Dying lemon tree bought week ago
Hello,
I had a very (suspiciously ?) good deal last saturday for a 2 feet tall, 2 feet wide, fruit bearing lemon tree. The salesperson told me to put the tree outside and water everyday. I live in Hong Kong and it's the summer now, peak temperature in the sun can reach 35°C (95°F), usually between 85 to 95, and the humidity is 85+%
I left the tree outside were it get direct sunlight during noon for 2 hours, and indirect sunlight the rest of the time and watered about half liter everyday. After 3 days the leaves were starting to curl like a cigar, outside in, and looked dry. Fearing the tree was getting burned in the sun, i took it to a more shaded area and watered it again abundantly (about 2 liters, water coming out the bottom holes).
A few days later, it was getting worse, with the leaves still green and not falling, but curling more tightly and looking more dry. Hoping the rehydrate the plant from the bottom i left the pot sitting in a few inches of water for a while.
A few days later a friend told me it was suffering from overwatering. I stopped watering it, and repotted the plant a little later hoping to save the roots and remove as much of the damp soil as possible.
The root ball is small (smaller than I would expect for a little tree), and the soil is very heavy and dense, like clay, and damp. Please check the pictures (colors are more bright than reality).
I went back to the shop yesterday looking for advice, the owner was very defensive, accusing me of not caring for the plant properly (changing pot and soil, putting it in the shade with not enough water).
To sum up, new tree bought in what looked like a healthy condition, left it in the sun for 3 days with moderate (?) water, in the shade 3 days with a lot of water, repotted and haven't watered since. Pictures are just taken now.
I'm thinking my friend was correct and I did overwater the tree, considering the dark roots, and very damp and dense soil (still damp after a few days of no water). However the leaves did not turn yellow, and did not fall, fruits are still attached.
Is there still hope to bring back the tree ? What should I do ? What do you think caused this?
Comments (17)
Meyermike(Zone 6a Ma.)
2 years ago
Alex [Lithuania z6a]
2 years agolast modified: 2 years agoRelated Discussions
HELP - Lemon Tree Dying?
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Comments (16)I look at it this way in simpler terms of course..... I am brain dead and bored, so here it goes..lol I if don't make sense, pardon me. If I can't or do not know how to grow anything in a pot with a Perched Water Table, which I mostly do not, then I won't use a soil that encourages it. Using bottom stones, or even water proof packing peanuts which don't weigh the pot down never helped me. By the way, if your determined to use bottom material, this is the way to go. No more heavy pots.:-) I have killed a many plants in the past this way. The bottom roots being wet ,stuck in that PWT above the stones, never drying out while the top half of the roots keep getting watered because I keep watering the top of soil that is bone dry. My roots can be thirsting for water even 4 inches down into my pots from the top, while the bottom half of the roots are in that PWT portion staying wet, never drying out. And rocks on the bottom of any pot does not get rid of that PWT. It just makes it higher. The Perched Water Table depending on the soil you use will be there, and maybe not if you use a wick or a fast draining soil. Of course this is not a concern to me in any pot smaller than 6 inches... They dry out fast, especially if they are in clay. I typically use something other than the gritty soil for these. But when I move up to a bigger pot, I am not willing to take the risk of root rot. Some people here can grown plants in any size pot with a PWT and have sucess. Some in 30 gallon barrels! I am not one of those..:-( This is why I use A'ls gritty mix minus the fines that could settle down at the bottom of pot and stay wet while the top of the soil gets dry. Bonsai have very shallow roots, therefore grown in shallow pots, and this is how a many of my friends including myself have killed our Bonsai. You can have a PWT in soil as deep as one inch. We can't afford to have a PWT at all in such shallow pots! On this we take NO chances. I can not afford to have a PWT also in big sized pots for regular plants. Since they and I changed to Al's gritty mix, we have been sucessful, with no Perched Water Table and bottom root rot, even in rainy everday weather if pots are left out all summer. We just have to water more often when because the soil dries out quicker. :-) Jean, I have done the same thing to most of my pots, especially the ones my Clivias are in. They are thriving!! I even drill bigger holes at the bottom of my plastic ones and hammer out a huge circle hole on the bottom of my clay ones, then use screen to stop the soil from falling through. I can only imagine the roots breathing all that air from the bottom!lol,and the water exchange because of this.:-) I love that Container Soils thread, at least what I can understand of it! One thing I did learn, I never knew what a PWT was until I read that thread. That was the culprit to the death of all my plants! Thanks for that thread Al! Thanks for all the great info everyone! Take care all! Mike...See MoreIs my maiden grass dying? Just planted two weeks ago
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woodrose
2 years agobonsai_citrus_and_indoor_gardening
2 years agoMeyermike(Zone 6a Ma.)
2 years agolast modified: 2 years agoAlex HK
2 years agolast modified: 2 years agoThanks a lot for your help!
Following your advice, I plucked the fruits and dipped the root ball in warm water for 20 min and tried to wash off as much clay and dead roots as possible. The previous soil was really just compacted mud. I have not dealt with root rot before but it didn't look like the roots where dead or rotting, not black or foul smelling, still holding together strongly and not rotting away. However they don't seem as bright as I've seen in other pictures so i don't know. Pics attached below.
New soil is much lighter, and I believe a peat and perlite mix.
I'm surprised a healthy lemon tree would react so poorly to being under full sun for a few hours everyday over a 3 day period when I was still watering it half a liter daily, then almost 2 liters everyday for 2,3 days when in the shade, and then stopped fearing overwatering for the following 4 days until now when the soil was finally getting drier, the soil was always moist, at least on the outside.
I hope it can recover from the water stress and the successive repotting. Branches don't seem to dry, hopefully it can bounce back.
If you have any more tip, they would be very appreciated. Thanks !
Alex HK
2 years agobonsai_citrus_and_indoor_gardening
2 years agoMeyermike(Zone 6a Ma.)
2 years agoAlex HK
2 years agoHello Everyone.
Its a month later without any change and then all of the sudden a bunch of fresh leaves sprouted at the base of the stem:
Very glad I didn't throw it away, but I am wondering how to take care of it now ?I've cleared the dead leaves and branches on top and I keep the soil moist and keep the watering to a minimum (once every 2 weeks, it's still 80%+ humidity here).
Any advice at this stage ? Should I prune more ? fertilize ? Keep water to a minimum ?
Thanks again for all your help.
AlexKen B Zone 7
2 years agoMeyermike(Zone 6a Ma.)
2 years ago
poncirusguy6b452xx
2 years ago
Alex HKOriginal Author