[Arid_gardener] Lemon Tree

[Dick Gross]

Dave, if my personal experience and observations have been correctly interpreted, most if not all healthy citrus will have many more blooms than the number of fruit it can hold. Dropped fruit is a natural balancing act that can tell you a lot about the condition of the tree. Aborted fruit from pea to golfball size may rain to the ground until the tree has reached or exceded its physical capacity. How much falls at any given time depends entirely upon its health and the climate. An unusual weather condition like a hot spell and/or improper culture can stress the tree and lower its ability to hold fruit. A stressed tree has an instinct to reproduce but may not have the strength to keep the quantity we expect.

Be sure your citrus is properly fed and irrigated in the right place, to the proper depth and at the proper time and ignore the drop. What happens there after is probably out of your hands.

Remember that your new tree is not well established, has an immature root system, may not have completely recovered from transplant shock. Let your tree reach puberty and grow up a little bit before willing it to produce.

Finally, the Salt River Basin is a somewhat natural habitat for lemons.  I would estimate that about 90% of the fruit set here ends up, however, in a dumpster.

Dick Gross, Master Gardener Volunteer
University of Arizona Maricopa County
Cooperative Extension

----- Original Message ----- 
  From: dave hewlett 
  To: arid_gardener at Ag.arizona.edu 
  Sent: Friday, May 05, 2006 11:30 AM
  Subject: [Arid_gardener] Lemon Tree


  I have a new lemon tree that is about4 foot tall. It has lots of blooms and has a lot of new lemon fruit on it.But when the fruit gets about ½ inch to ¾ inch in size the fruit turns smone what yellow and then in a few days it falls off. Can anyone tell me the cause ad the cure?



  Rgs

  Dave Hewlett

  Email : davehewlett at msn.com

  cell : 214-695-3806

  home 972-578-9232





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