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grace_mpls

Meyer Lemon Tree Trouble

grace_mpls
10 years ago

Hello,

I'm trying to grow my first citrus tree. I bought an Improved Meyer Lemon tree two weeks ago and have had some major ups and downs with it since then. I've read a lot of forums but am having trouble figuring out what my tree's problem is -- I'm hoping with the attached photos someone may be able to help. It has a few problems:

I live in the frozen tundra of Minnesota - so the tree suffered a bit of frost damage during shipment. The top leaves are curled - I think it will pull through from this - but am wondering if I should prune the branches that have damaged/missing leaves?

My apartment gets about 4 hours of direct sunlight at day so I am trying to supplement with some lights. I purchased a couple of "daylight" compact flourescent bulbs and have theme shining on the tree - are these the best bulbs for my situation or should I look at a different option? I did see improvement a few days after I started using the bulbs...but then....

In the last two days the plants bottom leaves have started to yellow and drop. I read in forums that this could be due to overwatering or a mineral deficiency. I just fertilized with a citrus fertilizer with high nitrogen content 5 days ago and I have been very careful not too overwater. So hoping someone can take a look at the photos and let me know your thoughts.

I've also been running a humidifier in it's room frequently and have been misting the leaves daily as the indoor heat is probably a bit dry for the plant.

Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks :)

Grace

Comments (3)

  • johnmerr
    10 years ago

    Well, your tree is suffering from significant change in light conditions. Meyers are particularly sensitive to that and you may lose most or all of your leaves. Keep doing what you are doing and it should recover, replacing the old leaves with new leaves better suited to the current light conditions.

  • meyermike_1micha
    10 years ago

    A would also stop misting the leaves to encourage the roots to take up moisture..

    Also too, keep a close eye on the mix that it is not staying damp for too long..

    It's true that they will drop leaves to light changes, especially too if just coming from a perfect environment such as a greenhouse to yours...

    Great idea with the light, but be careful about waering until you know the roots are doing there job...

    Hope it all goes well...Please keep us updated//Boy, the ability to put them outside into sun and warmth could not come fast enough.

    MIke

  • mn_citrus
    10 years ago

    I'm also growing meyer lemons in MN, so it's possible!

    1) I'm supplementing with GE daylight CFLs during the winter, and that seems to be working.

    2) Make sure your pot and soil promote good drainage. You don't want the soil to stay damp.

    3) I'm having really good luck with a fertilizer called "Foliage Pro" that you can buy off of Amazon. The littlest bottle will last you well over a year. 1 teaspoon per gallon of water, and it doesn't hurt to add one teaspoon of white vinegar per gallon of water. I water about once per week or so. When you notice the surface of the soil is dry, then give it a really good dose of water, but don't water it every day. If your air is dry, you can try misting the leaves every once in a while.

    Good luck!