Plant disease on a calamondin?*

(Question)

Hi there,

I purchased a calamondin bush for a friend whose plant I accidentally killed when I exposed it to scale.
Upon bringing the new plant home, I now realize there is a white dusts on the leaves. Now I’m worried the replacement plant is sick! Please help- is this normal or is this a plant problem!?

(Answer)

 

Thank you for contacting Toronto Master Gardeners.

The Calamondin is a hybrid cross between a mandarin orange and a kumquat.

It is a strong plant which prefers to be outside but is able to grow well indoors. The Calamondin is susceptible to only a few diseases. One is scale which you have previously experienced and the other is mites.

With mites you would see yellowing leaves and sometimes small webs and the plant would look sickly. To be absolutely sure you can put a white paper underneath and shake the branch. If there are mites they will fall on the paper.

Another occasional issue is powdery mildew but that would be very pronounced. You may also be seeing may be a residue left over from something the nursery sprayed on the leaves. This can be hard to wash off as it is not always water soluble. If you want to be sure it is not something that is spreading you can take a picture a day or two apart and see if the marks remain exactly the same.

The following link provides some general information about growing citrus trees indoors.

https://www.torontomastergardeners.ca/askagardener/calamondin-orange-tree-growing-indoors-janet/