Hi, I live in the Bahamas. I have a Persian Lime Tree which I have had for about 4 years now. It has grown very little, yet it is very green. It produces blossoms on a regular basis which develop into tiny baby limes. However they always fall off. I have tried different fertilizers and also watering every day. No Luck! I'm sure you know what the climate is like here. Very Hot pretty much all year round, so I don't think temperature has anything to do with it. What can I do? Bahamadoll5
Your could be over fertilizing way to much. Over fertilizing with nitrate reduces both fruit quality and yield in citrus. Roots absorbing moisture and nitrate from the deeper root zone late in the season results in the tree absorbing more nitrate when the plant is developing its fruit. Nitrate provides the message to stay green and to grow bigger. However, fruit development is exactly the very opposite. Thus, late season nitrate from the soil profile can greatly reduce fruit production and quality. Nitrogen should be applied to the tree approximately 1-2 months prior to blooming. If you are a CRFG member, this exact topic is discussed in the current issue of their magazine. - Millet
Thanks Millet, The problem is this has been going on since I bought the tree. It was along time before I fertilized it so I don't think it would be over fertilizing. I think there is a possiblity that something is missing in the soil I'm just not sure what. Bahamadoll5
I serious doubt that the non flowering is caused by the soil missing the magic ingredient. If it is not fertilizer, than the problem is probably due to your Persian lime not receiving the stress required by all citrus varieties to initiate flower bud induction. Citrus do not form flower buds, as do other fruit trees. Citrus form only vegetative buds, which will only produce additional foliage growth. Therefore, citrus must go through a process called flower bud induction, whereby the vegetative bud is induced to differentiate (change) from a vegetative bud into a flower bud. Normally, in temperate zones this differentiation is brought about by the cold/cool winter weather. Sufficient flower bud induction is achieved when total uninterrupted, or accumulated hours of low temperatures exceed 850 hours below 68 degrees. F., if the previous crop was heavy. If the previous crop load was light, sufficient flower bud induction can occur after 750 hours of accumulated low temperatures. In many warm tropical areas, it is not possible to accumulate sufficient hours of cold weather to cause floral bud induction. The required stress cannot be accomplished by low temperatures. In the warm tropics the dry season accomplishes flower bud induction. Citrus trees are sufficiently stressed during the dry period to bring about the differentiation (change) of the foliage buds into flower buds. For Persian Limes (AKA Bearss lime, Tahiti Lime) it has been found that the water stress needed to induce the flowering cycle is a continuous water stress for 4 to 5 weeks. Moderate water stress (–2.25 megapascals, midday) or a severe water stress (–3.5 megapascals, midday) as measured by leaf xylem pressure potential, for as little as 2 weeks induced flowering, but the response was more significant in severely stressed trees. By the way, for Persian limes low temperature (18°C day/10°C night) induced a time dependent flowering response much like that of moderate water stress. Cut way back on your watering for a month, and you can artifically produce the water stress required, then your tree will bloom. Good luck. - Millet
