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maricopatropics

No Leaves or Bulbs on Meyer Lemon

maricopatropics
15 years ago

My Meyer lemon has about 5 leaves and no bulbs. It is planted outside and receives full sun. I give it citrus food three times a year like my navel orange tree. The Orange tree is nice lush and green. The Myer lemon has dark green branches but no bulbs and the few leaves I described above, I have had both trees for over 1 year. The Meyer lemon was growing well, but has been slow to come back this spring. I have a blooming plant in the well of the navel orange, do I need something similar for the Meyer lemon?

Please give any suggestions.

Tried to add a picture of the tree, but need help to do so.

Comments (7)

  • maricopatropics
    Original Author
    15 years ago

    Ok, figured out how to upload a picture. So here it is of the Meyer's Lemon tree. Thanks. We don't know how to make the picture show up here, only provide a link, so we hope it works.

    Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:583461}}

  • birdsnblooms
    15 years ago

    Marico, the only thing I can think of is temperature. Navel oranges adapt to cold more than Meyer's. If the temps were between 32-35F for a long period, there's a chance that's the reason it's taking longer for your Meyer's to grow.
    Other than the reason I've suggested above, is it possible soil was over or underwatered? What about insects? Either way, I'm assuming it's a temperature problem.
    When you say bulbs, do you mean baby fruit? Citrus first flower then fruit afterwards. Citrus do not grow via bulbs like Tulips, Hyacinth or Amaryllis.
    BTW, I can't recall, is your Meyer's a grafted tree? Would you happen to know offhand? Thanks, Toni

  • citrusenthusiast
    15 years ago

    When did the defoliation occur? It looks like it could have been cold temps or high winds or a combination. Though usually after very cold temps the leaves will appear brown but still adhere to the tree for a time before falling. I would give it more time to flush out new grow as the branches do still look healthy. If the temps start to rise into the upper 80's or 90's before it has a chance to leaf out much you might want to paint the trunk with a water-based white paint to prevent sun-burning. It is a budded tree you can see the graft line. It also appears that there is a sucker growing from below that line so I would remove that while it is still small.

  • Dave in NoVA • N. Virginia • zone 7A
    15 years ago

    Didn't you have a bad cold snap this winter?

  • maricopatropics
    Original Author
    15 years ago

    The temps are in the high 80's low 90's now in April. We had had some windy days this past week, but the leaves dropped off before that about a month ago. The winter months did have temps in the 30s to 40s which ended in February. I did notice this morning that small white blooms are coming out on the branches, but no leaves. There are small spider webs on the branches occasionally, but they only last a couple days.

  • citrusenthusiast
    15 years ago

    You could have had an infestation of two-spotted spider mites. Even low populations are toxic to citrus and can cause defoliation. Get a good hand lens and go searching for them. Your temps are high enough for them to be active now.

  • birdsnblooms
    15 years ago

    Maric, like I said earlier, your tree is green, therefore alive.
    You wrote. "There are small spider webs on the branches occasionally, but they only last a couple days."
    What exactly do you mean? Do they disappear after rain or a hosing? If your tree has mites, they're there all right.
    Test for mites. Place a white sheet of paper under different areas of your tree, especially those with webbs. Tap branches holding paper underneath. Inspect the paper, look for little tiny dots. They come in different colors, and very small. You may need a magnifying glass, depending on your vision. Some ppl consider mites microscopic.
    If you find small dots on paper, these are spider mites.
    I don't understand the reason webbs last a few days then they're gone. This doesn't make sense..(S)
    If your citrus has mites, you must take action. For one thing, hosing the entire plant will help somewhat. There are different alternatives..organic vs chemcial. Please check your citrus for mites, let us know what you find. Toni

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