I need help badly!!!! I have a young tree that is about 4 years old (been growing from seed) and 24" tall from the soil level. The leaves began to shrivel up and drop off (while still green!!!) so I replanted to a larger container 2-3 weeks ago, added fertilizer pellets and kept watering as usual (though a little more since the container is larger). This did not resolve the problem but did confirm that the previous container was too small (root ball took up old container entirely). I'm down from 60 or so healthy leaves it had in the spring time to about 5 rapidly dying ones. Not only that but the tops of the branches are shriveling and becoming brown. At this rate the tree will be dead in a 3-4 weeks. I sprinkled some Epsom salt on top of the soil because I heard that this can add needed nutrients but have seen no changes. There are also some small flies similar to fruit flies but thinner that live in the pot. They seem to love the soil and ignore the plant so I ignore them. The tree stays inside but gets sun through an open window. I've had the exact same thing happen to a sister plant of this one two years ago and it kept losing leaves and browning until it died completely. The current plant was unaffected even though they were right next to each other, were in identical containers and received the same watering. Please help!!! I'm very desperate!!!
Although a citrus tree can live in a container for over 100 years, the average life span for containerized citrus trees grown by hobbyist is just under 2 years. The problem with your tree is certainly in the root zone. You recognized this when you decided to transplant into a larger container. However the chances are very high that the problem is that over the four years your tree has been in the container, the medium has now compacted to the point that the porous nature that the medium had when you first planted the tree, that the root zone is starved for "soil" oxygen, which also causes a rise in "soil" CO2. When you transplanted the tree into a larger container, unless you removed some of the old root ball, or loosened the old root ball enough to aerate the root system, all you accomplished was to line the outer edges with new medium, however the root ball is still living in the original compacted soil. Another danger is that now the water will tend to run down the side of the container, as the new medium will offer the path of least resistance. Before you transplanted the tree, how fast did the irrigation water drain through the medium, (less that 3 or 4 seconds?), and how long did the container stay wet? Your tree's root system is probably in need of greater soil aeration. Without enough O2 a citrus tree dies a slow death as you describe. Millet (1,240-) Mary Jo Copeckne now rest in peace -- August 25, 2009
You may be right. The root ball was very much tangled when I removed it from the old pot and I didn't bother to spread it out any. I did, however, remove all the old dirt from the roots and let it soak for a bit. The soil is currently quite loose but have noticed that it takes the water some time to penetrate to the bottom of the container as the water likes to hang out near the surface (then roll towards the edges as you mentioned) before sinking. In the old container it took over 3-4 seconds to reach the bottom but I wouldn't be able to say exactly how long. I would water about once every 5 days. This container keeps the moisture longer and is deceptive (by being larger) in the sense that I have to dig down to see if the soil is moist or not and keeps the moisture longer. I am not at all experienced when it comes to growing things and would like a bit of guidance. What are the chances of saving this tree? What is the best way to aerate the soil? Anything else I can do while I have the plant out of the soil to help its chances (I'll try to spread the root ball out)? I feel like I only have one shot at a remedy and that I have to act quickly. Thank you so much for advising me.
The best that you can do for the tree at present is put a couple pictures of your tree on this forum. It is really difficult to determine the specific problem of a tree when one has never seen the tree. - Millet (1,239-) Mary Jo Copeckne now rest in peace - August 25-2009