Thankyou junk4us for all that great info. I love these plants but just not sure how much more room I will have in the greenhouse my citrus tree's are growing super large . I am just going to wait and see if I can squeeze one more plant in there after this upcoming winter if so this will be the one .

Brian

My Meyer lemon. I wish I was tech savvy enough to find my old post asking for help with this tree. Earlier this year this Meyer was a sad twig and I believe it was meyermike who advised to fert at 1 1/2 times the suggested rate of Espoma organic. I followed that advice and this tree is thriving. Thank you to all of you who share your passion and expertise for citrus. I've learned so much from you all.

Dwarf GN smells so good!

Tango getting ready for full bloom!

I was hoping the kishu would self thin because I can't bring myself to do it! I did pluck the new fruitlet

Alpine strawbs. I kinda gave up bon strawbs but they keel growing!

Pink lemonade blueberries

I think i need a bigger yard.

It seams like we all need a bigger yard. I grew Alpine strawberry plants 25 years ago. Loved the berries over any other strawberry type. Got worms and died 4 years later. It was so hard growing these from seeds that I did not do it again. These did not produce runners and the seeds were very expensive for just 25 plants. Good luck with yours. What variety are yours

You can see the dried up thorn just to the right above.Thorn is green as well as the leaf stem stub.
Bud at node 53 from seed grown Fukushu kumquat on C35 rootstock. All pictures

6b Steve

Looking good, congratulations :)

Steve i don't remember. I bought yellow alpines seeds from ebay and got about 10 plants.. Some came out red. It happens. At my last place, the birds and squirrels ate them and spread seeds all over. Every pot had an alpine. I can send you some seeds if you like. I usually let them dry on o the plant then collect the seeds. Kids love them.

J

Thank for getting back. I don,t have room to grow anything else so I don't need seeds. Thanks for the offer though. I have turned to growing citrus and other temperate fruits and veggies.

6b Steve

I haven't really payed attention to my poor citrus plants, here's a small update

limes all over

meyer lemons

Things are growing much slower not being in the greenhouse. Hopefully they will go back in Sept-oct.

Very impressive Matt . Love the fruit on the variegated lemon tree . The fruit on my variegated lemon always falls off prematurely. Your Meyer and lime looks fantastic also .

Brian

Does anyone know how many lemons would a 12 to 18 months old improved meyer lemon tree hold this season? It has around 16 little lemons plus one that it already dropped and seven more flowers growing

Size of tree not age will determine that.

-------------------- "SIZE'-"DOSE"-"MATER"----------------------

Hehe Steve, made me giggle

It is almost two feet tall. What do you think?

Looks a bit thin and not sure if it already be strong enough to carry fruits? Might brake? I would just watch and either support or brake some off if the load becomes too heavy

Re potted my Kieffer today and happy how it looks. Slowly but surely all my trees have recovered from last years neglect. They will go into winter in much better shape and looking forward to get fruits next year

Moro

Oro Blanco

All in 22" pots. Did trim the roots a little bit. They have to stay in those pots a little longer

Everyone's trees look amazing. Leaves look thick and dark green and so healthy! I love the pots everyone's keeps their trees in. Perfect sizes to balance the size of the tree and canopy. Hope my tree can get there someday

@cam032779, I'd like to do the same as you've done for tree and pep my tree up some more but I'm currently not using Espoma. Did he bring up the Espoma in his advise because you are using Espoma?

About one month ago, I've done the taboo.. the forbidden with my Meyer lemon that I purchased in June. I pruned many, many branches off the tree. More than the recommended amount. I didn't realize until after my pruning how much I had taken off! So I've been monitoring and caring for it closely but lately, I'm seeing slight changes on my tree that are throwing me off. There hasn't been any new shoots or branches from the lower nodes on branches I've pruned, my top leaves have always been light green but they're becoming slightly yellower, and last week it started producing flower buds after a big rain. I've read that stressing trees can influence them to flower so I'm worried that these flowers are not cause for celebration. Even though I know it might be a bad sign, seeing those round little flower buds still makes me giddy!

I know first year trees shouldn't be allowed to produce fruit in order to redirect its energy into more growth and strength so I took some tiny flower buds off of the lower nodes and left a few at the branch tips. I checked on the tree tonight and found a sticky dew on each node that had its flower bud plucked off. As a first time tree owner, I can't tell if the tree produced the sticky dew itself or if it was an insect that was feeding on the fresh wounds and produced it. I haven't had any extreme pest infestations so far and it would be nice to continue the truce with the pests. Any insight would be helpful and extremely appreciated! It's certainly my own fault for pruning it harshly. I'm too ashamed to attach a photo of its remaining canopy.

A few new pics. My grafted NZL putting on new growth after hard hitting winter.

Solar eclipse Drove 265 miles for these pictures.

Closeup of NZL Growth

Tennessee Technical university let us park and party at their football stadium.

Fukushu on C35 continues to grow

Some how the football fealed sqished the disk to the shap of a football

Other side view

6b Steve

Picked up a little lemon this weekend - looks like a cutting, but probably a seedling. Couldn't pass it up for $6. I'm guessing it is a Meyer, but I have no clue. Lemons make me happy

-Kelley

awesome root system. Would not know what it is either.

I think it's a cutting, nice roots:)

Looks like a cutting to me, too.

May as well add a few of mine!

The first photo is of my Yuzu, which I give some extra support because it lives on my roof year round even in windy winter storms (and the posts make it easier to cover with a frost blanket).

The second is of my Rangpur Lime, which took a while to recover from early Spring sunburn but is looking great now. It's got a couple limelets on it but is also blooming right now. I imagine if you could keep this variety happy year round it would probably give you limes every season.

Third is my Meyer, which I'm going to give away. I'm frankly tired of how slowly they grow, how quickly they drop leaves when lighting changes, and how much heat they seem to demand. They make awesome fruit, are as everbearing as they come, and are probably much more robust in-ground or in California but they just don't seem to be worth it in the PNW.
I'm going to give the Marrakech Limonetta a try instead as an aromatic / unique lemon, and I have one arriving from FWG next week :).

Lastly in the background is my Lakeland Limequat from Harris. It arrived in really rough shape but is actually flushing new growth from top to bottom and is also about to bloom.

Beautiful trees, your lanky limequat will branch out in no time, all it needs is sunlight to hit the trunk, that's what my lime tree did.

Wow Kelley, what a steal for that price and those roots.

That Yuzu looks like it's been growing in Cali weather, not windy winter roof conditions. Pretty amazing how it looks like it's trying to burst out of its container. Maybe I'll have to get myself a Yuzu incase my Meyer becomes too high maintenance in the long run!

Thanks! I'd definitely recommend Yuzu or Sudachi for anyone not living in a prime citrus growing region that's interested in an easier tree. I think the best thing about them is they seem to go into a deep dormancy in the winter and they don't really "wake up" until they can tell it's consistently good growing weather, at which point they go crazy. It's not going to give you as much fruit as a Meyer, but it's also good about shedding fruit it can't carry to maturity or even skipping a year of blooms (mine did this year since it's still pretty young) if it knows it needs to do some more growing first.

Beautiful flowers on that one Kevin!

PacNor, how cold does it get where you live?

Seed grown lemon tree bloom. Hopefully the tree is finally approaching maturity after 5 years.

I have been keeping away from the forum because I am devastated about the state of my trees after my back went out and they all got too dry and had severe leaf drop/dieback. It's been a few months and I figured i'd share how they are recovering.

Limes: This is my AFL, formally it was a premium sized tree from FW but every branch died back. The one shoot you see is new growth. I was most heartbroken over this one as I waited over a year to get the large size tree only to be set back so far.

The rest of my limes, the bearss is hanging on to a few good leaves but is sparse, the key is real shabby looking, lots of leaf drop and wilted leaves. I am planning on pruning this weekend and seeing if the reduced canopy size would help it bounce back. The kieffer looks good, it arrived after the "drought" and hasn't changed at all. The Red finger lime came after as well and has a few crunchy leaves. The heat really did a number on all of the trees.

Lemons: The Meyer really impressed me, every leaf dropped and all the branches died back but it got a new flush of leaves a few weeks ago and looks better than it has (albeit much smaller) in a long time. The NZL lost every leaf back in March and has gotten some more, it still needs to fill out but its making a slow recovery. and the Ponderosa is awful wilted looking hasn't dropped many leaves but hasn't put out any either. It was an after the drought acquisition as well.
Blood Oranges: The Moro is sad, I was hopeful since the branches didn't die back but no new growth has shown so I will be trimming it back as well. The Vaniglia Sanguigno arrived post drought but is wilted from the transplant.

Other trees:

The BH dropped most of its leaves, its attempting to flower right now. I left its fruitlet when I got it on and now after the leaf drop I am hemming and hawing over removing it. I read that BH's can be hard to get fruit to maturity so I was worried about removing a good fruit but I want the plant to make it. It is my favorite tree next to the AFL's

Calamondin: lots of leaf drop, will be pruning this weekend. Starting to flower. Kishu: had to be topped as the top hald died back. Putting out new growth.Seville:New growth starting to emerge. I am finally rid of scale on my trees from OGW! its been 2 months and no resurgence has happened yet!Minneloa: The only tree besides the BH to have a fruit/ hasn't done much since re-potting. It and the Oro are two of the trees I am experimenting with soil/perlite in a root pouch. Oro Blanco: Wilted, not showing any new growth. And finally RIP Washington Navel: it lost every leaf then my tree murdering puppy decided that it had no hope of life and disposed of it for me by ripping it out of the pot and eating it.

Oh how sad, I can feel your pain. I probably would be crying. Wish you all the best and that most trees will recover for you. Hope your back is okay again?

Laura, average lows here in peak winter are about 37F. During an especially cold winter, such as last year, you may see a few nights down to 10-15F.

Sammers, sorry about your trees. It's been an especially dry (and hot at times) summer here. Maybe you could set up drip irrigation for your citrus next summer! I'm sure most of them will bounce back soon.

Sammers i hope your trees come through OK over time.

6b Steve

Sammers, I know how you feel. Are you pruning off branches with leaves? If so, that is probably not a good idea. Looks like most, if not all of your babies are on the road to recovery.

For the trees that still have leaves that haven't completely dried out and become crisp, there's still a chance for bounce back! They say lemons store the majority of their carbohydrates/food in their leaves rather than their roots like other plants so if you still have leaves that don't fall apart when messing with them, they can still transpire and receive water/nutrients. It may take awhile and a careful eye but there's still hope for your trees to return to their status quo.

I hope your back is recovering well, I also discovered some problems with my lower back and knees. I'm considering testing out different container systems other people have done to make watering the citrus easier incase there are days you just can't tend to your trees. It can be hard to predict when you aren't able to go out and take care of your trees. I think your BH flowering after most of leaves dropped means it isn't a happy flowering event. Probably best not to let it fruit but maybe you've stumbled upon the best method for how to fruit to maturity for that tree. Best of luck to the health of you and your trees.

Cats apparently like tree pots. Maybe the Valentine has something to do with it...

-Tom

Definitely Valentine has something to do with it , love the kitty and love the giant fruit on your tree . Tom your Tango looks it's doing really well now nice recovery great job.

Brian

Hi Tom,

how big is the container for your valentine pummelo? It's a very beautiful tree! Do you have a greenhouse?

Tom - Cats love the weirdest things. We had to put fencing around our kiwi plants because some cats are attracted to them like catnip. The neighborhood cat was digging them up and destroying the male kiwi plant. :p

Fukushu to C35 T graft

6b Steve

Last day of August! Fukushu kumquat on C35

The lower end of the yardstick is level with the bud growth. the camera angle doesn't show this.

Holy crap, 3 inches in 4 days. You're doing amazing things with this graft!

Very nice Fukushu, Steve!

It is loving the light, Steve :))

Kvetch. Jinny, sunshine thanks for the kind words. I foliar feed only the scion 2 times a day and I place it in the light for an extra 5 hours just before sunset. I have left the C35 snapped over to produce a lot of food for the whole plant. the higher level scion is th only part of the tree that sees light. So far no rootstock growth above the graft but I have broken over 5 buds below the graft. I am going to leave the rootstock top intact for another month or 2. The rootstock top will be in the way when I bring the tree in for the winter.

Haha you read my mind, I was wondering if that amazing growth was from supplemental light.

Sorry I haven't grown plants for that long yet, what is a C35? Sounds like a type of bulb or is it a device that holds one? I'm aiming to get a grow light with high par for a decent price but I haven't figured out a good way to direct or reflect the light yet. It won't be a CFL bulb so I can't use reflectors where the bulb screws in horizontally unfortunately

Kvetch: C35 is a rootstock for citrus.

Ohhh boy I was off. Thanks for the clarification bacon! Makes a lot more sense now

The extra 5 Hours under a light lets the plant know that the scion is the most advantages shoot to put growth energy into.

Steve

Thanks for the tidbit Steve. I forget that plants can respond and adapt to their advantages, even ones as small as a grafted scion! I'll keep this in mind when winter starts blowing in