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Citrus tree cutting grew leaves but dropped them before growing roots

6 years ago

last modified: 6 years ago

I planted a tree cutting which started to grow leaves but dropped them about two weeks after, which wouldnt have been long enough for roots to grow. Is there any hope?

Featured Answer

sunshine (zone 6a, Ontario,Canada)

6 years ago

I have been waiting for these calamondin cuttings to root since September of last year, they are just sitting there green without roots for almost 5 months ( stubborn babies), just checked the bottoms, no roots:

Sometimes they just take their sweet time:)

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Comments (7)

TheyCallMeDave
6 years ago
Yes, as long as the stem is a healthy green colour, it's still alive and most likely trying to grow roots. If it starts to turn brown, it will probably die. I would keep it somewhere humid and where it's getting indirect light.
Dow Jones
Original Author
6 years ago
Thanks Dave. To keep in the humidity Im keeping a plastic bag sealed with a rubber band over the pot. The stem is no longer green but I havent scraped it. I also have a plant heating mat for it as my apt is kind of cold. Not sure if I should try scraping the stem a bit to find out if its dead.
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TheyCallMeDave
6 years ago
I was looking at the limequat cutting I took 10 days ago. I was about to give up on it because it turned 60% brown. I went to cut the brown part to the next closest green bud... I ended up pulling the cutting out of the cup to cut it better and it has 1 nice hair and a few smaller hairs. Keep in mind the biggest "hair" is 1cm and the smaller "hair" are a few millimeter in length. This "hair" I'm referring to are the roots.... which I am shocked to have after 10days... I don't understand why the cutting started to die back... I have two options....

Do you guys think it's better to just keep the 1 node above dirt or should I re-position to have another node above the dirt? When I planted the cutting, I put the bottom 2 nodes(hairs coming out and calloused) and than 2 more nodes about 2inches above the bottom nodes but it has no roots... under the dirt and above the dirt it has 1 node left because I cut the brown part back.
lucky_cloud
6 years ago
I have a Meyer lemon cutting from October that's still alive and green with three green half-leaves....and no roots. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
TheyCallMeDave
6 years ago
last modified: 6 years ago
Doesn't make sense lol.... I was shocked when I saw the roots. I do keep it ontop of my DVR player that constantly provides heat to the bottom. Sometimes I'll put it with my other plants by the window to get some sunlight. It has 1 leaf but it fell off so it's literally just a stick... which was turning brown so again... shocked.

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