Should I cut off this branch from my citrus?
A little background.
I bought this citrus plant (lemon) off eBay as they're not very common where I live (Delhi, India). It came with two unripe lemons on the plant. There were a fair few empty branches on the plant, as I think the seller had removed the leaves to make the transportation easier and possible the transplantation too (?).
I kept the plant in the sun for a few weeks after transplanting into a bigger pot, but it seemed to be making no progress whatsoever. I watered it once in two days (temperatures were in the range of 85-95 F) and it did absolutely nothing for a month. No new leaves, the fruit didn't grow bigger. In fact, I think it was slowly wilting.
Figuring out that the plant was trying to expend way too much energy into the fruit, I got rid of the fruit. Immediately, I noticed new buds a few days later and now the plant is growing quite prolifically.
Now, to my question. The plant has one main stem and a offshoot which is still bereft of leaves. The main stem has filled out nicely, and now a few small buds are starting to appear on the offshoot. The problem is, this offshoot is curling back into the main stem and into the foliage. I do not think the new leaves developing on the offshoot will do very well entwined between the leaves of the main stem. I also think it makes sense for the plant to stick to its main stem and grow from there.
Attached is a picture of the plant. Apologies for the quality, it was night. As you can see, there is one main stem and one offshoot on the left which is further branching off into other branches. It might not be apparent, but the offshoot has no leaves, only a small couple new ones (which you may not be able to see).
So my question is, should I get rid of the offshoot right where it comes off from the main stem? Will it harm the plant? Would I be better off leaving it as it is? I think the plant would look much better without it, but aesthetics are not my main concern. I just want equitable growth wherein one part of the plant doesn't crowd out the other.
Thank you in advance for the help.
Regards,
Tushaar
PS. My first post here, though I always turn to GardenWeb for gardening help!
Comments (9)
Tushaar
8 years agoRelated Discussions
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8 years ago
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