Transplanted Key Lime Tree: leaves fell off

Discussion in 'Citrus' started by kwfl, Jan 5, 2010.

  1. kwfl

    kwfl Member

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    Location:
    key west fl, us
    We had to move our key lime tree due to construction. All the leaves fell off but there were still green tips at the end of the branches. Then, 2 mos later, we had to move it again! No leaves had grown back. We gave it citrus spikes and watered it. There are no longer any green tips to the branches (it has been 1 1/2 mos since last moved) and appears dead. Maybe I'm asking too late but is there anything I can do such as pruning or grafting to save it? I live in Key West, FL so the winter frost occurring in central FL is non-existant .
    Thanks for any help!
     
  2. thanrose

    thanrose Active Member 10 Years

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    Location:
    Jacksonville, FL USA USDA Zone 9
    Moving it while it was already stressed may have killed it. Plus, if it was inground, then dug up and moved, then dug up two months later and moved and you then fertilized it, you've inflicted repeated root damage.

    However, I've found that I have to wait a year in Florida for some plants to rebound from a NDE, or near-death experience.

    Select a skinny twig and bend it. If it snaps, that bit is dead. If it bends that's a good sign. If you can see green tissue under the gray bark, it's alive. Don't let the first twig that snaps convince you. Try several, and closer to the trunk until you decide it's gone to the big lanai in the sky.
     

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