Shop Products
Houzz Logo Print
trossoma

Clementine Mandarin not doing well

trossoma
9 years ago

I have a semi-dwarf Clementine Mandarin tree that was in a pot for a year or so and then was replanted in the ground a few months ago. When in the pot last year, the tree was healthy and produced a decent amount of fruit.

After the first month or so in the ground, I noticed that the tree wasn't doing well and started checking the moisture level of the soil with a kelway meter. I found that the soil was not draining well and contained a fair amount of clay. I then built a raised bed and replanted the tree again, using citrus/palm soil. For irrigation, I am using a drip line with 4 emitters (.9 GPH each) in a circle around the rootball, about 6-7 in radius from the trunk. I water twice a week for about an hour and a half, resulting in approximately 10.8 gallons of water per week. The moisture readings around the rootball from the kelway are around 55-65% just before watering.

I have fertilized the tree once since planting in the raised planter using EB Stone Citrus fertilizer.

I have attached a picture of the tree. The tree has no new growth and no blooms since being moved from the pot into the ground and then the raised planter. Most of the leaves are also cupped. Not sure is this is normal or not.

So, I am wondering if there is anything else that I should be doing, or do I just need to wait and give the tree time to acclimate itself. I live in San Diego, CA, Zone 10.

Any advice on this would be appreciated. Thanks.

Comment (1)