This is a multiple question/answer post; the answers depend a lot on variety, container or in ground, temperature expectations, etc. There is no good answer to all these questions.

Do the forum rules say i need to open up a different thread for each variety of citrus or are you just saying I haven't provided enough detail?

If it's the latter, the lemon trees are mayer lemons and the lime are key lime. I have both varieties in the ground and in pots but I'm currently having the issue with the potted ones.

I live in Texas so it will generally be above freezing but there are nights that the actual temperature will be in the low 20s. I plan to use a heat lamp and covers so I would assume the temperature around the trees will be higher than the actual outdoor temperature.

Yes, you should stop or at least cut back on fertilizing. So, are the planted trees OK? What is the soil mix that the container trees are in? Did you slowly acclimate the trees by putting them in semi-shade for about a week or two and then bringing them indoors? I am thinking that your problem might be a soil mix that retains too much water and/or insufficient acclimatization before bringing them indoors.

Please post a photo of the leaves and entire trees so that we can get a better idea of what is going on.

As for a heat lamp, I am not sure what you are looking for. You can try the type used to keep chicks warm or some people wrap their trees in the old fashioned Christmas tree lights.

If you are asking a question about a container tree, the answers will be different and the experts will be different; if you are asking an in ground question, likewise. Almost no one is expert in all your questions.

I was wondering, why don't you just bury the pots in the ground until winter is over to keep the roots much warmer and allow the earth to act as a wick for your pots..? I would continue to fertilizer weakly weekly all winter since your sunlight is much longer than ours..Your weather is much warmer too which puts your trees into constant activity..

I'll post a photo tomorrow when it's light enough to take a picture.

I brought the trees in last year but I haven't this year. All of the planted trees seemed to start yellowing from nowhere. I should note that they still have fruit on that isn't completely ripe yet.

All of the planted trees are currently fine but I don't know if they'll stay that way..

I'd be surprised if the yellowing came from being watered too often because it's still in the 80s here through the day and high 60s at night. Then again, I only have the opportunity to water at 6:30 pm ish so that may be problematic.

I can't remember the name given to the potting mix in the pots, but I used the mix that is commonly suggested on this site. i think it's called 5:1:1. The water runs out very quickly.

@mikerno_1micha would you still suggest fertilizing even though we could potentially stay below 32 for couple of days straight in January or February?

The heat lamp is because I'm leaving all trees outside this year. It would be a nightmare planting the potted trees in the ground because it's filled with limestone.

I realized last night that the trees that are yellowing most are sitting primarily in miracle grow citrus soil. I didn't change out their soil when I changed the other trees because they were already recovering from the winter at that point. Looks like a big mistake now.

I assume it's too late in the year to be re-potting now?

These are the trees. The top one is actually a grapefruit that I hadn't previously noticed was also having issues. The other 2 trees are lemon trees.

Those look deficient to me, but again, is it a root issue, or have you just not fertilized in a while? What are they planted in?

2 are in concrete pots and the other is in a ceramic pot.

They haven't been fertilized for about 6 weeks. One of the reasons I'd be surprised if it was a root issue is that all 3 trees have encountered issues at the same time and it's still very warm here. The trees did well in early spring and it was cooler then.

Then again, the planted trees seem to be doing ok.

Andrew, I have had as many as 30 trees have the same problem at the same time due to Miracle Grow...It is possible to get root issues all at the same time and I would most certainly take Laura's questions seriously....

First address your root issues and then fertilizer..My trees have gone without fertilizer for weeks on end at a time and never turned that yellow..

Just because one lives in a southern warmer climate does not mean they are impervious to root rot or can use any mix that holds that much moisture...

I'm certainly taking it seriously. I just want to make sure everyone knows all the details.

Although all 3 pots have crappy soil, each has a different mix. The reason I mentioned the climate is that the soil has been in there for over a year and the plants did really well at the same temperatures in Spring.

Should I change out the soil or is it too late in the year?

Andrew, I know you are) I meant nothing bad by that..I just wanted you to really pay attention to Laura's question and advice. She is becoming a pro here and has a lot to offer...

As Josh says, if you are giving your trees lots of light and they are still actively growing, fertilize but lightly....Of course, this does not mean to do it if your roots are suffering, and you would know if they are...

At this time of the year, it is not optimal to bare root, but a re pot, up potting basically is just fine to hold you over until Summer of next year..Maybe you could loosen the older mix and fill in with fresh mix potting into a pot about the same size as the root ball....

So, change out the soil if you care to, just don't disturb the roots..Fertilize when your trees are actively growing and weakly if they slow down..

I think the roots probably fill the full pot now so it might be difficult to change out the soil without disturbing the roots.

I fertilized them tonight so we'll see how that goes.

Should I leave the fruit on the trees until they are fully ripe or would it make sense to remove the fruit now? Also, how often should I be watering them as winter arrives?

I'm arriving late to the party, but I just want to say that I stopped fertilizing the minute my trees came inside last winter, and i didn't run into the leaves yellowing issue that I see on your pictures. I tend to agree that the problem lies elsewhere.

The first worry with any citrus is ALWAYS the state of the roots...

However, this being said, I would be very curious to know how much light difference there it's between now and when the trees were outside. I personally believe that light changes can affect potted Meyer trees at least as much and maybe even more than temperature changes. If you didn't slowly got them used to less and less light and more and more shade before bringing them in, I wouldn't be surprised if you had a leaf dropping issue. Also, when inside, I water A LOT less often.

Then again, compared to the gurus on this board, I'm a total N00b :)

Good luck with your trees, and God bless,

.

Atheen

What I would do if I were in your shoes is repot, but not bare-root. I would gently shake off any dirt that readily falls off and put the trees in slightly bigger pots with 5-1-1...but that's just me. If you do that, check the roots carefully and if you see any issues, cut off. Look at it this way: if they do have root issues, they will deteriorate further and possibly die anyways. By potting them up - even trimming roots if necessary - you may shock them, but they will likely still do better than leaving them in a bad mix with rotting roots. I like to live dangerously though. ...;-)

Andrew, I am very confused..And since potting mix is of primary concern and is usually the main perpetrator behind these kind of issues..Unless we get exactly what mixes you are using, we may not be of much help. I feel like this thread and your questions are disorganized and self conflicting...Can you start over? I'm too tired to try to decipher it out..My apologies..

Per your words...

"Although all 3 pots have crappy soil, each has a different mix."

"the name given to the potting mix in the pots, but I used the mix that is commonly suggested on this site. i think it's called 5:1:1."

"I realized last night that the trees that are yellowing most are sitting primarily in miracle grow citrus soil. I didn't change out their soil when I changed the other trees because they were already recovering from the winter at that point."

Which is it? Which trees are in the 5.1.1 and how did you make it? Which ones specifically are in Miracle Grow? You said the ones yellowing are in Miracle Grow?

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In general, if your mix is holding moisture too long, even in the 5.1.1 mix if incorrectly made, either re potting it or finding a way to wick the moisture out is best to get you through until summer when a full bare root would be suggested...A mix that hold moisture too long and that does not allow gas exchange between the roots will cause all kind of deficient problems due to poor toot zone function..Even in Texas...

Fertilizing while this is happening only exacerbates the problem. So I would not even consider fertilizing until all your eggs are lined up..

I'm very sorry about the confusion and really do appreciate the help. The information got slightly off track at the beginning as I made a mistake on my first post and later corrected it.

Let me try and clarify

Issue - Last summer I had many lemon and lime trees and 1 grapefruit tree in pots. Some had a miracle grow mix and some had another mass manufactured organic brand (don't recall the name).

In the Autumn I brought ALL of the tree in the house. By March some were on the way to dying and the others had lost 90% of their leaves.

I brought all trees outside at the end of March. In Spring I decided to plant some the remaining trees in the ground and repot the others in 5:1:1 mix. However, when I came to repot 3 of the trees, they were doing so well that I instead just partially switched out the soil without touching the roots at all.

I also bought a couple of new trees and planted them in 5:1:1.

All trees that lived did very well during spring and summer. The trees in the ground are all still great. The 3 trees I that I didn't fully repot produced a lot of fruit between them, but are now starting to turn yellow again. I have NOT moved the trees into the house this year and instead plan to use an outdoor heater and covers to protect them when it gets too cold.

I'm happy to risk re-potting the trees if that is best. I'm just confused as to why they would have recovered if the roots were rotten last year. Maybe it was a different problem last year.

Andrew, it's possible that much of the rootmass died, but when brought outdoors the trees grew new roots and appeared to make a comeback. *If* that's what happened, however, you can expect it to happen again....but, this time, the trees could die completely.

It's quite late in the season for re-potting; but if you suspect your trees won't make it through the Winter, then I can't see any other option.

Josh

Thank you everyone. I'll re-pot them this weekend and see what happens.

Andrew, I "adopted" a few trees from my neighbor that were not in great shape. She had them in MG potting soil. Before bringing them in, I did repot them even though it is late. I did not bare-root them though...well, one I did because the dirt just fell off the roots. The others I shook off as much soil as would easily come off without causing much damage. Then I put that root mass into a larger pot with the 5-1-1. So far, they all look perfectly fine. That was about 5 days ago.