Speaking of stands my fig tree is too tall for its east facing window so I prop it up at a 60 angle so that the leaves are in the window and get a head blast of sunlight as the sun rises in the morning. I then shift it to a south facing window around noon to catch the south sun. through a south Window. That way the fig tree shares the light with the much small kumquat trees in the window sill. This might be an option for you.. As of this writing though all of my plant are out side all day but I still have to bring them in at night to keep the roots at a good growing temperature. Good luck

First time Gardner, I can answer that. It's technically probably a 'semi' dwarf. But in a container kept tree we can limit size by pruning roots and tops. There are grafted trees regarded more as 'dwarf' that are on Flying Dragon rootstock. But even those can grow to become a proper little tree. I have some on their own roots that I limit their overall size by pruning them pretty aggressively in the early spring. (I also prune the roots back to keep them in the same sized containers) By offering root space the tops tend to grow much better. Citrus grow so quickly in just a couple months they can add back 4ft of growth! Grafted trees tend to grow slower though but still need pruned to maintain a shorter bushy type shape. Hope that helps explain a bit more.

Definitely something about the heat with Key limes, as it is really interestingly apparent here where I live, which is a stone's throw to Mexico (well, maybe more like an hour drive, but you get my meaning). I'm kind of right on the line so to speak, for Key (Mexican) limes. I'm about 6 miles from the ocean, and we get get just barely enough heat for them to do well here. They do better further inland in S. California, but we do have an old Key lime grove that is not being well tended right near me along the water authority road, and the trees are just crammed full of lovely little Key limes. We walk up there several times a week in the evening, and pluck off bags of Key limes for our margaritas, limeade, cooking, etc. But, when I was planning on planting citrus here, I opted to plant a Bearss lime (Persian lime) because frankly, they do better here. All limes need heat, some more than others. Plus, Bearss have a lot more juice, although they aren't quite as "limey" as the Key lime is. So, it is heat, heat and more heat for limes. And even my Bearss lime is one of the least vigorous of all my citrus here on my property. It's coming along, but a little more slowly than some of the other better suited citrus. Interestingly, we never refer to them as Persian limes here, just as Bearss limes :-) AMaji, how much sunshine and heat is your little lime tree getting?? Is it in a protected area? How frequently are your fertilizing it, now? At this point, you'll want to stop fertilizing (probably stop in July for your area), so you don't end up with tender new flush being at risk for freezing. I would start fertilizing next spring after danger of frost is over, and make sure it's getting full sun all day long in a nice, protected area. It should eventually flower for you. Love Bearss limes for all their juice. Patty S.

Take a paper/plastic cup and punch a small hole in the bottom. Fill it with your mix and then put your finger over the hole while you fill with water. Remove your finger from the hole and leave it to drain. The perched water will remain. You can see it if you have used a clear plastic cup. Insert a toothpick into the hole. The perched water will drain out. The toothpick acts as a wick and will demonstrate why you generally need a wick in anything other than gritty mix. This test will show you how much perched water your mix retains but bear in mind it will hold more over time as the mix degrades. Organic mixes will degrade faster. I use a mix similar to the one you are considering in pots that I expect to last a year or so before re-potting or planting. Just buy a rayon mop and use a few strands to make a wick. Tie a knot to keep it from falling through the screen that you use over the drain hole. I put about 4" of mix in the bottom while holding the wick vertically. You can find pictures in Al's thread on water movement in container soils, which you should read carefully. It has lots of great info but bear in mind they are mostly talking about wetter parts of the country. If you buy the typical nursery citrus in heavy organic mix, I would remove all the loose parts. After setting the loosened rootball on the mix and confirming planting height, I usually add a bit of mix at a time and use the Dramm Water Breaker nozzle on my hose to gently loosen the roots and let the nursery mix and the new planting mix combine. You want to avoid any sharp changes in potting mix. This is the opposite of just plopping the plant in the pot and filling it up with planting mix. This post was edited by GregBradley on Fri, Oct 11, 13 at 11:57