The leaves show that at some time in the past the tree had a lot of damage from spider mites. Check to be sure they are no longer present, and if so spray with a good horticultural oil or neem. .

Thanks for the warning. How can you tell there's spider mite damage and will neem oil work on the take care if them if they're still there?

If you look at the leaves in the second picture you can see all the dimpled white spots. Those are the spots where the mites sucked the chlorophyll out of the leaf. A neem oil or horticultural oil spray on the top and bottom of the leaf and the trees wood will kill them if there are still on the tree. Actually 3 or 4 GOOD firm sprays with water will do the same. After a good clean up the tree should do fine.

Four Winds seems to have had one helluva problem with spider mites this year; that is probably the cause of your discoloration; but the mites themselves are probably gone... still a spray with a good quality HO cannot hurt.

Thank you all- I just thought it was a lack of iron or being stuck in a box for a week. My other citrus show signs of mild iron chlorosis.

Congratulations! Your tree is nice and if you listen to and follow Silica and John's advice it will be beneficial to your tree. You want to make sure your tree has no mites before bringing them in for the winter. Once you bring them indoors check for mites and pests at least a few times a week and spray your trees leaves with water on the top and underneath the leaves as Mites hate moisture/humidity and thrive under hot and dry conditions.. During the winter, I give my smaller trees a good shower once a week..Be careful not to overwater your tree in the winter to prevent root rot.. Let the first few inches of soil dry out in between waterings. Check the soil moisture with a small dowel or use your fingers and stick them down in the soil a few inches..Good luck!

I got mine NZL 3 days ago, also from FW. It took Fedex 5 days, even though I live in Contra Costa area of Bay Area which is only a 60-65 min drive to FW. Your tree looks a little better IMO.

This is my NZL. I think my camera made it greener. It is actually pale green.

Should I fertilize it with smth mild or better to wait a little?

I'm starting to wonder if FW has different suppliers that grows trees for them? How can quality be soo different?

Alanna I see you are in NY. Citrus does not like cool roots and clay pots are not really favorable because of moisture getting out and creating cool soil. Love the branching on your tree :)

Mikhail I would fertilize now. No reason to wait

Nice! Mine is suposed to be here tomarrow but it didnt come from FW as i was too late. I got mine from mckenzie farms. Im excited!

I'm really curious to see the difference between FW and McKenzie farms. I called Mckenzie farms and left a message, but I hadn't heard back when the NZL became available from FW, so I just got it. Mine will be fine with live and time, I'm sure. But it makes me think twice before ordering other trees from FW.

Susanne - I have 7 citrus trees in terra-cotta. Too much water is always by biggest concern. They all come in once it gets near freezing at night. What do you do in Michigan?

I am too. He was very honest and told me it had leaf miner damage before i bought it and held it extra time so he could spray and soil drench it twice. Honstey goes a looonnng way in my book. I got a finger lime from him it was small but has grown quickly! Sometimes i have better luck with emailing him. His prices are better and shipping is the best price ive seen. will make sure to post a pic.

Here is my NZL tree from Mckenzie Farms that I ordered last June. Stan sent a very healthy, beautiful tree. He is a really great guy to talk to and deal with. Honesty is the best policy in my book.. ♡

After potting up.

After.. a few months later. It grew really well and had a few nice lemons on it but sadly it did not make it through the winter. I believe the roots got too cold for a short while while it was in my sunroom and I possibly did not water enough. Not sure.. it was in the 5-1-1 mix and drained really well..

The price of the tree was very reasonable but the shipping cost was killer for me. More than FW.. I live in upper mid-west. .

Alanna I bring all my trees in the house. This year will be very interesting as I did add some (ugh a lot but blame it on this citroholic community ;). ) I got two caras from FW and one took off and grew a lot the other one was yellow when it came and got yellower with time passing. In defense for FW they want to make it right and if the tree is not recovering, they will send a placement. I really felt lucky with the Rio red although some parasite damage and heat stress from shipping, this tree looks awesome. Nothing to complain about it. For the future I think most my trees will come from Harris. Love the customer service, very friendly and very helpful. Ruby red is coming and a xie shan and another variegated minneola on semi dwarf root stock. Will you keep the room warm for your trees? As long as they are small I don't see a problem if you keep them warm. Interesting when they are getting big and heavy :)

Jinny your tree looked beautiful sorry for the untimely end :(. Did you get a new one?

Susanne, thanks.. I bought one from FW's for my daughter-in-law last fall.. I was not planning on replacing mine but I did order, and just received two very small NZL citrus liners. I will keep them in a warm room with a sunny window and lights this winter. All of my citrus plants that were in this room last winter survived and thrived.

Susanne - here's my routine:

My trees stay in the house all winter, in whatever window space I can find. I neurotically rotate them from window to window to maximize sun exposure. (I too have added several new ones and my key lime is getting gigantic, so placement will be interesting this year.) I wait to bring them outside until the outdoor temp is about equal to my indoor temp and if the nights are still cold, I bring them inside at sunset. They spend the summer outside, mostly shielded from rain and with all day sun. This time of year, I bring the trees in once temps hit close the freezing at night, but I continue to lug them back outside on warm sunny days. However, I do have some trees with a lot of tender new growth, so I've been bring them in at night if it goes below 45 (we've had a cold summer here) and bring them back out in the morning. I told you I'm nuerotic. After nearly losing all the leaves on my first Meyer, I'm super careful about watering and soil drainage.

We're moving soon, so I'm a bit apprehensive about finding space and making sure they get enough sun. I may have to get grow lights at some point. One day I hope to add a sunroom to my house. I often think about a true greenhouse, but I do enjoy having them in the house with me.

Hehe Alanna, your post made me smile. You certainly get a lot of exercise. No, my trees stay out until first frost or I should say I watch what happens after the first frost. If there are warmer days and nights to come, I will just move them to the wall of the house and cover with fleece. When they are in the house, they will stay until next spring. Most are too heavy to move around. Mine will stay in the mudroom with lots of extra light and they will continue to grow during winter. I expect them to flower and set fruit during that time. Hoping I don't have to move them in before end of october.

Susanne, at what lowest nighttime temps should I bring mine indoors without taking them out at daytime (your growing zone and mine are similar)? Just thinking that the windows in my sunroom will get only 2-3 hours of sun (south east exposure) in winter.

Sunshine I have one east and one south window in that room and about 12 hours extra light. Also heating from the house. I bring mine in when temps drop to around 5+C at night for longer period of time.

Susanne, I am planning to add lights this coming winter, do not want the trees drop their leaves.

Graham, the graft line on your tree is Ok.

Guys, I am reading all of your posts and you work so hard to grow citrus trees. Huge respect! We are so lazy and spoiled here in Cali.

With all this work we have to wait for 2-3 years to harvest 2-3 fruit :)))

Everyone focuses on the New Zealand lemonde tree but don't forget about the Pomona Lemon that Four Winds also produces. The Pomona Lemon also produces sweet lemons with low acidity. One potential advantage of the Pomona Lemon is its impressive cold tolerance. Acccording to UCR it survived several hours at 16 degrees. That is really impressive cold tolerance for a Lemon!

Brett, I have both and it will be interesting to compare the taste. Nice trees everyone!

I have been wanting a New Zealand Lemonade tree for quite a while now. I have also noticed the Pomona lemon being a sweet lemon and available at Four Winds. Unfortunately, I have not read any reviews on the flavor of the Pomona and not too many people have them from what I have seen on citrus forums or FaceBook. I look forward to Laura LaRosa's comparison taste tests.

I really want everyone on the forum (whose trees have produced fruit) to give an accurate description of the fruit and tree, including any difficulty or personal experiences they had. I've only had my Meyer bear fruit so far. I'm always looking to add new mandarins and lemons to my collection and struggle with what varieties to get. I'd love to arrange a thread where everyone shares their personal experiences with individual varieties. Anyone else interested?