Hi all- I have had a Meyer Lemon for about a year. About 3 months ago the leaves started fading to yellow and leaf burn appeared at the edges of some of the leaves. I added fertilizer (which I had been negligent in doing) and the leaves started turning more green from the base of the leaves outward. My question is: Are the leaves with burn a probable result of soluble salts? And if so, should I deep saturate with water? I recently repotted the tree with 1/3 each of potting soil, sand, and peat moss. I water with about a gallon of water once a week. Thanks!
If your potting medium is 1/3 peat, 1/3 potting soil and 1/3 sand, than in reality it is basically 2/3 peat and 1/3 sand. This type of medium will always continue to compact with each watering., causing more and more problems as time goes by. Soluble salt built up is the easiest to cure of most container problems. Just flush your container with clean clear water in the amount of four times the volume of the container. Also when you water your Meyer, always pour enough irrigation water on to the "soil" so that 20% runs out the bottom holes. This will wash out any soluble salts. From looking at the picture of your tree, which I cannot see all the well, I think your trees main problem is a deficiency of Magnesium. To correct this dissolve on teaspoon of Magnesium Sulfate (Epson Salts) in a gallon of water and water into the soil. - Millet
Thank you for your response. I will try deep watering and the Epsom salt. Am I correct in assuming that those small whitish spots on some of the leaves are salt burn? Also, if a significant part of the leaf looks like that, is it better to remove the leaf all together or just leave it on? Thanks again for replying!
The small white spots are not a symptom of high soil soluble salts. Typical symtoms of damage from high soluble salts are a general burn around the leaf margin (edges) plus leaf tip burn, along with the folage showing a general dull and unhealthy appearance. The symptoms for a deficiency of magnesium is that the OLDER leaves show a delta shaped green coloration in the lower center of the leaf, with the remainder of the leaf being yellow. If you pull all the leaves with small white spots, you will greatly reduce the trees ability to manufacture the carbohydrates it requires for food. - MIllet
