted trees have ALWAYS been potted. They are grown in the pot from the beginning and their roots tend to grow in a swirl rather than spread out like they should. He said that even after they are placed in the ground, the roots sometimes tend to retain that swirl pattern and they will, eventually, be unable to feed the tree properly and it will die.

I don't know what you can do about it if that's the problem but if the tree does dies maybe you can do a postmortum and check out the roots and let us know if his theory is true.

One thing you might be doing wrong, although you didn't mention it, is overwatering it while trying to save it. You could be drowning it.

Have you tried calling Gurney's and talking to them? Someone there should be able to give you some advice.

[Val]

I think your tree is beginning to show signs of Verticillium Wilt. It's a virus that nursery raised maples seem to be prone to. I had one in a pot that had leaves showing the same symptoms as yours and pruned and babied it for most of a year before I took a sample leaf to the extension service and that's what they told me it had........get rid of it and don't compost, burn or throw it away. There's no cure. Also don't plant another maple in the same or near the same spot. It's a soil borne disease and doesn't go away. There are some other plants that are susceptible to this so you can Google the disease and see what they are, don't plant those in the same spot or pot either.

Val

[mleblanca]

Val, Flowering Maple is not actually a maple. It's one of those weirdies: Abutilon is a Mallow in the family Malvaceae. I have problems with Japanese Maples because of verticillium wilt also. My Abutilon is planted right next to the spot where the J. Maple was that died; there is no problem with the Abutilon.( been there 10 yrs)

Emilie NorCal

[mleblanca]

Charles, I proposed the varegation solution because of the look of the yellow area Nitrogen/chlorosis and magnesium deficiency shows between the veins A virus is usually very mottled, splotchy yellow. This appears to be on the leaf margin (?) Sometimes in the presence/absence of light variegation varies. Sun can cause it to show or some plants need shade for variegation to show. Sometimes it takes a more mature plant. So that was a possibility.

I think FW might also have suggested a good cause in the watering situation, as Abutilons need very good drainage.

What I would do with it is this: water it really well and let the water run out of the pot freely and leach out all the fertilizer salts. (which could be causing yellowing, too) Then set it in bright light, but not direct sun until the soil becomes dry on the top inch. Then water again and let it recover from the cutting back. Then try watering it in the same manner: water until it runs out the bottom of the pot and then let it dry out on the top.See what it looks like then. If the yellow continues, you might try a very weak drench with Epsom salt, which promotes production of chlorophyll. If the yellow goes away, you have a solution. If the yellow stays, you might just have a variegated plant!! Good luck and let us know what happens Emilie My abutilon is a hybrid which is bright red-orange and is an outside plant which the hummers love. I just bought a pink one. mle

[Kay Lancaster]

Um, verticillium wilt is a fungal (not viral) disease caused by the fungi Verticillium albo-atrum and V. dahliae. It does cause various symptoms in a number of woody plants, including true maples, the genus Acer.

However, "flowering maple" is not a maple at all, but a member of the hibiscus-cotton-okra family: the scientific name is Abutilon x hybridum, although related species like A. megapotamicum and A. pictum are also called flowering maple..

My WAG, based on the photo and descriptions, is that there may, indeed, be a viral infection of the plant. Have you submitted a sample to your extension service for diagnosis? The diseases I've seen most commonly in Abutilon have been Rhizoctonia root rot and Rizoctonia web blight, but the symptoms don't match.

[Charles Woolever]