Plants don't age in the same way we think of people aging. Age in people is a described on a chronological basis, where plants age ontogenetically. This might be framed as, the parts that have taken the most cell divisions to produce are the plant's oldest parts; so strangely, the most recent part of the plant (say, a new branch high on the plant) to grow is the oldest part of the plant. The youngest part of the plant will be found in the root to shoot transition zone. This juvenile part of the plant is also nearly always the most vigorous part of the plant. Plants pass through life stages until they end up at the sexually mature stage. At that point they are capable of blooming/fruiting. Whether they DO or not is complicated and not entirely understood. Blooming and other environmental reactions of most healthy plants are primarily influenced by day length (technically it's night length), but more than a few plants are triggered by other factors, like moisture availability, temperature, predation. Some plants even seem to have an internal 'alarm clock' that acts as a trigger to bloom. There are species of bamboo that bloom as infrequently as every 130 years and when the bloom occurs, all plants of a given genetic origin bloom simultaneously, en masse (all at once), and this occurs regardless of environmental influences. Now, that a plant is capable of blooms/fruit doesn't mean it will produce same, no matter how much we hope. The factors that limit a plant's ability to bloom are as complicated as those that trigger blooming. The plant's internal chemical messengers that limit blooming is first influenced by the plants ontogenetic age, but then by health, stress, stored energy reserves, a significant number of environmental factors, and sometimes seemingly no more than a built-in piqued obstinacy that can be more irritating than Justin Bieber or the Kardashians, if that's even possible. How do I get it to bloom? Keep it healthy and let it do its thing. You can search online - there might be some simple ways to coax it to bloom exactly whenever it feels like it. How old does it have to be? The only age important to plants is what growth phase they're in. They have to be old enough chronologically to have reached sexual maturity. This is also complicated because the (ontogenetic) age of the parent plant from which the propagule (that is now your plant) was taken has to be a part of the equation. Example - a hawthorn tree from seed needs to survive around 20-25 growth cycles to bloom; whereas, a cutting from a blooming hawthorn tree can be counted on blooming within a few years if its state of vitality has been generally good. Al

I lost a newly planted Mountain Ash one particularly wet year and the nurseryman said yes, too wet -they prefer a light, very well drained soil (rocky, or on a slope). Once they are well established, I'm not sure if that's so much an issue unless perhaps it is planted in a consistently wet/compacted spot.

Hi Bill, I am so sorry about your beautiful peach tree and I hope that you can find the cure soon. I don't know what is causing but is there the possibility that someone near by sprayed an herbicide or something and the wind spread to your tree? I heard people saying that sometimes. I know that in the u-pick farm he told me that some of his peach trees died but I think it was related to the cold, next time that I go there I will ask him more about it. If you are following the same schedule for feeding and watering, check maybe for bugs even if you have to use a magnifying glass, somebody in the forum said they use that for seeing the bugs like thrips. Let us know what you find out and good luck, I hope that your tree heals soon. Silvia

Every year we get fantastical explanations for chlorosis in the fall. All anyone has to do is stick their head out the window and look for fall colors. If you see Maple trees turning red and yellow your citrus will have chlorosis soon enough, unless you supplement them with artificial light. At least a dozen maybe more reasons this is clearly not a salt build-up. Toronto Canada gets only 150 hours of sunlight in October. A small fraction of that if you are growing in the window. Yes Jeff you need a grow light and a grow tent if possible. It is that time of year. Sonnet 73: That time of year thou mayst in me behold BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE That time of year thou mayst in me behold When yellow leaves, or none, or few, do hang Upon those boughs which shake against the cold, Bare ruin'd choirs, where late the sweet birds sang. In me thou see'st the twilight of such day As after sunset fadeth in the west, Which by and by black night doth take away, Death's second self, that seals up all in rest. In me thou see'st the glowing of such fire That on the ashes of his youth doth lie, As the death-bed whereon it must expire, Consum'd with that which it was nourish'd by. This thou perceiv'st, which makes thy love more strong, To love that well which thou must leave ere long.