Curling leaves on azalea


I live in the San Francisco Bay Area, near the southern end
of the bay. A few days ago, I discovered that the leaves on
one of my Southern Indica azaleas (a variety called 'Southern
Charm') had curled up along their length. Other than the curling,
the plant looks perfectly healthy. The leaves aren't discolored
and show no signs of distress or insects.

Here's a closeup of one cluster of curled leaves:
http://www.wintertime.com/OH/Azalea/azalea-leaves.jpg

A wider shot showing the foliage area of the plant (it's
a standard/topiary form):
http://www.wintertime.com/OH/Azalea/azalea-body.jpg
(Normally, the branches would not be visible; they'd be
hidden behind the fully opened leaves, as with the low-
growing azaleas in the next photo.)

And a photo of the full tree (note the happy bush-form
Southern Indicas below it):
http://www.wintertime.com/OH/Azalea/azalea-full.jpg

I've been reading back postings on this group and the information
on some websites, and the two most common causes of such curl
seem to be cold, windy weather, and fungi. Although we did have
some high winds several days ago, they were accompanied by rain
and took place in 40-50-degree weather, so it seems unlikely
that the plant is protecting itself from cold, dry conditions.

That leaves me wondering about a fungus. But wouldn't that
cause more damage than just curling?

I put some ground-up oak leaves around the plant a couple of
weeks ago, along with some coir mulch (Mulch Block). I kept
the mulch a few inches away from the trunk of the azalea
(it's a standard/topiary form), but I treated the oak leaves
as a soil amendment and let them get quite close to the trunk.
Was that a mistake? I did the same thing a few months ago with
no problems, but maybe it wasn't a good idea in rainy weather?
I've now pushed everything out several inches, although if
it did allow a fungus to take hold, I realize that moving
the leaves and mulch isn't enough to solve the problem.

As you saw if you looked at the wide-angle photo, I have other
Southern Indicas in the same landscaping bed, and they're all
looking great. They were put in two years ago; the Southern
Charm went in last spring. So the others are better established,
if that matters.

Should I put some fungicide on the roots, or could something
else be causing the leaf curl?


Thanks!
Patty

.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Whats eating my garden?
    ... I've also planted a couple of Eggplant and some Pattypan Squash. ... I've had things get eaten in the past - but always the fruits of the plant, not the leaves. ... it could be slugs. ... I think last year I had some cutworms or something that ate the stems of the smaller pepper plants and killed them, so I went out and bought some aromatic cedar mulch and that seemed to keep most things away. ...
    (rec.gardens.edible)
  • Re: Stupid question from a newbie
    ... Where you start with plants, mulch first, plant second. ... Where you start with small seeds, scratch the soil, plant seeds, keep ... I make my own seedless soil by sifting compost, ...
    (rec.gardens)
  • Re: Mulching my allotment
    ... I was wondering which plants should i apply mulch around ... plant or can i just plant through it? ... For things like corn (do you call that maize in the UK? ... Also mulch any fallow beds to prevent weeds and to feed your worm population and then when you need to plant, just scrape the mulch back with your hand and you'll probalby find that the soil is so friable you won't need to do anything other than to loosen the soil with a hand fork. ...
    (rec.gardens.edible)
  • Re: Mulching my allotment
    ... I have read about the benefits of mulching (weed suppresent, ... I was wondering which plants should i apply mulch around ... plant or can i just plant through it? ... For things like corn (do you ...
    (rec.gardens.edible)