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Citrus experiment
isy315
Posts: 11
Hello,
I've been keeping citrus trees for ~5 years. I have a super-healthy lime and an orange tree which enjoy:
Sunny sheltered position in garden in the summer (I'm in Southampton)
watering with lots of rainwater when the moisture metre reads 4
special citrus summer feed in summer and winter feed in winter
terracotta pots, with gritty potting mix that is 50% ericacious
they over-winter in the south-facing summerhouse which is kept just above 4C
So far, so good. But then the two lemon trees which enjoy exactly the same care...
One lemon tree (my first, not sure which variant) has lush foliage, but in five years had three flowers last spring, and one tiny lemon which died when we went on holiday and the plant dried out. Maybe it's young and needs time before it flowers more? It was a tiny thing when i bought it. I've kind of given up and enjoy it for its foliage, though I've started limiting the nitrogen-heavy fertiliser.
Then I purchased another, a Eureka, from a respectable online company last summer... This tree, it looks grafted (maybe this is normal?), had a ton of blossoms and now has lots of healthy lemons growing, but the foliage is sad. I don't think a new leaf has grown in a year since i purchased it. Some have gone yellow, some are turning yellow in the veins as though it doesn't get enough feed. I've tried foliar feeding and started feeding with seaweed extract for a wider nutrient range but out of ideas otherwise. I'm more worried about this one, as once all the leaves drop it won't sustain itself for long :-(
All four trees are treated exactly the same, I can't find anything online about why a tree wouldn't grow new leaves. Does anyone have any suggestions? Absolutely no sign of disease, one winter we had a few scale insects and caterpillars but leaves are clean now. I might contact the company if it doesn't pick up.
Thanks,
Isy
I've been keeping citrus trees for ~5 years. I have a super-healthy lime and an orange tree which enjoy:
Sunny sheltered position in garden in the summer (I'm in Southampton)
watering with lots of rainwater when the moisture metre reads 4
special citrus summer feed in summer and winter feed in winter
terracotta pots, with gritty potting mix that is 50% ericacious
they over-winter in the south-facing summerhouse which is kept just above 4C
So far, so good. But then the two lemon trees which enjoy exactly the same care...
One lemon tree (my first, not sure which variant) has lush foliage, but in five years had three flowers last spring, and one tiny lemon which died when we went on holiday and the plant dried out. Maybe it's young and needs time before it flowers more? It was a tiny thing when i bought it. I've kind of given up and enjoy it for its foliage, though I've started limiting the nitrogen-heavy fertiliser.
Then I purchased another, a Eureka, from a respectable online company last summer... This tree, it looks grafted (maybe this is normal?), had a ton of blossoms and now has lots of healthy lemons growing, but the foliage is sad. I don't think a new leaf has grown in a year since i purchased it. Some have gone yellow, some are turning yellow in the veins as though it doesn't get enough feed. I've tried foliar feeding and started feeding with seaweed extract for a wider nutrient range but out of ideas otherwise. I'm more worried about this one, as once all the leaves drop it won't sustain itself for long :-(
All four trees are treated exactly the same, I can't find anything online about why a tree wouldn't grow new leaves. Does anyone have any suggestions? Absolutely no sign of disease, one winter we had a few scale insects and caterpillars but leaves are clean now. I might contact the company if it doesn't pick up.
Thanks,
Isy
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