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first person
Sierra Cain
As the heat of summer draws to a close with the rains we have received this season, I have sometimes walked through my gardens that I have planted along the edges of my house. Much of my plants have benefited from the extra moisture and are thriving.
But, I noticed that one of my plants was discolored throughout its foliage. The plant is doing well overall with healthy leaves and has grown all summer, but the color is a concern.
The leaves of this plant are no longer green, but yellow in appearance and have prominent green veins throughout. This yellowing of the leaves is not a disease but a nutrient deficiency called ferric chlorosis. Ferric chlorosis is a deficiency of iron in the plant. Although the deficiency appears to be of some concern and can lead to degradation of plant health and leaf rot, it is not a disease and can be treated.
According to Natalie Goldberg, a plant pathologist at New Mexico State University, ferric chlorosis is the number one landscape concern in New Mexico and usually shows up in early spring when the leaves emerge from the plant.
As the summer months progress, untreated plants can develop a sickly appearance with brown, dying leaf spots. The leaves can also turn from a yellow color to a white color (Goldberg, 2017). Iron deficiency along with the environmental stressors we have experienced with our climate could make your plants look like mine.
Goldberg also explains that some of the plants most commonly tested for iron deficiency include photinia, willows, mulberry, maples, sycamores, poplars, roses, apples, pears, hawthorn, stone fruits and pecans (Goldberg, 2017).
Iron is an important nutrient for plant growth and provides its green color, hence the most common presentation being in spring. James Walworth, a soil extension specialist at the University of Arizona, says it’s common to see a plant with iron deficiency alongside a thriving, healthy plant. Indeed, some plants cultivated and adapted to the region are able to acclimatize and extract nutrients from the soil in order to survive (Walworth, 2013).
While iron is present in our New Mexico soils, our alkaline soils bind iron, making it unavailable to plants. When left untreated, plants can eventually wither and / or die completely. Turning iron deficiency into efficiency doesn’t take a lot of effort on your part.
Iron can be purchased at your local garden store and / or online and must be chelated iron. Chelated iron allows iron to be available to the plant. Fe-EDDHA is the most efficient chelated iron source for our alkaline soils and can be applied directly to the soil (Walworth, 2013).
Foliar applications are best, avoiding the problem of high pH iron-binding soils that you apply directly to the soil. This strategy is best used in the spring and when temperatures are below 85 degrees Fahrenheit. If temperatures are above 85 degrees, leaf burns may occur and iron should be applied to the soil.
Overall, ferric chlorosis is a very common iron deficiency in our New Mexico landscape plants. Deficiency can cause leaves to turn yellow with green veins, but ultimately lead to decreased plant health and even plant death in extreme untreated cases.
Reversing the deficiency is fairly easy with products available at most nurseries, garden departments, and online. For more information on ferric chlorosis, please contact the Valencia County Extension Office or read the related publications below.
Ferrous Chlorosis NMSU: aces.nmsu.edu/pubs/_h/H171/welcome.html
UA Recognize and Treat Iron Deficiency in the Yard of the House: extension.arizona.edu/sites/extension.arizona.edu/files/pubs/az1415.pdf
Program announcements
For more information, visit the NMSU publication site: extension.nmsu.edu
Free virtual lessons are offered the first and third Wednesdays of the month from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. with Ready, Set, GROW!
To register for an upcoming program, call the Valencia County Cooperative Extension Service at 505-565-3002. For more information visit valenciaextension.nmsu.edu.
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