Potted Eureka lemon tree yellowing, sparse leaves, small fruit.
cluelessinthegarden
9 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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jean001a
9 years agoRelated Discussions
Eureka Dwarf Lemon Tree - something weird with the leaves
Comments (7)Cece. I'm not sure your lemon has insects..the holes are pretty large for most plant bugs, at least bugs I'm familiar with. What state are you in? And what state was your tree purchased from? I'm in IL, and during summer when citrus go outdoors, flying bugs come fluttering by..every so often, they nibble leaves, but by autumn all signs of insects are gone. The bad thing is they leave holes, the good thing is bugs die in days, and do not linger and kill like plant pests. To be on the safe side, inspect for bugs. Scale, Mealy, Spider Mite, Aphids, Leaf Miner..I'm not sure I covered them all, but those mentioned are insects to worry about. Normally, when insects attack, they leave signs. Yellow and/or sticky leaves, webbing, brown or white bumps, white cottony patches. I notice most rips are on the edges of leaves..Is it possible something is rubbing up against your tree? Human or animal? By the size of the tree, it'd have to be one animal..When a leaf rips it commonly browns. For starters, hose off your lemon..if you have a sprayer, add a 2-4 drops of liquid dish soap. (Not Dawn) But before spraying, check for signs of pests. If you spot any signs of plant insects, you can treat according to bug. As for flowering/fruiting, when a plant is stressed, it sometimes halts production..Actually, until you find out what's causing the problem, lack of fruits might be best. Flowering/fruiting takes energy. Toni...See MoreMeyer lemon - small leaves turn yellow and drop
Comments (6)Here are three pictures from this afternoon. The small leaf in the container must be a newly dropped one some time today. I am in central WI. Our weather this week looks to range from 82F-88F with majority of days on the lower end. The lows are in the mid 60s. I will note that I do not think the tree has grown. At least there appears to be no new buds. I've had it for just over 3 weeks now. Note: I removed the stake once and the tree was angled about 45 degrees when I went out to look at it one day. I have it re-staked and tied near the very bottom now. This post was edited by Neurosci on Fri, Jul 5, 13 at 19:48...See MoreEureka Lemon - curling leaves / why?
Comments (4)Interesting. I seem to not get the balance right, obviously. I read that Citrus do NOT like to be too wet - and in fact some articles go as far to suggest they need to dry out between waterings. In my case, I had been allowing the top couple of inches to dry out before soaking again. In fact when I dig down with my finger the soil (closer to the root area) is in fact still moist even while the top layer is dry. Confused .... :-(...See MoreAdvice for my sad container Eureka lemon tree?
Comments (8)Hi Kotlet00. Canada has some of the best peat bogs in the world. They are 90% of Canadian wetlands and they cover approximately 113.65 million hectares. Canada produces 1.34 million tons annually. The United States imports 87% of our annual production representing 95% of their peat imports. In the Province of Ontario pine fines are not used and they are not sold at garden centers. You can buy larger chunks of bark for pathways but it does not have the same properties as the tiny pine fines. In the United States it is a regional product and some states it is readily available and in other states it is unavailable. You can find some recipes for potting mix at Four Winds Growers website. Rose soil works well. You can go to any cannabis shop in Vancouver and buy a premium bag of potting soil. Avoid potting soils with wetting agents as they will keep citrus roots too wet. Look for potting soil with a maximum humidity of 60%. Citrus roots want to be in the 40-60% moisture range. I prefer clay pots without ceramic as they will dry out and breath. You want the pot not too much bigger than the root ball. If you put a small root ball in a large pot the soil at the bottom of the pot will remain wet and the root ball will begin to dry out....See Morecluelessinthegarden
9 years agojean001a
9 years agohoosierquilt USDA 10A Sunset 23 Vista CA
9 years ago
johnmerr
9 years agomeyermike_1micha
9 years agocluelessinthegarden
9 years agocluelessinthegarden
9 years agoincunable1453
9 years ago
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