Evan...Hey, I am sorry about that..

Has it gone through any abrupt changes? Like under watered?Over watered? Has the soil all of a sudden collapsed? A sudden change of sunlight or temps?

Mike

It seems meyers lemons love to drop their leaves if anything bothers them, much more so than any other type of citrus. Where do you live, you say the weather is getting colder, but not how cold it is.

It's been watered as it normally has been. No change in sunlight, about 7 hours a day. It's beginning to cool down but it's been gradual

I live in massachusetts, zone 6a. It's still in the mid sixties here

What mix is it planted in?

Normal Miracle Grow potting mix. It has been fertilized by espoma citrus tone 5-2-6 once in june after bloom and a few weeks ago

Evan, how long have you had it? What is your watering practice in detail? What kind of water and how much?

If it's in Miracle Grow, we need to know what size pot it's in?

That soil looks old and too fine to let your roots breath..I too live in Mass and it's the number one killer of citrus trees..

I suspect your tree will continue to deteriorate if you don't switch out the mix...especially for winter. Look up 5-1-1 mix...that's what most of us use.

I have had the tree since April. I have no set days for watering, instead I wait until the top 2 or so inches of soil are dry. I use about 36 fl oz of normal tap water.

It's in a 12" pot

Is this the 5-1-1 mix?

Pine Bark Mulch, peat moss, perlite, compost, and granular limestone?

Yes, you need to change that mix asap...To prevent further root loss...........

Okay. Should I put it in a bigger pot? And when should I bring it in?

Evan, the size of the pot will be determined by the size of your healthy roots...If the roots are very small, be careful not to over pot because you are not use to watering properly and any mix would take too long to dry out..Can you take photos of the healthy roots and the size of the root ball..Just slide it out of the pot careful and snap a few shots..It will gave you an idea of what's going on with the mix covering the root ball too...

Evan, you are close on the 5-1-1, but not exactly. The 5-1-1 is 5 parts pine bark (I use reptibark), 1 part perlite (preferably coarse), and 1 part peat moss. You also need to add lime or the mix will be too acidic. I am not sure exactly what the measure of lime is and am afraid I may have not used enough in my mixes. Many of us also use Oscomote plus although since it is almost winter for you, you may not want to add that. We also fertilize regularly with Foliage Pro. I think you should repot before winter because if it is like this now, it will go further downhill when it has to live indoors.

Okay. I will try to have it repotted by Sunday

Here are the roots. It looks like they've rotted. What should I do now?

I am not a good judge of that, but if they have rotted, they will stink!! I had a Meyer that was just slowly deteriorating, and when I repotted it, i noticed the stench. Any roots that look rotted, just cut off. The tree will recover fine from a root pruning. When you repot, submerge the root ball in water and gently remove as much of the potting mix as you can. Then put it in the 5-1-1 mix and in the shade for a week or two. Look at it this way, it WILL die if you do nothing, so at least you will give it a chance.

You can buy reptibark on Amazon cheaply when it's on sale...$15.99 for the large bag.

Zoo Med Reptile Bark Fir Bedding, 24 Quarts https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001F9AMW6/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_SBz9xbB0ZTDZ9

Ok. Will repot asap. How good of a chance would you give the tree if I follow your directions. Also, since it's getting cold (sixties) should I bring it in after a week in the shade?

I think it will be fine Evan. Meyers can lose their leaves easily and will grow them right back. The tree I repotted was not doing well at all, although not quite as bad as yours in that it still had some leaves - but they were wilting, not right. It took a while for her to bounce back (yes, we name our trees in my house ;-), but now she's great. Vladimir equated it to having major surgery...it takes a while to recover, but then you bounce back. Here is a pic of mine that almost died from just a few days ago...

It is the larger tree on the left. She looked TERRIBLE early this spring. Will you have a good winter setup - meaning a nice bright room to put the tree in? If so, you may want to add 1/2 strength oscomote plus just to sustain it with a little nutrition through the winter. You may also consider (depending on your conditions) giving it a weak solution of FP. This is all after repotting and recovery. I'm just thinking long term for winter.

Sorry...forgot your other question. I do not bring my trees in until lows are in the low 40s, so I would leave it out as long as possible.

One last thing, and you will not like it, but if I were you, I would remove all but one or two of those lemons. The tree should put forth most of its energy into growing leaves and getting strong, not producing fruit.

Ok. I have plenty of sunny rooms. I will remove the lemons as directed. Thank you

Let us know how it goes! Good luck!

Got tree in the 5-1-1!

Now I'll wait and see for the coming week or so. I will remove the remaining two lemons, and depending on how it goes maybe some oscomote plus later

Looking mighty good@!

Laura, as a side note..Your mix for your trees ALWAYS looks might pretty! Remember one thing, if you were to use a mix with ,more finer particles, you would have to be very concerned about keeping your trees out that cold on those nights if the mix was still wet. With the 5.1.1, it's not an issue for you to ever to worry about..

If you get leaf loss, it will be because you brought them into a warm heated room from the cold they are use to being exposed to. But don't panic, they should recover))

Thank you. I'm hoping to keep it out for maybe 1 or 2 more weeks if it stays warm, but I'm guessing not

Great!

Evan, looks great! Give it time and the tree will recover. Keep us updated please!

I will do!

Thanks for your help, it was a literal lifesaver!