Meyer lemon repotting
Matt
6 years ago
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Laura LaRosa (7b)
6 years agoRelated Discussions
Miserable death of Meyer Lemon after repotting
Comments (10)Hmmm .... I've been thinking about this post for a few days, but never got around to offering a thought. I think that we may have some post hoc reasoning going on. An example of this type of reasoning might be something like this: Nancy goes to visit Jodi, and is scratched by Jodi's cat while visiting. Two days later Nancy comes down with a fever. Nancy concludes that she has 'cat scratch fever' as a result of the wound, even though there are a wide variety of other possible causes of Nancy's illness. Yellowthumb's premise simply substitutes something he didn't do for the questionable cause. How can I make this leap? If you were to read the thread about root-pruning, you would find that I describe an oft-used technique for plants that might not tolerate total bare-rooting. It describes cutting pie-shaped wedges from the root mass and leaving the remaining 1/2-2/3 of the roots and soil untouched, and to repeat this procedure on a regular basis. I often have different soils in the same pot when I'm in the process of converting a plant from nursery soil to the gritty mix, and I can almost certainly rely on the fact that I won't encounter problems. Why bring this up? I don't want folks to think they MUST remove all the old soil from the roots at the first repot into the gritty mix. How far you can/should go, varies by plant and again by the state of the plant's vitality, so you need to make a decision based on the plant's genetic vigor, its current state of vitality, AND on how well the plant tolerates rootwork. I think it's more than possible .... I think it's probable that the setback was unrelated to not removing all the old soil. Water diffuses very well in soils like the gritty mix. The Turface and granite are never water repellent (unless coated with algae). Water is absorbed readily by the Turface and adheres to the surface of the granite. Even if the bark particles were completely dry, they would soon become moist from the diffusion of what water is in the Turface and on the granite. The same is true of the old soil mass, unless it is so tightly compacted that even diffusion doesn't help. If, in fact, that is the case, it's more logical to associate the problem with compaction of the old root mass and its accompanying watering issues. It's possible that when the roots were pruned, they were pruned tight to the compacted soil. This means there would be nearly no roots in the new soil to absorb water or nutrients, so thew plant would certainly decline quickly. I don't really know what actually caused the setback of the plant, but I think it unlikely, and should be attributed to the fact, that all the old soil was not removed. Al...See MoreMeyer Lemon repotting questions
Comments (5)My meyer lemon isn't as old as yours, but I had the same problem last winter. Lost every leaf. Luckily spring came. Put it outside in the direct warm sun light, and it recovered. By this last fall it looked great. Before bringing it in this winter I did some research and decided to change the soil. I used an organic (store bought) potting soil mix, perlite, and sand. Probably 3 parts organic potting soil mix, 1 part perlite, and 1 part sand. I'm also using a plastic container. Brought the tree in during the fall, and started misting the leaves daily. Also, I haven't been watering the tree nearly as much as last year. I check to make sure the soil is drying out before watering lightly. As for light this winter, I have been using a 26 watt (100 watt incandescent equivalent) compact florescent "daylight" bulb (6500 degrees K), bought at Lowes. I have it in one of those clamping workshop light fixtures with an aluminum hood to direct the light. Have it on 10-12 hours a day. The tree is also in a south facing window this winter. Had it in east facing window last year. The difference: last year I almost lost the tree, but this year I lost only one leaf, and the tree is covered with flowers right now. Like Andrew wrote, you should have drainage holes. Citrus needs quick draining soil, and if you overwater, that water needs to go somewhere, rather than giving your tree root rot. Most plants and trees need repotted every 3 to four years, at least. Some every two years. I also agree with Andrew on the pruning of the root ball and top when repotting. Good luck!...See MoreMeyer lemon repotting
Comments (1)i would wait till late winter/early spring....See MorePotted Citrus Question
Comments (16)Now, now need to think your stupid. Far from that. At least you are smart enough to ask for help and understand that your trees need a change:-0) It would tend to think that the perlite dries first since it holds barely any moisture, then the bark since its particles are much bigger than peat, then last of all peat, since it is very fine and holds lots of moisture. The culprit behind root rot with citrus is usually peat if too much in abundance in your mix. I try and make sure the peat fraction is at best minimal while the bark is the majority of my mixes along with perlite. If you plan on using your mix, a bagged one at that, I would make sure the bagged mix only occupies 1/4 of the space in your container mix, with perlite being the rest. Better yet, if you have access to pine bark fines, then 5 parts of that, one part of perlite, and one part of that bagged mix, if any at all. Usually pine fines, decomposed that is, have enough smaller particles to hold moisture in which peat can be left out. Now, knowing your circumstances about having to be away for periods of time, I would seriously consider using a mix that you could wick from the bottom to hold you at bay if you plan on using a much better mix that dries out more rapidly. If you need further suggestions, feel free to ask;-) Have a great day Ohio! Mike...See MoreMatt
6 years agoVladimir (Zone 5b Massachusetts)
6 years agoMatt
6 years agoSammers510
6 years agoSilica
6 years agolast modified: 6 years agoPluto1415 (6a/b, NE Ohio)
6 years agoSammers510
6 years agoSilica
6 years agoPluto1415 (6a/b, NE Ohio)
6 years agoSilica
6 years agoMatt
6 years ago
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Vladimir (Zone 5b Massachusetts)