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Lemon tree struggling! Help!

4 years ago

last modified: 4 years ago

Hi, I recently planted some citrus along my northern boundary of my house. I planted this young lemon tree in sandy loam that had some cow and chicken manure and a little bit of mushroom compost mixed through. It sits in almost full sun except in the late afternoon.

When I purchased the tree it had slight yellowing of the top leaves, which I thought might be new growth (?)
I gave it a good soak when first planted 2.5 weeks ago and then it rained here in Adelaide for the next week. I had put 'forest mulch' on top and was told that this might of caused the yellowing of the leaves. I was told to put citrus fertiliser on to remedy what could be a nitrogen deficiency which I also watered in.

My initial thoughts were that I have over watered as an adjacent newly planted lime tree had started to drop leaves. So I haven't watered the garden bed for 1.5 weeks but after a day of 35°C heat yesterday my lemon tree is looking unwell. Is this a sign it needs a water or is there something else going on???

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Comments (3)

Tom Michele
Original Author
4 years ago
Laura LaRosa (7b)
4 years ago
I wish I could help, but don’t know enough about in-ground trees and their deficiencies. Others here can though. Hopefully someone will see this.
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thanks guys. I think I may water it 2x a week, or like every 4 days. Since I ignored all the common wisdom of not planting right before summer, I think it may need more water, more often because its so young. I just visited my orange and grapefruit trees, and they're displaying similar symptoms, although not as bad yet and I planted them later. They're doing better, but probably because they get afternoon shade. I think my lemon is looking better than when I posted this already, so hopefully the deep deep soak helped. OH and I put Superthrive on it before Sunday! I also took of the worst of the burned/dead leaves I don't know if that' the right thing to do or not. I'd hate to kill it by over-watering it or ignore a problem that's there because I don't know what it is. Any other tips would be great! I'll be watching them closely
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Wet the root ball thoroughly...Ensure that it is soaked well and then keep monitoring the moisture of the root ball with a wooden dowel or some kind of stick with a sharp point pushed deeply into the root ball, and keep monitoring it until that root ball starts growing into the surrounding mix.. May I ask? Did you just slip the tree right onto w new mix and filled around it? Did you loosen the roots ensuring the new mix gets into the root ball? If you didn't, the soil mix will rot withing the root ball while the surrounding mix stays pretty much in tack..I would re do the re pot and keep that tree shaded for a few days...Looks like you re potted it and just stuck it right back into the hot sun..Too, you should always hold back on any fertilizer that could burn the roots until they start working again and utilize what you have applied properly...
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I am sorry you used the advice of the Home Depot "experts". Here is a quote from Al Tapla who developed the 5-1-1 mix: I can say that I haven't actually used cedar bark/mulch to grow in, so I can't comment on the practice directly or from actual experience, but I can say that because the tannins, as well as terpenoid and phenolic compounds cedar is rich in are known to be allelopathic (inhibit growth) to many other plants, I have discounted the likelihood that it would be a suitable choice for me. :-(
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uncle molewacker z9b Danville CA (E.SF Bay)
4 years ago
last modified: 4 years ago
I chronically under watered many freshly planted citrus trees fearing the overwatering stories on forums.

Your lemon looks dry to me. And if you feed it, you need to keep it hydrated really well.

Generally, i water (SOAK) newly planted citrus daily during the hot summer months, backing off to every other day... after 3 months. i have never been able to raise the interval to every 3 days prior to the tree in place more than 2 years.

The above has been my experience with loamy soil and clay soil... and on a slope (so drainage is never an issue). If your planting sites retain water and puddles, the above intervals would need adjustment.

Good luck and let us know what happens.
Tom Michele thanked uncle molewacker z9b Danville CA (E.SF Bay)

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