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ourarka

Tahiti lime not so happy - advice please!

ourarka
10 years ago

I wonder if anyone can help with why my Tahiti lime seems to be on the unhappy side. It flowered really well this spring, but kept few fruits and has grown few fresh leaves. In addition a few branches have died off and it has become quite straggly.

I am in the SE UK, so it's in a pot but we've had a great summer. It is in a warm, sheltered alcove which is south facing. My watering and feeding regime haven't changed and the calamondin and Meyer either side seem happy. It stays out almos all year, as that seems to control scale and caterpillars well, but the alcove is covered so never gets frosted and our winters are fairlyl temperate. Any ideas?

Comments (6)

  • hoosierquilt USDA 10A Sunset 23 Vista CA
    10 years ago

    Well, it actually looks pretty happy to me. You do have some new leaves. It looks well fertilized. When was the last time you potted up in size, it could be your tree is a little rootbound. Limes are the most sensitive to cold than any other citrus cultivar. The Bearss (Tahitian, Persian) lime is a little more tolerant of colder temps than the Mexican (Key) lime, since there's some lemon or citron in it's genetics, and possibly some pummelo. If you're using a fertilizer extremely high in N, you'll get this lovely dark green tree, and not so much fruit, or thick-skinned fruit. Your NPK ratio should be close to 5-1-3. I rarely tell someone to cut back on the fertilizer, but this could possibly be affecting fruit set, if you're fertilizing with too much N. If not, I would just exercise a little patience. Your tree looks very healthy, well done.

    Patty S.

  • ourarka
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Thanks Patty,

    Well fingers crossed you are right!! I use a special citrus feed, so would hope the proportions are correct. I generally only feed once a week, but will maybe ease off a tad. I agree the photo does actually look quite healthy, but compared to the last few years it seems to have lost some vigour. Perhaps I will try repotting in the Spring. Also, would cold damage characteristically not show up until now .... or would I have expected poor blooming had it got too cold in winter?

  • hoosierquilt USDA 10A Sunset 23 Vista CA
    10 years ago

    Well, if you've noticed a decrease in vigor over the last couple of years, and you haven't re-potted, I would suspect that either your little tree is getting rootbound, or your potting medium is starting to collapse (or possibly a bit of both). I would think cold damage would have shown up by now. You'll usually see burnt leaves and leaf drop up to complete exfoliation. That should have happened months ago, if the tree had sustained cold damage, so doubtful that's the situation. I would think lack of bloom is due to the 3 things I've mentioned - too much N, being rootbound or potting medium starting to collapse, and roots struggling to work correctly.

    Patty S.

  • ourarka
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Thanks Patty, though it wasn't lack of bloom - more lack of fruit set and new growth. Maybe I'll try a repot. Is this best left until Spring, or could it be done now?

  • hoosierquilt USDA 10A Sunset 23 Vista CA
    10 years ago

    Well, most container folks wait until early spring, but if you're in a temperate enough environment, now is just fine.

    Patty S.

  • stevenkocerka
    10 years ago

    I'm not trying to hijack your thread but I am new to this. I wasn't sure where to start a new discussion. But I figured I'd jump in here and see what y'all have to say. I moved into my house last October and found this huge Tahiti lime tree along with what I believe is some type of satsuma orange tree. I'm in North Fl, St. Augustine to be more specific. Anyways the reason why I am writing is because my lime tree (picture) has not produced fruit this entire year. I don't ever remember it getting flowers and I wanted to know what anyone thought. What I might do, if it needs trimmed, fertilized etc... I have more photos and some close ups of the leaves and branches. Thanks again for letting me jump in.