Hello all, First let me say i have gathered a lot of great advice from reading posts on this forum. also i am not an experienced gardener and i just don't seem to have luck with many plants. My problem is with a Bearss Lime tree that i bought at home depot (probably not the best place but...) about 1 month ago. The tree seems to be losing leaves continually since we got it home. It has sprouted maybe one or two new leaves but lost dozens of leaves. One of the new leaves that did sprout was much larger than the rest of the leaves (at least double). After reading other posts I have looked for various colour patterns on the leaves and veins to try to determine what the issue is but either i don't know what i'm looking at (probably) or the leaves appear normal. The older leaves seem to have a bit of residue on them (maybe just dried water/dust) that makes them less shiny. I usually water the tree from the bottom because we started to get flies (gnats?) in the soil. I usually only water it about once every 5-7 days so that it dries out and doesn't encourage the gnat population. The soil appears to have a significant amount of coarse organic material mixed with black soil. The tree does not have direct sunlight on it but it is in a room that has large windows to let the sunlight in. Is the leaf dropping the result of my watering regime, nutrient requirements, minerals, soil, lighting, etc? Sorry for the long post. And thanks in advance for any help provided. Let me know if i forgot to mention anything.
I find my citrus would lose a lot of leaves when I bring them inside. I would recommend putting outside for the summer if possible - someplace it will get both sun and shade - and then bring in for winter (you will probably lose leaves when it comes back inside). If you place it in direct sun at this point you will burn the leaves. Do not overwater, they tend to like it on the drier side. As for the residue, it could be left over from sprays/pesticides that may have been used at Home Depot. Also, watch for scale and other parasites, which I find tends to be a common problem with plants bought from places other than nurseries/garden centers. FYI, my Meyers lemon looked like your lime but within a few weeks of going outside it had sprouted so many new leaves you would not know it was the same plant. Hope this helps
Thanks for the information. i will try to gradually move the plant outside. I was concerned with putting it outside because of increased insects/bugs and then having to bring it back inside when it gets cold again. Any tricks to keep the bugs off (ie earwigs, etc.)? Thanks.
Most health trees can withstand a few bugs, and if you have any gardens nearby the beneficial bugs (ladybugs and spiders etc.) will be there to help you. The biggest issue I have is with ants "farming" their aphids on the tender new growth, in which case regular, gentle washing with soapy water on the affected areas can help with this. Once my citrus trees - all 6 of them - go outside in late May I do nothing but water and feed until they come back inside in early September....I pretty much ignore them (they are rather durable plants). And before they come in I give them a gentle rinsing to remove any unwanted bugs.
thanks again. You mentioned 'feeding', what should i be using and how often? Anything else that i need to do other than watering?
I just give mine some Lilly Miller brand Citrus & Avacado Food (10-6-4) every couple of months.....your local garden center should, or some similar type of food.
