What's wrong with all my citrus?
Tristan
6 years ago
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Vladimir (Zone 5b Massachusetts)
6 years agolast modified: 6 years agoTristan
6 years agoRelated Discussions
What is wrong with my citrus plants? pics included
Comments (7)clones2: You sure are not one to dilly-dally around. But be careful and consider your moves. One of the best uses of potting soil is to germinate seeds. Seeds don't need the complex nutrition that plants and trees do. Seeds have all they need for life contained within the seed -- up to a certain point in their growth. Then the new roots are looking for nutrition to take over the life support function. Potting soils are sometimes sterilized so that there are no bogey-men microrganisms and pests to thwart germination and early seedling growth. Potting soils can be formulated so that they hold just the right amount of moisture for germination and early seedling growth. Once a seedling reaches a certain size, these benefits gradually become less important to the growing plant and other factors gradually become more important -- factors like nutrition and pH. So, potting soils are not really intended as a permanent growing medium for plants. This is why I use potting soil mainly to add organic material to natural soil. And potting soils are not usually thoroughly composted which means that they will demand nitrogen from the soil to complete the break down of the organic matter. You can usually see this in the light brown color of potting soils when they are dry. More thoroughly broken down (composted) organic matter is a much darker brown approaching black. That being said, the best mix IMO is good garden soil and homemade compost with a little bit of worm castings (worm manure) added. Roughly about 20% to 30% compost by volume and 3% to 5% worm castings by weight if the moisture of the castings is apporoximately the same as the moisture of the soil. Mix thoroughly. Commercial bagged compost is OK but not as good as homemade compost because it is mostly derived from "forest products" which is logging and lumber mill chips and sawdust. These "forest products" are OK but are limited in the plant nutrients they are composed of to begin with. And it is usually not thoroughly composted. If you see bits of wood, it is not thoroughly composted. Eventually, you will have your own earthworms living in your soil. They appear, seemingly out of nowhere, like weeds and flies, if the environmental conditions are to their needs. They like a certain moisture, temperature and organic matter to dine on. It's a good idea to give your citrus time to acclimate to their new diet and their new root environment in their new home before you start adding fertilizers. It's a major shock to the plant to repot it. It is as though YOU were suddenly transported to live in the Himalayas at a 10,000 foot elevation with an entirely new diet -- all accomplished in 15 minutes. And no one told you bring warm clothes. You didn't mention what part of the US you live in so I don't know what packaged fertilizers are available in your area. I use Whitney Farms Citrus and Avocado food. It's organic, generally slow releasing and lasts in the soil a while. It gives good results for me. It supplies "the big three" NPK nutrients plus some other things. Be sure to read the label of whatever you buy. And you may not even have to buy anything -- at least at first. It is possible that an organic mulch with some good homemade compost and/or composted manure in it can supply everything needed. The best way to know right away what's going on with your soil is to have a lab soil test. This will also tell you the pH. Home kits can get you by for a fifteenth of the cost. Home kits usually require two test kits, one for NPK and one for pH. But home kits won't tell you about the other nutrients like calcium, zinc, iron, magnesium, manganese, etc. Look to the website pictures of leaves for clues about these minor and trace elements. Give support to your citrus after its trauma of repotting with attention given to temperature, moisture, wind, sun etc. Tony...See MoreWhat's wrong with my citrus plants? pics included
Comments (2)Clones2, I can't really give a diagnosis, but can suggest a couple things. First, since you plants are actively growing (some of mine are too, now that the sunlight is increasing), they may have been overfertilized, or they may be suffering from temperature fluctuations, or overwatering, or a combination of these issues. It looks like you used a slow release fertilizer--that may be a problem (if those colored grains I see in the soil are fertilizer). It is hard to tell, but I do think I see a little discoloration in the leaves that could indicate some kind of nutrient issue. Do you have hard water? I see some evidence of salt buildup on the clay pot in the top photo--that could also be a problem. Finally, are the pots on a cold floor or in a chilly room, and do you get water on the leaves? I suppose any of these things, when combined with tender new leaves, could produce some of the symptoms. Good luck! Don...See Moreall my potted citrus happy except my lime - any ideas?
Comments (10)Westgirl, photos are helpful :-) Just upload them to Photobucket, then find your photo, float your mouse over it, and then click on the HTML code to copy it to your Windows clipboard. Then, just right click in the body of your message and select "Paste". That will paste the HTML code into the body of your message, and your photos will be embedded right into your message. I suspect not warm enough, and maybe too wet. Key Limes are the least hardy of any citrus. You're much better off with a Bearss lime, which has some lemon in it genetics, and much, MUCH more cold tolerant. I don't even bother growing Key limes where I live, here's a photo of a big bunch of Bearss limes we just picked: (That's a Valentine pummelo on top of the limes, btw.) Check out the roots carefully and see if you've got root rot going on. If so, try to trim away the decaying roots, and repot carefully. Give it as much sunlight as possible - bring it outside while it's warm, then inside at night. Watch the moisture in your mix, and it may make it. Patty S....See MoreWhat's wrong with my tree? Limbs all sagging,dying. Found odd holes.
Comments (13)Torturing my tree with bungee cords? For reals? I admit, it's not an ideal situation, but my hubby is out of town for a few days and it was all I could think of to do. And it wasn't even the limbs falling on the berries that was my main concern. I was having coffee on the back deck when I noticed a squirrel trying to feed on the bird feeder. The limb was actually swaying under the weight of the squirrel! There's something wrong with that picture and there is something definitely wrong with this tree. Yes, we are in a drought here in California. However, we live up in the Sierra Foothills, where water restrictions are strict but not as severe as in the valley. The trees are on an automatic watering drip system. The dirt you see behind the trees was just placed there last week by the neighbors crewmen who are having a pool put in. Seems shameful to put in a pool in these desperate times, but it was nice to have our hillside leveled out. But I will definitely remove the bungee cords. Honestly, I guess it's hard to tell with pictures, but this tree is sick and it continues to look worse by the day. I am calling a tree doctor today to see what if anything can be done to save my tree....See MoreVladimir (Zone 5b Massachusetts)
6 years agoponcirusguy6b452xx
6 years agoSilica
6 years agolast modified: 6 years agoTristan
6 years agolast modified: 6 years agoSilica
6 years agolast modified: 6 years agojohnmerr
6 years agoponcirusguy6b452xx
6 years ago
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