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chrysbiz

boron toxicity and leaching

17 years ago

My orange tree seems to be suffering from boron toxicity. The only two solutions I've read about are leaching and the addition of "soil sulfur."

I don't quite understand the soil sulfur approach, except that the soil sulfur will convert to sulfuric acid in the soil, which will make the soil more acidic... and this will somehow decrease the boron level.

Leaching seems straightforward, but the soil is very clayey and I'm afraid I might kill the tree with too much water. I've heard that leaching boron requires a great deal of water and that it will likely be very difficult to leach boron from a clayey soil, especially if that soil is alkaline. (I haven't tested the pH yet, but the soil is likely to be alkaline as both the local soil and groundwater in the area are alkaline.)

Regarding the diagnosis of boron toxicity... I contacted a Master Gardener and have been given a diagnosis of overwatering and severe iron deficiency... but I'm not convinced. In addition to the yellow mottling on the leaves, the leaves have brown spots and very significant leaf drop from the outer canopy... both symptoms of boron toxicity. (The tree is planted in a lawn and gets sprinkled regularly with city water in the summer.)

What to do? I thought about testing the boron concentration with an aquarium testing kit, but don't know if the kit will tell me the total boron or the amount of boron available for plant uptake. Of course, I'll need to know the pH before amending the soil with anything. Any thoughts?

Thanks.

Comments (7)

  • 17 years ago

    Where did the boron toxicity diagnosis come from? You mentioned that a master gardener diagnosed the problem as iron deficiency and overwatering but didn't mention where the boron diagnosis came from.

    yellow mottling, brown spots and leaf drop can be symptoms of many things, including iron deficiency (especially if you have alkaline soil).

    Soil sulfur treats iron chlorosis, so if it treats boron toxicity as well, that might be the first thing to do either way.

    soil sulfur works best incorporated into the soil (not just spread on the surface). For a tree, you want to treat the area mostly around the drip line (near the outer edge of the tree limbs).

    Buy a bulb auger and drill holes around the drip line staggering them around the tree. Make them 12-18 inches deep. Fill them to within 4-6 inches of the surface with soil sulfur and cover them with the soil that you removed with the auger. Water the sulfur in.

    When you water, water deeply. Wait until the soil is dry to a depth of at least 4 inches (preferably 6 or more) before watering again.

  • 17 years ago

    Since high levels of Boron are found in the irrigation water in California attempting to leach the excess from your soil, using the water that contains high levels of Boron would be counterproductive. In some instances it appears this is more of a problem in soils lacking sufficient organic matter. What is your soil humus level?

  • 17 years ago

    Since high levels of Boron are found in the irrigation water in California......

    That depends entirely upon the water source, of which there are many. (trust me on this one)

    Whether or not leaching with water that contains boron will be effective in removing boron also has to do with the soil and water chemistry involved. (trust me again)

  • 17 years ago

    chrysbiz, can you please be more specific as to where you live? If you live in Boron, then I might suspect excess boron, but if you live in Eureka, I would not.

    How often do you water the orange tree? Is it set off by itself or does it get water from lawn irrigation?

    Is the tree in full sun?

    What is your soil like (clayey or sandy)?

    After reading these forums for many years, boron is a weird diagnosis. Usually nothing will grow if there is too much boron and the difference between enough and too much is a thin line. Have you irrigated with laundry water? Have you used boric acid or borax around the house for anything?

  • 17 years ago

    Here's a photo of the problem. I haven't noticed any gumminess. I decided to feed it some Ironite. Thank you for your input.

    {{gwi:267866}}

  • 17 years ago

    Here's another photo.
    {{gwi:267867}}