Basic Gardening

[wolf359]

Hi there, I have two problems I hope you can help me with, the first is plants with yellow leaves, is this over/underwatering ? and the second is plants that have pale geen leaves when the leaves should be a dark green.

Hope you can help many thanks.

[Nawtilus]

At least you have leaves !

[chownah]

There are different things that can cause these things and some of them depend on what plants you are growing. My first guess is that maybe there is not enough nitrogen in the soil available for the plants because this could cause a pale green for a minor deficiency or a yellowing if it is severe...so lack of available nitrogen might be the problem. I've also noticed that on some plants if you waterlog the soil for say a week or longer then the bottom leaves turn yellow...but this depends on the plant because rice for instance thrives in waterlogged soil as does taro and water cress. Any mineral deficiency pretty much could cause the bottom leaves to turn yellow and then fall off since in the event of a lack of some mineral many plants have the ability to take the mineral out of the lower leaves and transport it up to the growing tip to keep the plant growing upwards (or so I have read but I'm not a biologist so I'm relying on what I've read here). I suppose a lack of sun could cause yellow leaves or paling of the green if it was severe enough...don't know for sure.

I just tried googling "why do my plants have yellow leaves" and got lots of what looks like good hits...you might try "why do my tomato plants have yellow leaves"...inserting your plant type in for "tomato".

Chownah

Edited January 26, 2007 by chownah

[toptuan]

After wanting to slap Nawtilus, Chownah saved the day! Thanks, I am tryng to nurse a couple of flowering vine plants back to health, and I think you've hit the nail on the head. I'm going to the store for nitrogen-enriched plant-food tomorrow.

[wolf359]

Thanks for your help guys, off to the garden centre tomorrow !

[Jet Gorgon]

Thanks, Chownah. I had the same problem. Maybe not enough sun or too much sun, not enough/too much water, etc. One home had so many fruit trees around that there was little direct sun, so bouganvillea, for example, would not "flower".

[tutsiwarrior]

has anyone ever tried to grow wisteria in Thailand?...I was gonna put up sum trellises on the back wall on the magnificent new terrace with full morning sun with eastern exposure and I've always liked wisteria...

[macb]

Chownah your a hive of information;

But can I throw my observation in as well.

I have noticed this last cool season or Thai winter so to speak leaves on our trees went yellow simliair to as they do in the Autumn in the UK, as they are turning yellow and dropping off so new leaves are appearing, we have lighter green leaves on our trees they are lighter green because they are young new leaves, I will take some pics tomorrow to illustrate, the darker green leaves are mature leaves. Normally the difference you get here is new leaves are growing as old leaves drop, because the Temperature has dropped but not sufficiently to shed a tree completely and cause it to wait for warmer temperatures

[TBWG]

has anyone ever tried to grow wisteria in Thailand?...I was gonna put up sum trellises on the back wall on the magnificent new terrace with full morning sun with eastern exposure and I've always liked wisteria...

Hi Tutsiwarrior

I suspect it will not grow here but cannot give you any logical reason why. Just gut feeling.

My own observations in UK are that the harsher the winter the more prolific the flowers. The flowers of course appear prior to the leaves so in a hot climate the leaves may be reluctant to drop and trigger the flowers. There I said I could not give you a logical reason and just have!

Still give it a go nothing to loose!! Although should you succeed bugs could be another issue.

Good Luck

TBWG

[tutsiwarrior]

where I lived at a friend's house in Berkeley CA there was a glorious wisteria vine, the house had exposure to the SF Bay and the wind therefrom (could never get tomatoes to ripen there, not hot enuf)...the bush looks to be a temperate climate plant from the leaf and bark structure...just wondered if anyone had success growing it in the local conditions...

mebbe I'll try bouganvilla instead...

[sbk]

Bougainvillea is quite thorny and can be extremely fast growing. I would suggest something a little more tameable -and smells lovely to boot: Rangoon Creeper; Quisqualis Indica and in Thai Lep Meu Nung (translation: lady fingers).

I don't think Wisteria would do well here either but if you want something Wisteria-ish looking then I would try Petrea Volubilis; Sandpaper vine or Queens Wreath and in Thai; chawmuang or puang kram.