Changing pH in the leaf surface may work. It could be the reason
seasoned locals plant a can of Red Devil Lye (sodium hydroxide) near the
drip line of a pecan tree claiming it causes a more numerous pecan
yield. Scoffing at the idea was my bent and still is. One cousin who
does this sells pecans and I never have enough to take to market.
I never asked him what he does with the new plastic containers. He used
to punch holes in the old type cardboard containers prior to planting
them. I use zinc fertilizer because of what I was taught by
horticulturists.
Lye could abate the disease which causes some pecans to develop nice
shells with a deformed kernal, previously mentioned.¿Quién Sabe?
"The power of accurate observation is called cynicism by those lacking
it".
Doc Lisenby
Zone 7/8