Thats good to hear. I had mine inside for the past 2 winters and they seem to thrive but got a lot of mites. For how many months exact do you keep your citrus inside? Mine is from the beginning of november into the beginning of april. Thats 5 months.. almost about half the year it will be in low light..

In middle GA, we get cold temps around the end of November (after Thanksgiving). Last year we had a really warm winter so I don't really remember when exactly I had to bring the trees inside. Guessing I would say end of November - February/March is the time frame for keeping the trees in my north facing sunroom. Around March is when I start taking trees out for the day and bringing them back in at night. That is not a fun job. lol. If the temps are comfy for me outside, then I will take the trees out as well for some sun and water. Everything really depends on the weather here. I have never used a grow light since I have been growing citrus in my current location which has been since 2002.

If the light is on 24 hours a day, all the time, obviously not as much brightness is needed.

From what I've read and from personal experience, the more sun your plants get, the higher the temperature needs to be. The less sun the plant gets, the cooler the temperature needs to be.

I have a Ponderosa lemon thriving indoors by a West Window for a month now. Very minimal leaf loss, maybe 1-2 leafs.

The limequat right beside it, same conditions, minimal leaf loss (10 leafs) and limequats are getting bigger. I also have a grafted Blood orange. It hasn't dropped a leaf yet and it's been about a month since I brought them inside.

Anyways, remember the rule of thumb, less light, cooler temps. More light, warmer temps.

Yup after much discussion I’ve seen on old posts from past winters, Mike had success with lower temps, lower light. Those with the opposite of one high the other low seemed to get alot of leaf drop. I’m also employing the low light, low temps strategy as opposed to using a grow light last year. We’ll see how everyones methods do by next April :)

Thanks. They are actually next to the heater yet in front of the window with the cold air hitting it so I guess the temps are neutral. But what does 'sun' mean here? Like direct sunlight hitting it or even indirect sunlight is ok?

Also Denise, how do you keep your citrus in the same spot and not let it outgrow that spot after 16 years? Do you prune it every year?

Heruga, all my plants are in pots and kept on my backyard patio. They don't stay in one location because I move them around quite a bit. I let my trees grow naturally and only trim when they become asymmetrical.

On one of the plant boards there was an old thread discussing this. Someone posted a picture of citrus trees in England that each winter were kept in a dark and cool (but above freezing) basement all winter. The trees looked super healthy. To prevent winter leaf drop it would be important for the light level to be low. Also, I think it is probably best to keep the trees well above freezing but away from any significant heat sources (e.g. around 50 degrees or so).

-Brett

My sunroom sounds just like that basement. lol.

I would say “sun” meaning the light intensity and duration of the light. Sunlight hitting the leaves forces the tree to become active regardless of whether the roots are too cold to function. Less direct sunlight is better or just indirect light all day would work if paired with cool temps

Mine are in 2 rows in front of an upper story full south bedroom window- the back row is elevated on a shoe shelf. None get a full day's sun on their leaves, all get a portion as the sun moves across the window. The room is kept at around 60F

I've been overwintering them like this for several years and they do well. Blossom, set fruit, and ripen the fruit that set in the summer. I don't feed them as often, and they only need to be watered about once a week.

Well then my citrus are in their ideal spot then. They don't get direct sunlight but my room gets very bright in general so thats all the indirect light from indirect sunlight. Temperature is usually 60-70 degrees. I water them about once a month while they are indoors.

I wonder why yours can go so long without watering? I can see that mine are suffering if I forget and they go without for over 10 days.

Mine are on a very cold porch, down as low as the 40's and no higher than the 50's. They will not grow much, maybe flower, but stay green and keep every leaf. They will dry out much slower too and no bug worries. NO worries about drying out slower than usual because of a well draining porous mix.

No need to fertilize and no need for much light.

Mike

meyermike, isn't nice not having to worry about trees for a while? When my trees are in for the winter, I think of it as a 3 month vacation from them.

Denise, you are so right. What a great feeling to worry about the only mass amount I have kept warm in the house. Sometimes it's just too much.

Hey, maybe I can finally go for a short vacation while they sleep))

I hope you have a very nice day tomorrow and that you are surrounded by loved ones, and if not that, by the plants you strive so hard to keep looking as nice as they are.

A special orchid for you

Mike

Well you guys are lucky. My citrus get more mites every time I put them indoors. So I have to carry it to the shower tub, cover the pot up with a bag so water doesn't go in the mix and shower each leaf by leaf. Winter is more maintenance for me on Citrus. While they are outside all I have to do is water once a week and they're happy

I wonder why you have such a bug problem, Heruga. Do you spray them off well before you bring them in? Perhaps you aren't watering them enough (spider mites like underwatered plants, I believe) at once a month. Does your potting soil drain well enough? I like Ecosmart garden insect spray for the rare times I do get an infestation.

Raee, that is a great questin, in fact questions..

Heruga, I hope you saw them. They will help you prevent them next year.

All of mine are outside again for a couple of days. lol As long as it's not the freezing point, out they go!

Mike

Oh I didn't know somewhat posted last week. I guess you are one of those who don't give off notifications. I have no idea but I haven't sprayed them off before bringing them in but I did spray with horticultural oil back in august and it looked like all the mites were gone and the sooty mold as well until now. I was told citrus don't like to be watered too much in slow months which is in winter. I have a very well draining mix that shoots water out the bottom like a rocket as soon as I water it.

I also wish I can bring them outside everytime temps are warm enough but my trees are fairly big and they are upstairs so its such a hassle to carry them downstairs where the branches hit everywhere on the wall as I carry it.

Mine are upstairs too, so once they are in, they are in for the duration. That is one reason I delay bringing them in as long as possible.

If your mix drains that freely, it could be that you are underwatering; overwatering doesn't sound like much of a risk with that soil. It is true that citrus doesn't like soggy soil, but it does seem to like consistent moisture. I learned from this forum to use a chopstick or wooden skewer to check how dry the soil is, in order to avoid under or over watering.

Same here. I kept them outside as long as I can but they got too cold and lost a lot of leaves already. And I thought citrus like to be dried out before they get watered again? Meaning the entire mix including the very bottom of it, where I cannot reach with an ordinary chopstick or stick because they are deep... Once I stick my finger in and realize it is dry, I wait for an additional week until I water again. That way I avoid the risk of watering it while the mix is still moist at the bottom.

I think it may be underwatered even though it’s indoors for winter. Mixes that drain extremely fast like that normally don’t have enough time to absorb water. Tapla has an old discussion about water retention and something like 50% moisture content contained by the media is the limit for how dry you can let it go without damaging your tree. After that the roots have a very hard time trying to take water from the media. Imo, I wouldn’t let my pots dry that far down the bottom unless you recently repotted it and know there aren't any roots down there. The mites are probably from the dry conditions of your tree. Spider mites like dry environments and your heater probably ensures that’s there’s no humidity. Your tree is also less active since it’s winter and paired with little watering, it’s probably not transpiring enough of it’s own moisture to keep it humid enough either.

I’m not sure what would be the best resolution since your trees can’t be moved anywhere else at all. It might help to keep it further away from the heater though

Kvetch nailed it. What he said is awesome.

MIke

I really don't have an option of another location to put them. I actually have a humidifier specifically for plants turned on constantly 24 hours a day and I shut my door when I'm not home so it traps the humidity. I spray the leaves both sides once or twice a day. But I will water it now actually.

One of the recent threads asking about Flying Dragon as a rootstock and Steve said that it allows trees to be in much soggier soil without harm. If your tree is grafted, check the rootstocks. There’s some pdf’s you can find that universities have released comparing the rootstock effects like root rot etc. Knowing for sure might help reduce some worry about watering