How to treat persimmon and fig trees with spots on leaves?

AD

Dear Workshop team,

I have a young persimmon and fig trees as well as a mature plum tree and noticed the following:

brown spots on the persimmon tree Whitish spots on the fig tree leaves
Wholes on the plum tree.

I have attached photos.

could you advise how to best treat them?

thank you.

A

EricL

Hello @AD

Thanks for sharing the photos, they’re really helpful, and you’re definitely not imagining things. You’ve got a few different issues going on, but the good news is that none of them look terminal, especially if the trees are otherwise growing well.

On the persimmon, the brown patches and irregular dead areas on the leaves are most consistent with a fungal leaf spot, which persimmons are quite prone to, especially in warm weather with overhead watering or periods of humidity. These spots usually start small, then merge into larger brown areas with slightly darker margins, exactly like what your leaf shows. Treatment is mostly cultural rather than chemical.

Remove and bin affected fallen leaves so spores don’t overwinter, avoid watering the foliage, and improve airflow around the tree if it’s crowded. If the problem keeps returning year after year, a copper-based fungicide applied early in the season as new leaves emerge can help, but at this stage of the season it’s more about hygiene than spraying.

On the fig, the whitish speckling across the leaf surface looks like sap-sucking insect damage rather than a disease. This pattern is very typical of spider mites or thrips, which rasp the leaf surface and leave behind pale dots that can look dusty or silvery. Flip the leaves over and you’ll often see fine webbing or tiny moving dots if mites are present. Figs are magnets for these in hot, dry conditions. Regularly hosing the undersides of the leaves with a strong spray of water helps a lot. If needed, follow up with insecticidal soap or neem oil, making sure to coat the undersides thoroughly. Avoid broad-spectrum insecticides, as they tend to make mite problems worse by killing beneficial predators.

On the plum, the holes in the leaves are classic chewing insect damage, most commonly from caterpillars or beetles, and sometimes from cherry slug larvae, which are actually sawfly larvae and very common on plums. The “shot hole” look where tissue has been eaten away rather than browned and dropped points strongly to insects rather than disease. Check the leaves closely, especially early morning or evening, for small green caterpillars or dark, slug-like larvae on the undersides. Hand removal works well on a mature tree if the numbers are low. If damage increases, a product containing Bacillus thuringiensis for caterpillars or spinosad for general chewing pests is effective and relatively gentle on beneficial insects.

Across all three trees, keeping them well-watered but not waterlogged, feeding them appropriately, and cleaning up fallen leaves will go a long way toward reducing stress and repeat issues. Healthy trees tolerate minor leaf damage far better than stressed ones, and most of what you’re seeing now is more cosmetic than dangerous, especially this late in the season.

Please remember to wear personal protection such as gloves, goggles and a mask when using chemical sprays.

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Eric