repot citrus please help!

Discussion in 'Citrus' started by aesir22, Aug 17, 2008.

  1. aesir22

    aesir22 Active Member

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    Hi everyone

    I recently bought a Tahiti lime from my local garden center. I have a lemon and a calamondin growing extremely happily already, and felt the lime would complete the collection :)

    It wasn't in the best shape when I bought it, but I felt sorry for it and wanted to give it a better home! It has a lime growing on it, nearly mature I think. It has been grown on a small cane trellis - it is twisted so it grew horizontally across the trellis, and is stuck there now. It would be about 2 and a half foot tall if it were grown straight upwards, but is only about a foot high now.

    Some of the leaves have been eaten by caterpillars (found a couple of chrysalises however you spell that!) some of the leaves are really quite large in comparison to others - up to four times bigger - the result of either over feeding or too little sunlight i imagine. some leaves are also curling inwards as if theyre drying out, but they aren't dry at all and they dont look distressed, just curled. it has also stabbed me several times with big thorns :) there is no evidence of pest or disease, not that i can find anyway!

    I cleaned it up a little, dusted off the leaves, sprayed it, watered the dry soil, which isnt free-draining enough by half i dont think - and took away the metal wires restricting it to the cane too tightly. it looks a little random and shapeless now, but in time i hope it may grow more evenly.

    Sorry for the long description, just trying to give you a good picture of it! I am unsure if it needs repotting. There are spindly roots on the top of the soil as if it needs more soil on top, and when I look through the drainage holes I see more roots. I lifted it out of the pot and, besides finding an earthworm, the roots were clearly circling the pot. I want to replant it (healthy plant more important than limes and flowers!) but i don't know if this will kill it off, or make it unhappy for a time but better in the longrun.

    if i do repot, do i need to do anything with the roots? i have read to leave them alone and disturb the rootball as little as possible, but i am unsure if this is the case. not too keen on having bugs in the soil hahaha

    any advice appreciated. thanks in advance!

    danny
     

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  2. StarLoc

    StarLoc Active Member

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    The leaves could be curling due to the roots being too wet, if the roots get too wet they cant work and then they can look like there too dry as the roots cant feed them, if it was curling with being too dry they normaly uncurl quite quickly on watering

    I would wash what soil there is off it , and repot in a larger pot with more drainage holes, use something based on perlite,bark or coconut husk if you are carefull the roots will come free and you will be able to spread them out a bit gently , so there not as twisted, if they wont move , just leave them
    In the center of the rootball there is often a large amount of clay like mix, i wash it off gently to remove all of this and repeck with the new potting mix

    I was using perlite and no2 john-innes compost, but something based on bark is better draining, ive been using 3 parts bark chips (sold for orchids on ebay) mixed with 1 part lime free sand and 1 part no2 compost, but after seeing millet saying about chc , i searched and managed to find some of that on ebay (sold for orchids) and i have been using that on some new plants and it seems the best to drain and plants seem happier in it, sometimes with some compost, but mostly pure chc

    My lime trees are hard to keep happy, i now keep them inside , they seem to be more sensitive and like it far warmer and lighter than my other citrus
     
  3. aesir22

    aesir22 Active Member

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    the lime has been repotted :D i hope it is ok! i am expecting leaf drop and maybe even the loss of the solitary lime as it grumbles its displeasure, but it will perk up :D i teased some of the lower roots loose but left a lot of the ball alone as i didnt want to disturb it too much and flushed it through with water. i am going to spray it with water mixed with a touch of epsom salts tomorrow to improve leaf health, hopefully wont lose so many!

    thank you for the advice

    danny
     
  4. Millet

    Millet Well-Known Member 10 Years

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    Actually, you do not have to be as careful when repotting citrus as you do with many other plants. Most plants produce a root system that have a mass of fine delicate root hairs which are the plants main feeder roots. These normally develop at the last 1/2 to 1 inch of each root. They are extremely delicate, and easily damaged when transplanting. . Fortunately, citrus do not produce a feeder root system based on root hairs. Citrus roots absorb most of it's water and nutrients from the last couple inches of the roots themselves. Very little absorption occurs in the older woody portion of citrus roots. Because, citrus do not have root hairs, it is much easier to transplant without causing any major damage . This does not mean that caution and care should not be exerted. With the one gallon Tahiti Lime in the above picture, I would use my finders and scratch off all the way around the root ball to loosen the soil so 1/4 inch of the root ends are free, then plant the tree in a fast draining growth medium. I am some what careful, but do not worry much about the little damage that might result. Just use a little caution. As the initial root ball will be more compact then the new growth medium, water will tend to run off the original root ball and instead pass through the new growth medium. Therefore, for the first month or two, you will need water the tree by dipping the entire container in a tub of water for a minute or two to insure that the entire root system is watered. When citrus roots are growing in a fast draining medium with good air porosity, they produce rapid growth. Your tree should have no, or very little, transplant shock at all.- Millet
     
  5. aesir22

    aesir22 Active Member

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    thank you millet. i had been feeling quite concerned over how it would be affected by the repotting! i didnt see any of the hairy roots i usually do, so had been quite confused and worried that it wouldnt absorb water properly, but now i know they dont exist so thats ok!

    i have recaned it so that it grows upwards and outwards, rather than horizontally and downwards like the garden center had it for saving space. it looks a little...haphazard...now, but iam hoping it gets better :)

    i am spraying with a weak solution of water and epsom salts this evening, hopefully that will do it some good :D

    dan
     

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