Author Topic: Please Help! Meyer Lemon Defoliation!!!  (Read 838 times)

Ruby93

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Please Help! Meyer Lemon Defoliation!!!
« on: March 07, 2020, 02:30:35 PM »
For the past month and a half, my Meyer lemon tree has been gradually losing its leaves. The leaves will turn completely yellow the fall off of the tree. I bought my lemon tree back in September from Lowe's and it was doing perfectly fine and was full of blooms. This is my first citrus tree, so I didn't quite know what to expect. As fruit started to set on the tree, I started to notice leaves turning yellow all over the tree.

I fertilize every two months with Citrus Tone and since the leaves began turning yellow, I have been feeding my tree with fish emulsion drench every two weeks, thinking that more nitrogen would benefit the leaves. I also cut off a lot of fruit from the tree thinking that would help with decreasing the stress. Well, now my tree is defoliating.... I only water my tree once a week to avoid root rot and it gets full sun outside. The only factors I can think of would be the normal cold winter weather in Tampa Florida (has not been less than 40 degrees). Also, I noticed that at the base of the veins for each leaf, there is a dark area. It does not look like any particular pest I can see, but I am thinking maybe it is a fungus?? Please take a look and let me know what you think.  :'( :'(












Millet

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Re: Please Help! Meyer Lemon Defoliation!!!
« Reply #1 on: March 08, 2020, 03:43:22 PM »
First you are trying to fertilize a container tree with an organic fertilizer (Citrus Tone).  What makes organic fertilizers, such as Citrus Tone, available to the tree are microorganisms.  Soil microorganisms react with an organic fertilizers to break them down into a form available to the tree.  However, container culture does not contain enough microorganisms to achieve the nutritional availability of your fertilizer.  Organically derived ferts are extremely inefficient when applied in a container setting. And they also tend to lack many of the required micronutrients. Your tree would be better served with a liquid synthetic with a full range of required plant nutrients and in the correct proportions - something like Foliage Pro 9-3-6. To another point:  the period of greatest leaf fall in citrus is during the bloom.  The highest stress period for the tree is during the bloom and fruit development phase, therefore during this time nutrition is extremely important..   Your tree is showing various nutrient deficiencies. I would strongly recommend that you switch to a conventional fertilizer with a higher formulation ratio of nitrogen and potassium, and less phosphorous, plus the micronutrients.  The medium that your tree is growing in looks to be pretty tight/compact.  How rapidly does the water drain out the bottom of the container after you apply water?
« Last Edit: March 08, 2020, 04:27:20 PM by Millet »

Ruby93

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Re: Please Help! Meyer Lemon Defoliation!!!
« Reply #2 on: March 08, 2020, 04:17:04 PM »
Thanks for your reply, I will definitely look into that Foliage Pro ASAP and see how often I should apply. When I water her, the water drains through pretty well. I have a soil mix of organic potting soil, mixed with some additional perlite, and some pathway bark to help with the drainage. I recently shimmied her out of her pot just to examine her roots and they all looked to be yellow and nothing that looks like it's rotting. What do you think about the darkness on the underside of the leaves?   

Millet

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Re: Please Help! Meyer Lemon Defoliation!!!
« Reply #3 on: March 08, 2020, 04:37:49 PM »
If your writing about the first picture that shows a brownish center at the leaf's bottom, I think they are just old leaves that has served out their useful life and are being discarded by the tree.  When you get your fertilizer, fertilizer once every couple weeks,   It would be appreciate if you would check back in a couple months and tell us how your tree is doing. The best to you and your tree.  Thanks for being a member of this forum.

Ruby93

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Re: Please Help! Meyer Lemon Defoliation!!!
« Reply #4 on: March 08, 2020, 04:43:55 PM »
Thanks again, I will do that