Here's one more picture :)

It may well be a combination of two issues: excessive water, and nitrogen/nutrient deficiency.

That little plastic dish at the bottom of your container is bad news. It holds water in the bottom of the container and doesn't allow it out. The roots end up sitting in a puddle of water, and that's very bad. Citrus especially hate wet feet. Get rid of the plastic saucer!

Secondly, I would recommend applying some citrus fertilizer per directions on the bag for container plants. Do not over fertilize or you will be sorry. you should also apply a foliar citrus nutritional spray per the directions on the bottle. Do NOT do this over your patio or you will be sorry. The nutrient spray will stain masonry like your patio very badly.

Oh, and you will have to decide what you want the tree to do. If yu want fruit, then let it keep whatever fruit it will hold (it's only got a few small fruits and doesn't look excessive to me.) if you want it to grow faster, remove the fruits so it can put its energy into growth.

However, you will need to repot that tree either way. I would suggest moving up to a larger pot and using a well draining mix... Do a search for 5-1-1 or Gritty Mix if you're feeling industrious, otherwise go with a good citrus/bougainvillea/quick draining mix. I'd say you should step up to a 15 gallon pot. If you're in an area where citrus can overwinter outside and you have room, in the ground is always best.

I think this tree is doing wonderful. Look at the position of the yellowing leaves - they're in the bottom of the branches, which means they're old, the leaves on the tops of the branches are perfectly healthy. I wouldn't worry about it.

Aaron......Just a few questions if you don't mind:-)

That many yellowing leaves and the lighter green throughout would cause me concern. Maybe we can green it up and stop the progression of the yellowing.

You need to take all the factors and lay them out, and then figure out the most limiting factor for the vitality of your tree. Putting in this time will reward you with optimal growth. So here a few questions to help you/us decide.

How much sunlight does your tree get?
How often do you fertilize and with what?
Does it have Ca. and Mg in it?
Do you own a barbecue wooden stick or a wooden dowel to test for moisture towards the bottom of the pot?
What kind of mix do you have and how long before it dries out?
How long do you go between waterings?
What kind of water do you use?
'''What is the 'pH' of your water'''''?
Do you ever flush your pots of dissolved salts?
Is your tree subjected to very cool temps, like let's say below 55 degrees?

This will help us help you. The more info you give about your cultural habits and the environment your tree is growing in would be great.

I am a believer in getting to the root of the problem and find that almost always that kind of massive yellowing is caused from something that can be simply fixed.

The last thing I'll do is treat with more fertilizer until I am absolutely certain it's not caused from unhappy roots begging for help to take up the nutrients it needs.:-0 )

This post was edited by meyermike_1micha on Sat, Jan 26, 13 at 20:13

Thanks for all the answers/help so far!

Slogfrog - I'll remove the plastic dish for sure. I'll add some more info regarding the fertilizer shortly, and as far as planting, no real area for that - so it's pot bound.

Evaldas - Thank you!

MeyerMike - Thanks again for the questions to help get the tree on the correct path, here's what I've got:

How much sunlight does your tree get? Pretty much full day, sunrise to sunset it has sun.

How often do you fertilize and with what? I just purchased the three in October, and it already had a good supply of the "time delayed citrus" type of deal in soil. I'd spoken to a local nursery (midcitynursery.com/), and they said to not add more of the fertilizer they'd normally say to use (Master Bloom 0-10-10 and a F.S.T.) since it already had/has the time delayed stuff in it, and to re-fert in Spring with a Master Start 5-20-10 or a E.B Fruit Tree food. So ... I haven't yet I guess you could say, other than what it came along with.

Does it have Ca. and Mg in it? They gave me a small container of it, but its something like the 'Scotts Citrus, Avocado time release fert'. (I'd have to wake the wife up atm to check on it).

Do you own a barbecue wooden stick or a wooden dowel to test for moisture towards the bottom of the pot?
What kind of mix do you have and how long before it dries out?
How long do you go between watering?

No, I don't own any of those, though the 5g container has four-six openings at the bottom and you can feel the soil. I've never felt it dry since my initial watering. Generally, I water about every 3 days, since I've had it, it hasn't been, well hot - but the wind helps dry it. Though I stopped watering during Dec, since it rained nearly every couple of days and the tree gets all the water it needs that way.

What kind of water do you use?
'''What is the 'pH' of your water'''?

City water (I'd have to check the pH).

Do you ever flush your pots of dissolved salts? No - not sure how or when to do this..

Is your tree subjected to very cool temps, like let's say below 55 degrees? Well, these past few weeks have been down into the 30's, it's actually 43F right now. When it's gotten extremely cold, I've brought the tree right up next to the house.

Any suggestions, tips or corrections to what I'm doing would be an awesome help (very new to all this).

thanks!
Aaron

Your Meyer looks to be seriously underfed; however, as Mike pointed out, it could be other factors. Your leaves should be the same color as your fruits. I never trust time-delay ferts; and your nurseryman is giving you bad advice. Meyers need a ratio of 3-1-2 NPK; I give my trees 18-6-12 with 2-3% each of Magnesium and Calcium and 1-2% Iron and Zinc; it is specially made for me, but you can look for a good citrus fertilizer... I like Vigoro Citrus and Avocado fert. If your soil or your water are high pH (over 7.5) it will compound the problem, as will cold soil relative to the air temps.

Hey Aaron.

To go along with John, I will try and address your answers.

Sun: Plenty

Fertilizer: John hit it on the nose. Maybe you can find a fertilizer that provides Ca and Mg and use a ratio close to what John says?
I use Foliage Pro. The ratio is which is 9 3 6, provides Ca and Mg and it does wonders for my container trees.

pH: I would call your tap water provider and find out what pH you are at. Most likely it's hard water and you will have to use vinegar. If your water solution is too alkaline, over 8.0, the your nutrients will not be available until you lower it making your nutrients available, making your leaves yellow as you can see.

Temps: Until your root zone reaches a high of 50/55 degrees or better on a consistent basis, you will lack nutrients within your tree. That is a cause of severe yellowing as you see.

Time release: It won't work in your pots unless temps are optimal in order to be released. I am not sure at what temps though. I can't recall, but certainly above 55 degrees and lower than 90.

Wooden dowel or barbecue stick: I would invest in one of these to make sure you are not over watering at this time of the year. Your root zone could still be moist when you think it's dry. Sulking cold wet roots will not take up nutrients and cause your fine roots to die of, leaving your plant susceptible to pests, and cause the yellowing that you see.

Flushing your pots: If you are using a peaty mix, then your mix more than likely harboring accumulated salts from fertilizers and tap water that can kill off your roots and cause the yellowing that you see.
Running fresh water through your potted plant once a month for at least i minute or more will solve that.

I forgot to ask you what kind of mix you use? It's always first and most important!

In short:

Raise your temps to above 50 degrees # 1, and make sure your mix can work for your roots in those cold temps when wet. Check your mix for moisture with a wooden dowel pushed into the root zone and water when it feels dry. Use a good fertilizer that provides all the nutrients your tree needs and in the right ratio, that is made available right away that you are in control of. Make sure your pH is lowered if above 8.0. You can use vinegar every time you water.
Give your tree plenty of sunlight, use a mix that is very porous allowing you to water frequently with no fear of root rot and salt deposits.

You should see your trees turn a nice green and flower for you soon! Here is a couple of pics I took tonight for you:-) Something is wrong with my camera, but you can see a little.

If you plan on leaving it outside in those temps, you may not loose your tree if it's in a good porous mix, but it may not color up until the roots are warmer than 50 degrees. I hope this helps you:-)

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This post was edited by meyermike_1micha on Sun, Jan 27, 13 at 18:40

Thanks Mike and John for all the tips and suggestions. I found some Foliage Pro on Amazon (doesn't look like anyone local sells it), so I'll pick up some of that and I'll look into the wooden dowel deal. Being the fact that it rained a ton, and its been so cold, I think I chalk up a good deal to that - but the fert sounds awesome, thanks for the tips.

As far as the question of the 'mix', well that 5gallon container it came in, is whatever it has. I'm hoping to repot it soon - suggestions on pot size, I think someone mentioned a 15g size (will that affect the size of the tree too much?)? Lastly, what type of mix do you guys recommend? There seems to be a vast amount of them out there. :\

Thanks!

Hi Aaron,
The only place I've heard of that carries Foliage Pro other than ordering online, is hydroponic stores.

The wooden dowels, can be found in places like Wal Mart in the grilling or kitchen gadgets, sold as shish-ka-bob skewers. No clue of the spelling. lol... but hope you get the idea. :-)

JoJo