Meyer lemon dropping healthy leaves - new theory...

18 years ago

This is a continuation of my earlier thread.

After much internet research I'm now thinking that my problem has to do with an unusual fluctuation in temperature. Apparantly this is a common cause of excessive leaf drop.

I live very close to the beach, so it is often overcast and/or hazy in summer. It could be 85 degrees a couple of miles inland, but 65 degrees at the beach. Anyway, the last week or so has been unusually warm after a long period of hazy weather. Probably around 80 degrees, but compounded by the location of the plant on a narrow deck which reflects a lot of heat. I wouldn't be surprised if the temperate on the deck was +15 or 20 degrees. Here is a picture of the deck which contains a Key lime (in foreground), and the Meyer lemon in the background:

Anyway, I was thinking it's odd that the Key lime hasn't lost a leaf in recent memory, and yet the Meyer has been shedding them like crazy. They are both in the same size pot, same soil, same watering and fertilizing schedule and everything. So maybe the Key lime is more tolerant of the change in temperature? Does this sound like a plausable theory?

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Comments (5)

gman68558
Original Author
18 years ago
Went home at lunch today. Air temp 80, deck temperature 105!!
gcmastiffs
18 years ago
My citrus are on a dark colored concrete patio, in full sun. The patio is so hot at mid day that it will scorch bare feet instantly. The citrus are doing great, putting out lots of new growth and have many fruits. So I don't think they mind heat, as long as they get enough water.

Meyer Lemon trees are very, very picky and tend to drop leaves and pretend to die at any slight change.
Your Key Lime is lovely!

Lisa
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Gman, products like "Earthjuice Microblast" (which I never even heard of), "Superthrive" and the whole lot of "Miracle Cures" (which there are many) are as you probably already suspect, never ever used, nor are they even recognized as valuable resources by commerical citrus producers nor by the citrus industry in general. They are never used by them, and the reason is they don't work. A MOST intreguing aspect of your tree, is that for a tree going through some sort of stress resulting in leaf drop, the tree still looks rather healthy. I must admit it has me puzzled. As you live in California, a citrus producing state, there is always the chance that the tree has a foliar disease. However, I think the tree's problem had something to do with the growing medium. The tree had a lot of roots, but out of all the root structure I only seen one (1) new little white root tip. Only one! All the roots were only the older roots, having the light tannish brown coloration. There has not been any new growth. I believe if you had not transplanted the tree the leaf drop whould have continued. Here is what I think will happen (I hope will happen). The leaf drop will continue for a little while longer, then stop. New root growth will develop due to the high aeration, excellent drainage and natural pH afforded by the CHC/peat moss medium. A new general flush will restore the tree's folage after the roots have generated some new growth tips. I would not fertilize for a while, then keep any fertilizer application below 200 PPM, 150-PPM might be better. Good luck to your tree. Drop me an e-mail using "My Page" I would like to know of the tree's progress. Regards - Millet
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Oftentimes, the damage caused by over watering cannot be 'fixed' by drying the soil out. Planting into a VERY coarse, rapid draining potting mix can go a long ways in preventing problems in the first place, even for those who tend to be chronic over-waterers. LOTS of us are guilty of this at some point, lol! Using a great deal of perlite, bark fines, and/or Turface (for example) insure that you'll have plenty of large pore spaces in your potting mix to promote the essential water drainage and a constant oxygen supply required for healthy root growth within a container. Please know, too, that moisture meters are notoriously inaccurate.
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nina 313 and bdeller1, you each should start a new thread to get good answers to your questions. Tagging onto an old post will get you a lot less replies. People look at the start date and figure the subject of the post is no longer relevant. nina, we could use some better pics of the whole tree, and bdeller, we need pics from you too. Each person's own thread should include info about your watering habits, how much and how often. Any fertilizer or anything else you've added, how much, when and why. How long you've owned it. Also give info about the soil your tree is in; original from nursery, or re-potted, brand and/or ingredients of the soil. Is it kept indoors or outdoors, indoors only in winter, outdoors in summer, and if indoors, what kind of light, ie in front of window(window direction), or grow lights or combination. Help us help you. : ) Also, if you start your own thread, you can track answers to it in your "your houzz" area.
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Hgonet....Unfortunely for me it's better to put my trees in the shade when I take off for a few days than to leave them in the sun. Sometimes your pots stay wet even though it's hot because the roots will just shut down and stop taking up moisture which leaves them left to die in a sea of plenty, especially with constant moisture..If the roots are healthy enough, they will start to take up moisture again once they cool off a bit. Hopefully they were not susceptible to spide mites at a time when the leaves were weak...Do check for them and until the roots cool off, don't fertilize to make it worst... As for mites, just because you don't see webs, does not mean you do not have them. BY the time you see webbing, it can be too late to save any plant or to stop and epidemic of them from killing your tree and other plants near by. That is why you need a magnifying glass to examine the underneath of the leaves very carefully It should be a monthly ritual to check for them, especially in winter. Prevention is always the best cure...One treatment does not rid them for good either...You need to do several days apart to kill the adults and hatching eggs too..At this time of the year, spraying down the leaves almost every day in the a.m can go a long way preventing mites from taking hold.
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drichard12
18 years ago
I would dump the dirt and move it to CHC & Peat ...Meyers have a mind of there own ..So to speak...Look at the leaves if the stem is attached to the tree,,,,Than the tree is stressed,,,,Its hard to see in your photos but try to keep the pot off the flooring, for better airation .You may be overwatering

I also want to let you know that I really like your pots.They are VERY VERY (NICE)....Dale
gman68558
Original Author
18 years ago
Lisa, thank you. The Key lime is lovely and is on it's third major bloom. Trouble is, so far none of the many little fruitlets have stayed on the tree. I guess that's normal for young trees, but it's frustrating!

Dale, yes all the stems remain on the tree, so there is some kind of stress. I am moving to CHC's ASAP - I found a supplier about an hour drive from me but alas just found out they are closed on the weekend! I have a day off next week so will go pick some up then. Good tip on raising the pots. I did put a couple of bottle caps (since I had a few lying around) under the sides of the pots that are somewhat downhill, but I could probably do more. Thanks again.

Scott
Millet
18 years ago
Scott, I'm not convinced. Tuesday the outside temperature here was 101, Wednesday 105, Thursday 103 and today it was also 103. No problems at all, and the trees are putting on new growth flushes. I FULLY AGREE WITH LISA, Meyer Lemons are a pain....a REAL PAIN!!! I have a large collection of containerized citrus, and Meyer is my LEAST favorite tree. I would never purchase another one. (This is the second thread tonight that I have agreed with Lisa) I must be doing something right. - Millet

Meyer lemon dropping healthy leaves - new theory...

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Meyer lemon dropping healthy leaves - new theory...

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