BEATING CROP NUTRIENT DEFICIENCY
The RLF Story in a Jun Jujube Plantation

According to statistics from the Agricultural Technology Department, the diseases caused by crop nutrient deficiency is becoming a worrying problem.

Nutrient deficiency causes crop lobular, yellowing, withering, chlorosis and deformed fruit amongst others, which in turn leads to the occurrence of other diseases. And farmers easily misjudge the symptoms of deficiency, and therefore delay timely treatment.

The following story is of a 30-mu (2 hectares) Jun jujube plantation in the area of Xinjiang. The leaves of jujube trees were seriously
yellowing and the fruit setting was not good. If not improved in time, it would seriously affect the late commodity fruit rate and yield.

Setting the Scene – The Problem and The Location

The leaves are yellowed and have brown spots,
similar to burning
The farmer (left) and an RLF Technician in the
jujube field prior to foliar spraying

The RLF Crop Nutrition Program for the Jujube Crop

The overall condition of the orchard before spraying

Return Visits to Review the Results

1. The return visit on 19th July 2019, saw the leaf colour returning to normal. The colour was a deepening green, and the leaf was thickened and smooth.
2. The return visit on 4th August 2019, saw the leaves of jujube yards completely returned to normal and thick green. The tree was stable, and the yellowing of leaves was not repeated.

What Causes this Problem

There are many reasons for jujube leaf yellowing.

1. Due to the occurrence of bacterial scab, jujube rust, dry rot and other diseases, early defoliation, insufficient nutrition of the tree body and weak tree potential is caused, resulting in yellowing of the leaves.
2. The tree is weak, and the water and nutrient deficiency cause yellowing of the leaves
3. Low terrain and serious waterlogging contribute to this cause as well.
4. Root disease, or excessive application of chemical fertilisers, causing damage, rotten or dead roots, insufficient supply of
water and nutrients.
5. Deficiency symptoms, such as iron deficiency, nitrogen deficiency, phosphorus deficiency, sulfur deficiency, copper deficiency, zinc deficiency, manganese deficiency and so on, can all cause leaf yellowing.

As was discovered with the Jujube plantation, in addition to improving the external growth environment of the crop, it is necessary
to supplement sufficient nutrients and solve the nutritional imbalance inside the tree through a nutritional fertiliser program.
This is also the key to the high yield and quality improvement of the jujube yards.