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New Key Lime plant, new growth leaves are curling

13 years ago

I just planted a Key Lime plant which is about 18" high. It is full sun. It looked like it was growing well, but now the new growth is coming out with leaves that are curling. I don't see any evidence of insects. The leaves are growing out very small, lighter than normal and curled. I have not applied any fertilizer. Any ideas?

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Comments (4)

seamommy
13 years ago
I get this kind of growth on my roses sometimes when they are not getting enough water and/or nutrients. Since you just put your little guy in the soil, it's probably putting out new roots already and the soil in your yard isn't as rich as the soil it was growing in before. I like to add a lot of compost when I first take things out of pots so they can get used to the native soil gradually. The compost helps hold moisture and nutrients close to the roots and can make a transition a lot easier for a baby plant. Cheryl
displacer
13 years ago
It is normal for new citrus leaves to start out pale. They don't become full members of the photosynthesis society for 2-4 months. They start out a pale yellowish-green with a very limp, wimpy feel to them, and gradually stiffen and darken over time as they mature.

However, the color should be solid over the whole leaf. Check to be sure that this is true. If you have any mottling, or the veins are a different color than the rest of the leaf, you may have a nutrient deficiency. Depending on what nutrient, and how big the young leaves are, you may be able to cure a deficiency fast by spraying the appropriate nutrient onto the leaves. Until a leaf is about 3/4ths full size, it can absorb a lot from a foliar spray (older leaves can also benefit from foliar sprays but they don't slurp it up quite like young leaves).

Curling could be any number of things. Excess heat can make leaves curl. If the leaves are very young and they are curled up lengthwise like tubes, I wouldn't worry. As they get bigger/stiffer and (hopefully) the heat lets up, they will straighten out. You might be able to help by giving the tree a little shade during the hottest part of the day.

If they are curled unevenly, as though some parts of the leaf are stuck to other parts, that's probably damage to the leaf. A very very young tender leaf that you can barely see can get sucked by a bug and then it will grow up with funny curling. The bug that does this can be extremely tiny. You may need a jewelers loupe to see them, depending on the kind.

Can you post a picture, maybe?
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Hi, I bought my first citrus tree (Meyers lemon)two years ago and did exactly what you did and what the majority of people do. I immediately got a larger pot and lots of new soil. I think I bought the Miracle grow cactus and citrus mix which is suppose to be the worst stuff you can get. It was purchased in the fall because I saw it on sale for like $24.95 and it was a large bush shaped tree. It was like a 5 gal container. I put it in the south facing window and watered regularly. It had lemons on it when I bought it. After those lemons matured as the winter went on the leaves started to drop until there weren't any. I put it outside in spring and it didn't do anything. After reading up on it here, I pulled it out of it's container to find that it hadn't grown new roots at all. The exact same root mass. I put it back into the original trade pot and lightened up the little bit of new soil I added with perlite and bark so it drained well. I read here that the best advice was to just leave it alone. That summer I had nothing but flowers that dropped overnight but it eventually recovered and did great over this winter in the house. Look up Turface too and see if you can get some. Its what they use in the athletic fields to help drainage. Somewhere in this forum is a formula for mixing good citrus soil too. I find they love liquid nitrogen and keep a look out for scale. If you find the leaves sticky with sap that is scale excretions or poop I guess you could call it. I used all season dormancy oil for that. Good luck
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I bought this lime tree at Home Depot. It was tagged from 2008. The tree grew up in Southern California, im assuming, most likely in a greenhouse environment. When I purchased it it was alerady out in the sun, and I kept it out in the sun for a good several weeks up to a month before it made its way into the ground. The leaves that were existing on the plant when I purchased it are fine, a great green color, very healthy looking. Its just the new growth that is showing the curling issues. I believe I will have to water it frequently through the summer to keep it going, and with any luck, it'll do fine and then have the entire Phoenix winter to stabilize and be more prepared for the heat next year. What do you think? I was thinking about some insect also, but I have not seen any evidence of insects, but I might not know what to specifically look for. I do have a mature lemon and mature orange trees in my yard, and their new leave growth also is a little concerning. I have pictures I was planning on posting for those trees in this forum through a separate post. Those trees might be related, or different not sure, we have several cold freezes (into the 20s) this winter, so those trees did endure some stress from the winter, but this little lime tree was not around then. Any thoughts would be appreciated. A shelter might not be a bad idea, i'm glad the lime tree takes shade in the late afternoon from the lemon tree, so the hottest part of the day it is in the shade.
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The closest image I have found is of the Tomato Yellow Leaf Curl Virus (TYLCV), but the symtom on my plants is not yellow or even yellowish. The curl that I see is not on mature leaves, only new growth and the immature leaves are very tight -- like, not opening or haven't yet opened) The curl might look like the TYLCV if the leaves were to mature and then turn yellow (with some imagination). Herbicide damage is out, non used on anything. Fluctuation in temperatures -- not remarkable. Over or under-watering is hard to imagine, since the garden soil is fairly loose and in raised gardens with more than a couple feet to the ground level. Before we water we put our hands in the soil to determine if watering is necessary. If anything, we might over-water to compensate for the airy/fast draining soil. Haven't seen any aphids around. Now that I've read about the virus that whitefly spread -- (TYLCV) we'll have to figure a way to keep them away. That will be another question. I hope Digdirt has the right idea. Maybe it is the "old non-harmful tomato leaf roll". That would have something to do with watering. The only thing we've added to the soil is a bloom-builder -- one time. These are plants that were started in early December and transplanted at about one foot high about a month ago. They have passed the stage when they should have been stacked or trellised -- just couldn't find the darn string! Hate to spend the gas, cause we have a big roll some darn place!
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cebury
13 years ago
madlimo: if it helps at all, I agree Displacer's comments (pending a picture).
meyermike_1micha
13 years ago
I like Displacers comments pending a picture of one of mine too, real soon, as in when I get home..

Mike..:0-)

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