I purchased this plant back in July. It was outside for the summer months and then I moved it indoors with a grow light as it got colder and less sunny. The Meyer Lemon plant seems to be growing great, whereas the Limequat is constantly dropping leaves. For the Limequat, it has continued to flower, and grow knew leaves near the end of the branches but other than that the plant has been barren. The leaves also yellow very quickly. I can't seem to determine what is going on, with one plant doing so well and the other looking like it's on the verge of dying. I have a few questions: 1. The obvious, what is wrong with my Limequat plant? 2. I have noticed garden symphylans in the pot, could that be the issue?... so a) should I replant? If I do, will that prevent my lemons from ripening? b) is there another option to get rid of these creatures? Appreciate any help! It's my first time growing anything...
I’m not exactly sure why your lime would be struggling when the lemon is doing alright. It could simply be more susceptible to the conditions or pests that are causing the leaf drop? That said, here are a couple common problems that new citrus owners deal with which can cause a plant to decline: 1. Overwatering. Citrus don’t do well in constantly wet soil which causes root rot. The top inch or so of soil should be dry before you water (but not so dry that the soil shrinks away from the edge of the pot). Soil with a lot of peat moss or organic material holds too much water and is generally no good for citrus. Try a mix of 4 parts bark chips and 1 part peat moss instead. 2. Winter Leaf Drop. When the roots of a citrus tree are not kept warm enough they start to go dormant and won’t take up as much, if any, water. This is not a major problem by itself, but if the leaves are exposed to bright light such as a sunny window and get too warm they will transpire more water than the roots can provide and the plant will start dropping leaves to compensate. If this is the case you can either keep the roots warmer or move the plant to a less bright location. You also mentioned that you’ve observed symphylans in the soil. As far as I know these critters feed on decomposing plant material and may also feed on and damage plant roots. It may be worth treating your soil to deal with the pests. Removing and replacing the soil can be pretty rough on your citrus so it may not be the best first option.
