This is a broader pic..

Delete this post, the plant could be from a rooted cutting

This post was edited by pecanman on Wed, Oct 15, 14 at 20:18

Darn! I was afraid of that! How is it possible that the leaves look identical to the eureka branches and leaves?

No, I don't think so. I think your tree is planted very deeply, and possibly the graft line is below the soil. I don't see any graft line. Lemons are usually grafted to something very similar (Yuma Ponderosa, Volkameriana, Rough Lemon, Macrophylla), Eureka is almost always grafted to either Volk or Yuma Ponderosa. And the leaves and growth habits will look very similar. The fruit will be different - usually thicker skin, more seeds from the rootstock, and much more sour/bitter. I would wait until the fruit ripens on that branch, and compare it to the fruit on the rest of your tree. That will be the deciding factor. But, from what I can see in your photos, the graft line appears to be under the soil.

Patty S.

Bullie,
pecanman is absolutely right.
I can see the graft line, its clear in the pic.
Cut the branch off at the bottom, you know where the graft
line is.
Its not planted too deep.
Or not, its up to you.
Its your plant.

i will cut it at the graft line if its the rootstock. The branch is the only one without fruit on it. I will wait for a couple of more replies from the pros before chopping but its looking that way....

it looks normal and healthy thou

That does not appear to be a graft line, butterfly. It is simply a line. I've never seen a horizontal graft line (I graft, do you?) I have over 100 citrus trees on my property, bullie, and I've grafted plenty. I would gently dig down under the soil line to see if you can identify the graft line. It is very possible this tree was not even grafted, and started as a cutting. Can you contact the origial seller to see if this is even a grafted tree? Lemons start easily from cuttings. As I said, this does not look like a graft line to me, but it's your tree, and your decision, of course.

Patty S.

Thanks patty but I been debating cutting the branch for long already that I may as well just leave it on. The trunk is pretty thick and I actually added a layer of top soil because the tree barely had any... The only thing that worries me about the branch is that its the only branch that hasn't flowered but always seems to get new growth.. Other branches are producing new growth and flowers as well... Forum seems kind of split on this..

I'm with hoosierquilt on this one. Looks like just a line, not a graft. Probably a seedling or cutting plant. I would still prune that little low branch to give more strength to the stronger branches. Do not be afraid to so some light, selective pruning on young citrus. Select and keep the strongest branches, prune out the weak ones.
Also later, as the tree grows bigger, if as you get long candelabra branches, prune them back a lot, back to only 12 inches. This will give you a good strong structure and you will get 2, 3 or 4 more branches from that 12 inch section.

Is it just me, or does your tree not look like a Eureka lemon?

johnmer what does it look like?

I believe the tree is already several years old from Buck Farms Florida. Here is another pic from earlier this year.

While I am on here asking, can anyone tell me what those white spots are? they don't come off... I regularly spray with fish emulsion and just lately started an anti fungal on the tree... the tree had all sorts off issues when I get including LM and probably some fungal issues as well.... New growth spurts have all been great except this last one got hammered hard by new LM's in September

Don't spray anything unless you are sure you know what the problem is.

Tree needs a bigger pot and may need to be fertilized. If one of the branches is from a rootstock it will become more apparent over time, you don't necessarily have to do anything about it right now. When leaving rootstock sprouts is a problem is when, probably quite some years later, the rootstock is taking over and pushing the scion aside/shading it out.

That said, in your last picture the foliage in the part nearest the post looks quite different from the part with the fruit. Next I would want to view the specimen in person before I tried to make a decision.

In the last picture it looks like a Eureka; but the first had round fruit and big, odd shaped leaves.

I think the big fruit is just the camera angle.. The leaves seem to be curling on me as of lately I am unsure the cause. I have my ups and downs with this tree but only owning it since April... I'm pretty sure it needs repotted but I am in the process of moving into a new home and didnt want to repot it and then weeks later plant it in the ground so I have been holding off.

This is the tree when i first received it...

Alright guys I came home and dug in a little deeper and took a pic, here you go...maybe it isnt the rootstock after all? The trunk seems pretty think I'm curious as to the age of the tree..

No graft in the last photo. It looks like a Eureka to me, too. I'm suspecting it was grown by cutting, but only the grower can tell you for sure. I would contact the company you bought the tree from and ask. That way, the debate will end :-)

Patty S.

i say its a cutting.