Meyer Lemon Dropping Leaves With Almost Mature Fruit
kirstenmyhr
8 years ago
Hi! I've had this meyer lemon tree for 3 years and always bring in indoors during winter. It usually drops a lot of leaves during this time (dang NYC radiator heat!) but I know that is common and they always come back in full force during the summer. I used Wilt-Pruf last year, which helped a lot. This year it doesn't seem to be doing too much. This is also the first year it has had fruit and I'm concerned about this added stress for the tree. They're *so* close to being fully ripened but it has been dropping more and more leaves. It has also gotten a bit lopsided, but I'm wary to do any pruning now. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
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myermike_1micha
8 years agoRelated Discussions
Meyer lemon tree fruit drop
Comments (13)Julie I had a feeling it compacted. That is a sure sign of decline on just about any tree and sometimes it can take you by surprise and happen over time. I would also look for pests since almost always the two are very much related. If you want to go the easy organic route in lowering the pH solution you provide your trees, try 1 capful of vinegar per gallon of water. That should do the trick. As for fertilizer, there are many recomendations on this, but I say to find one that closely relates to a plants need. I use a liquid fertilizer with micronutrients in a 12:4:8 NPK ratio, which MG does have. It's in a yellow bottle. Foliage Pro is a great choice too which is what I use. You can either purchase a very porous mix, amend one, or make one. I make most of my own. I use 1 part peat or Turface, 1 part perlite, and 5 parts of bark. You can also purchase a good heavier mix which is primarily bark such as Fafard Mixes. Any of these options or others will dramatically improve your growing skills and the vitality of your tree. A mix that allows a frequent oxygen exchange is a must and this happens with a very porous mix. Whenever roots are deprived of oxygen (O2) they soon begin to die, so a mix that will compact rapidly should be avoided. Mike...See Moremeyer lemon tree dropping leaves
Comments (51)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....See MoreMeyer lemon problems:pale leaves, dropping leaves
Comments (95)Amanda, it looks to me like that tree is a gonner. You’ve put too much stress on an already stressed, under watered, under fed tree. I’m afraid it will see its demise indoors. If it were me, I would take the winter and do some research on root stocks and how they effect the growth habits of the citrus tree you want to grow. Then I’d go to my local nursery like Armstrong’s or wherever you normally go in LA and find a new tree that is grafted to said rootstock that you researched in January and plant said tree in Late January early February into the ground. Late winter early spring is the perfect time of year to plant citrus trees In ground. Then I’d water it consistently and deeply the first year and fertilize it lightly monthly. That’s it. The more care and worry you give to your trees the worse off they end up being from over care. You see, in ground trees are very different than potted trees. They need a lot LESS care, you have to let them do what they’re going to do and address issues only if they arise. Not every tree is going to look perfect or have deep green leaves or bear fruit the first 1-2 years, it takes patience. Rest assured though, you live in LA, it’s basically the perfect climate to grow citrus in so if you have patience and keep an eye on your tree it will reward you with a bounty eventually. Evan...See MoreMeyer Lemon Tree - Off season fruit and flowers + leaf drop
Comments (8)@bonsai_citrus_and_indoor_gardening See photos. Some other info: I accidentally over fed the tree mid-summer with citra-tone but it's my understanding that since citra-tone is all organic, it's harmless to "overfeed" and we didn't get any fruit or flowers until I did that. The grow bulbs are pretty weak so we have them kind of close. I had some leaves with eggs underneath in mid summer but i plucked them and some munchers (worms in the curl of leaves, idk what they're called) in the leaves but again, got rid of them. Haven't seen any of either pest since. before i took the tree in, it rained a lot so the soil was pretty soaked so I haven't watered it since and it still looks like there's moisture in it soil. I'm also pretty sure the fungus gnats are a consequence of bringing it in while it was so wet. Thank you so much for your help! Also included a picture of the one lemon that came from the single february bloom, it's huge and super healthy and we didn't harvest it until this week so I don't think the tree is totally failing. 1. Single lemon that started in March after a single Feb bloom 2. Current moisture situation. Meter is about 3-4 inches deep 3. current lemons and blooms. Lemons are about an inch long 4. Grow bulb positions, there is a large window adjacent to this corner but doesn't get a whole lot of direct light through it due to the neighbor's house being about 10 ft across from it....See More
kirstenmyhr
8 years ago
johnmerr
8 years agolast modified: 8 years agoSilica
8 years agoTamiya #1 (AU, SG, MY & ZZZzzzz...)
8 years ago
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