Very interesting article @phedizzle. I have a miniature orange tree indoors which I was given as a present over a year ago. it has flowered twice and fruited but this winter it has been very cold and I think it has suffered because of that.
The leaves are turning yellow but the fruits are fine. I looked it up and guessed that I too was overwatering. I massively reduced the frequency and i plan to replace the soil with some that drains better, once the weather warms up a bit.
They are certainly very temperamental plants.
Hope yours continue to thrive! 😊
The manner in which the leaves are yellowing can indicate what's causing it, too. The zinc I used to green the plants back up was because of that, altho I forget what that yellowing pattern was. If you aren't fertilizing you might (I'm not sure) want to as it could be due to nutrient deficiency. Also, if it's in a small enough pot, it's possibly getting root bound. You'll see that when you change the soil. Throwing a few worms in there might be a good idea, too.
I no longer have these plants or this garden. Had to move leaving it all behind to start fresh in a new climate where citrus doesn't grow. I sold the potted trees. I currently have a severely neglected Meyer lemon indoors which somehow hasn't died yet. Lol. It came close, though.
I repotted last spring so I know it's not root bound but I think I used the wrong soil. I have since read that the compost should be mixed with sand, for better drainage, so I'm going to give that a go.
I've been feeding as per the instructions that came with the plant.
Not sure how I feel about throwing in some worms in a plant pot in the house! 😂
I amazed your lemon tree hasn't died if it's severely neglected. Are you living in a relatively warm climate these days? 😊
Haha. Well let's just say it's very root bound, hasn't been fertilized, has eaten through half it's soil, has been over and underwatered, lost most of it's leaves and has one tall weak branch and a teeny stub left. Amazingly it's flowering and starting to set fruit. Hoping to transplant it into bigger pot, better soil, and prune it to stimulate growth. I think that'll make it happy. It's a survivor so far.
I'm in missouri, in the Midwest. It's a temperate climate here. Cold wet or dry winter's and humid or dry hot summers. Spring and fall are turbulent. If it can recover some I might try putting it outside in the summer.
Where abouts are you?
Shall we take some pictures of our plants now and later in the summer @phedizzle? Could be fun! 😁
Sounds like yours is heading for massive improvement if it's survivied all that. 😂
I'm in the UK and, although it's not freezing in the house at night it can get down to about 1 degree which is not good for a citrus tree. So I'm hoping the yellow leaves are to do with that but I'm pretty sure it's not getting the watering right.
What a bloody palaver. This is why I don't buy house plants anymore!😊#