Leaf curl on Apple Tree and Meyer Lemon Tree

[ninnymary]

The last couple of years my apple tree and dwarf meyer lemon have had their leafs curled on new growth. I kept cutting the stuff off but it's still coming back. What is is and how do I treat it?

 

[Nyboy]

Mary I don't know about leaf curl, but wow thats some Meyers!!!!!

 

[catjac1975]

http://homeguides.sfgate.com/leaf-curl-apple-trees-29955.html

 

[catjac1975]

Your trees should be pruned.

 

[ninnymary]

Cat, I'm always pruning my trees to keep them small. I've also been cutting off that nasty curling stuff but I can't seem to be able to get rid of it. I have neem oil but I'm not sure if I have copper fungicide. Would either of these work?

Mary

 

[thistlebloom]

I'm assuming you have checked for aphids already, because that's exactly what my Honeycrisp looked like last year with a heavy aphid infestation. They always target the young growth.

If not aphids it could be bacterial or viral, but to me it doesn't appear fungal, so the copper shouldn't be used. There is a chlorotic condition that causes leaf bumps and curls, and it doesn't always present itself with the yellowing you expect with chlorosis.

Sometimes you can also get that curling from over fertilization, but I would expect to see some burning at the tips of the leaves if it were that.

Have you fertilized lately?

 

[ninnymary]

Thistle, I have checked the tree and leaves for any type of pest and don't see anything. No, I haven't fertilized. Forgive my dumb question but is neem oil a insecticidal soap? I think I've read somewhere to use that. I think someone once said my meyer lemon had citrus leaf miner.

Mary

 

[thistlebloom]

You should be able to see the trails of leaf miner if you have them.
Neem can be used as a soil drench too, to act as a systemic for chewing insects, and if you use it as a foliar spray it is effective against
fungal issues. It shouldn't hurt to give it a try.

 

[thistlebloom]

Mary, I just dusted off my big ol' Ortho Problem Solver book to see if I could find anything in there that would help diagnose what's going on but I got nothin'!
Maybe you could take the pictures, or better yet some clippings in a ziploc and show them to a knowledgeable nursery person?

 

[Nyboy]

http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/citrus Mary these guys know their Meyers.