I have a 2 year old dwarf lemon tree. It has recently begun rapidly sprouting new "vines" however, they do not look anything like the healthy vines. They are long and their leaves look quite different and grow in clumps of three leaves all along the vine. Also these vines have thorns which I have not noticed when there is new growth on the regular vines. Does this mean my tree has a disease? Should I be clipping these vines off?
What you are seeing is growth from a trifoliate rootstock. Such growth is normally removed whenever it appears but some growers allow some of it to remain so that more desirable varieties can be grafted onto it at a later time.
What you are seeing is growth from a trifoliate rootstock. Such growth is normally removed whenever it appears but some growers allow some of it to remain so that more desirable varieties can be grafted onto it at a later time. re: How would I got about "grafting" onto this rootstock? When would be an appropriate time to do this?
I refer you to the link in this post in kumquat tree not bearing fruit | UBC Botanical Garden Forums, a thread dealing with a similar problem.
The link JK gave you has some very good tutorials on grafting. The best time for T-budding is either spring or fall when daily high temps are in the upper 70s to 80s. Spring grafts can be forced as soon as 3-4 weeks, but fall buds have to wait until spring to be forced (if there is any danger of freezing). Skeet
