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Potted Eureka lemon tree yellowing, sparse leaves, small fruit.

cluelessinthegarden

11 years ago

We live in Los Angeles and have a potted Eureka lemon tree. We've had it for about 7 years. The tree is in direct sunlight for the majority of the day.

For the past year our tree has been in pretty bad shape. At first I thought my husband was overwatering it so I told him to cut back on the watering. He now only waters it about once every week and a half, and a bit more in the summer.

As you can see from the picture, despite the sad and sparse state of the leaves, the tree is still flowering and bearing fruit, although the fruit seem to be small. Also, the top branches of the tree are completely bare.

After doing a bit of research, it seems like this problem may be caused by a deficiency or toxicity perhaps? We just use LA tap water out of the hose to water it and use a citrus fertilizer as directed.

Would greatly appreciate it if someone could help in identifying the cause of this problem and telling me what I can do to rectify it. Is there something I can add to the water or soil or maybe I should repot it in new soil? Thanks so much!

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cluelessinthegarden
Original Author

10 years ago

Just wanted to thank everyone for your help in turning my lemon tree around! As you can see from the picture it's doing much better!

We repotted it, gave it some iron and citrus fertilizer and in a few months it went from sad, sparse, yellow leaves to this.

Thanks so much for the tips! Love this forum!

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Comments (11)

cluelessinthegarden
Original Author
11 years ago
One more pic
jean001a
11 years ago
Hats it been in that container all along? If not, when did you last re-pot it?

Do you use any fertilizer?
If so,what, how much & how often?
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cluelessinthegarden
Original Author
11 years ago
We re-potted it into a bigger container about 4 years ago.

We use Lilly Miller Citrus and Avocado Food 4 times per year, 1/2 cup per feeding, as directed on the box for potted plants.
jean001a
11 years ago
It looks seriously stressed. Past time for re-potting again.
hoosierquilt USDA 10A Sunset 23 Vista CA
11 years ago
I agree with Jean. I would use a very well draining mix. I use EB Stone's Cactus Mix, but there is also a good recipe on our forum to "511" mix or "gritty" mix that you can search out. Definitely needs to be repotted, and the roots straightened out if you see they're circling in this small pot. Also, I would consider switching fertilizers. 4 fertilizer applications a year for a container citrus is not nearly enough. Fine for in-ground citrus, but not for container citrus. I would consider using Dyna Gro's Foliage Pro, and use 1/2 strength with every watering. And, I would also supplement with Osmocote Plus (it must be the "Plus" formulation so you have the best NPK ratio along with all the micros, very important). Your tree is in bad shape. I would expect after re-potting and correct fertilizing and watering that you'll see these old leaves drop, pushed out with new flush.

Patty S.
johnmerr
11 years ago
You aren't by chance watering the tree with water from a water softener??? You would be amazed how many plants are killed that way.
meyermike_1micha
11 years ago
I would flush, flush, flush your mix out and stop using slow release organics that take for ever to get utilized by your plants in a containers and that can turn your mix toxic if residual salts in a clogged mix are left behind. Bad combination for any plant.

Or you could repot into a very good well draining mix immediately, washing all the old mix off and follow Patty's advice.

Yes, soft water can terribly affect potted plants.

Good luck and have a great night:-)

Mike
cluelessinthegarden
Original Author
11 years ago
Thank you everyone for taking the time to give me all of this great advice So glad I found this site!

We don't have a water softener so at least I know that's not the problem. Will definitely follow all of your great advice and hopefully my little tree will get better.

Thanks so much!
cluelessinthegarden
Original Author
11 years ago
BTW, hoosierquilt, where can you find these potting soils and fertilizers? I tried looking them up on Lowes and OSH but they don't seem to have them. Is there a specialty garden store that might have them or do I have to order them online? Many thanks.
incunable1453
10 years ago
Wow! Nicely done! It looks fantastic. You give those of us who struggle sometimes hope. :-)

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