It seems like you are sort of chasing your tail.......have you figured out why your citrus don't grow well? They are so easy...put them in the crappy sand with no amendments, fertilize on a set schedule and they grow like weeds.

The cover crop will not fix whatever problem exists that is keeping your plants from prospering. Find the cause, address it and they will flourish.

No, I do not know what the specific problem/s is/are. For certain, they have not been fertilized on a fixed schedule.

Question: when they do "grow like weeds", is it because citrus thrives in impoverished sand or is it because they are being consistently nourished artificially?

It may also be that the site is simply too cold, there is no lake protection. Low to mid-20's, like this morning, occur several times a year it seems. Add this stress to inadequate care and it's too many blows?

Most times when people have trouble with citrus it is either from improper planting such as planting too deep or improper care. Not saying you did so it is just citrus seem so easy.

I fertilize the small trees monthly Feb-Oct. Could you post pictures of the trees?

I'll try to remember to take some photos.

We didn't plant them, the former owner did. Soon after, he fell ill and the trees got little or no attention for the next 4 or 5 years, I think. I don't know how long they went unirrigated and unfertilized for sure. Clearly they got enough to get established, so maybe a year or two. Then my folks bought the place and the trees have gotten uneven attention since then. Now it's up to me.

I am giving them one good dose of milorganite mixed with humate and azomite. I also sprayed the foliage with micronized azomite diluted in water. There is a grove in Deland that has gotten amazing results with azomite - the trees look superbly healthy even though infected with greening and other common diseases. Generally I come down once a year for about a month, so monthly apps are not possible.

That does make it tough. I would check when you are here that they are not planted too deep. The first set of roots should be right at the surface.

Citrus will die off slowly at temps 28 degrees or below if it lasts more than several hours.

Citrus can take 3 to 5 years to slowly die. The freezes of 09,10 and 11 were enough to wipe out your grove but ever so slowly.

Once citrus trees are in serious decline, the best thing to do is pull them out and plant cold tolerant fruiting trees like olives, persimmons , quince, pomegranates and more. These trees can tolerate down to 10 degrees with no damage.

Contact the citrus expert at your county Extension Agency. See if the Urban Agent will come out and look at your grove. Seeing in person is the best way.

The former fellow was pretty serious about plants, so I rather doubt the planting depth is the issue, and I do encounter the roots often enough in the top couple inches.

I think the freezes are very likely the blow they could not withstand, although a few look like they might make it. We'll see. The ones that are half-dead i will use them as lima-bean scaffolding this year. Later I guess I'll have bean scaffold for a long time.

Sing up for your dried lima share now.....

PN where are you located?

Northern lake bordering marion. Map says 9a but I think it could easily be a micro 8b. Certainly a cold 9a.

I'm in NW Volusia and I agree, the last several years have been very rough on trees. We've had droughts, floods, hurricanes then freezes the last few years. Last year some of the commercial groves around me had to replace some of their trees. If you haven't already, I'ld call your local extension agent. They could help you the best.

Hasn't fazed live oaks, or yaupon holly, or mulberries, or cherries! That stuff is growing super vigorous. I'd like to know where they get their nutrients from.

The windstorms have been quite rough on the cedar hedgerows, to be sure.

So I had a retired extension agent and now mineral expert come look at them.

Verdict: very severe manganese deficiency and fairly severe N deficiency. He said that trees which are well-mineralized will resist any florida freezes, he has seen the evidence many times, including in the '89 freeze.

And, BR you were right, some of them had soil built up around the trunk, so they were too deep.

PN,

At least now you know what the problem is and can address it.....or can you? I see all the time citrus planted too deeply. As a part time resident it is kind of hard for you to fertilize on the right schedule. Anyway you can work around that problem? A neighbor? A service maybe or family?

Yeah, my dad will be working on it. Organic manganese, more azamite, humate and some source of N, and at least a few waterings before the rainy season. The depth problem is easy to fix, simply raking away dirt until the first root shows.