I hope that you might be able to help me. I have had a Meyer Lemon for several years in a pot. It has never really gotten many new leaves, but it gets lots of blossoms which turn into only small fruit (size of a pea at most) and then they turn yellow and drop. I have fertilized with a organic citrus specific fertilizer and applied according to the directions on the package. To date, in three four years, I have gotten one lemon the first year it was purchased. I live in Portland, Oregon which is probably a zone 7b and I bring the plant in only if the weather is predicted to be in the 20s. Any ideas? I am a patient gardener and would love to keep this plant, but I am getting ready to ditch it this spring if I don't have more success! Any ideas would be appreciated. Gale S.
Can you submit a picture? There will be plenty of advice there after...when you bring it indoors, is for a short duration? Or for the winter? The in and out of doors at random could be stressing the plant with humidity and temperature changes... citrus like long and consistent sources of heat and light/humidity and water only when needed... Hang in there, the plant needs you or needs to be adopted? You can expect more replies and questions in short order.
K Baron is right, a pic would be very helpful. We also need to know far more information regarding its basic care. We will need to know how you water, how you know when to water, what size the container is, how big the tree is, what potting mix it is in, what the fertilizer ratio's are and what it contains, its location during the different seasons and the humidity levels indoors. Is the tree grafted/seedling/cutting? Meyers can be fussy in my experience, but the most rewarding lemon also. Post the above info and we will help where we can. Do you move it around quite a lot?
Well, I confess my approach to this plant has not been very scientific, but here are some more details that I hope might crack the code to success. 1. The plant was in a 5 gal container for the last few years sunk into a 24 inch pot. I added some thyme around the edges for appearance. Last spring I took the plant out of its pot and to my surprise it was not root bound, but there were roots at the edges so I put it in the larger pot (as in the picture) in hopes that that would help. 2. The fertilizer- I had been using Whitney Farms organic citrus fertilizer and applied as directed. Most recently I have used E. B. Stone organics Citrus and Fruit Tree Food with a 7-3-3 ratio. 3. The plant picture was taken today and you can see that there are few leaves, but the ones that are there represent well the size I have gotten in the past. This is the location the plant has resided for several years. It is a south wall. It was chosen for the warmth and sun- it is the best I get in my garden with huge Douglas firs and cedar trees surrounding the house. I have been putting it in the garage only when I am really worried that it will be too cold and only for a few days at a time. 4. Watering: when I first got it I watered sparingly. Then I didn't think that worked so last summer I watered everytime I watered the tomatoes in pots next to it. And... that didn't seem to help. :+( So...... 5. I forgot that when I got this plant I had always planned to bring it inside in the winter as I do have a perfect spot for it in a well lighted upstair bathroom. However, when I brought it in it was apparently infected with fleas and I had them everywhere in the room and decided it would be banished the the outer realms. ( I might add I have never seen a bug on it since)
Hmmm, where has it been for the past few months? It looks rather healthy to me, leaf drop is common for Meyer Lemons as finicky as they may be. Continue with warmth and sunshine, perhaps it is in a root development cycle, and in a few months the foliage will rapidly reappear. Please, do not worry, I have seen my Meyer shed leaves, and fretted for not... the limbs remained green and supple , after two months they sprouted new growth...careful on the over watering... a light dose of fertilizer through this period will aid it's root development, Others will pipe in to your aid too!
Interesting that you think this is a healthy plant. This is what I have all year round in the way of leaves! I do get bunches of flowers but rarely any fruit. Thanks for the encouragement. I will continue to give all the sun that is available in my garden and let up on the water. And... now that I have cruised around this great forum web site and checked out related forum threads about Meyer lemons I see that I am not alone! Some comfort. Sounds as though M. lemons are fussy, especially when one is pushing the zone envelop.
This past/current winter has been particularly colder than normal, I would not hesitate to say that your winters were almost as cold... unless you are located right on the Pacific. Feeding it will encourage further development either the root ball or the top growth.
