Question 1. I have a lemoncito fruit tree that bore fruit in 2009, by 2010 it only give me 6 fruits, this year it only give 3 fruits. I fertilize all my citrus every 4 months, water it every 2-3 days when dry and even during winter I water it at least weekly when dry, I also added some potting soil and cow manure early spring and mulch them during winter.
Question 2. Another orange tree that I planted in 1991 never ever bear fruit but last year it gave me a lot of flower that just fell off but not a single fruit. What am I doing wrong?
Thanks
Drought Smart Plants reply:
For the first question (please bear in mind that I’m not an expert in citrus fruit – too cold to grow them where I am!) I’m grasping at straws here, but when a well established fruiting tree does this, it’s possible that there is something going on other than cultivation.
Sometimes it’s something wrong with the roots.
Check for mealy bugs, scale on the trunk or any other diseases that could be affecting your tree.
See if you can also check for nematodes through your extension office.
There are various treatments for any of these particular pests; I recommend a natural control such as beneficial insects rather than a harsh chemical – especially as these are edible.
For question 2, this almost sounds as though there weren’t enough pollinating insects at the time the flowers were open, which means that you won’t get any fruit.
In some cases, the fruit will actually start to form even if the pollination didn’t take place, but falls off soon after.
Another possibility is that this variety requires another different one to be cross pollinated. See if you can find a similar tree that is of a different clone nearby. In most cases visiting insects will transfer the pollen, but I’ve heard that in Japan there is such a lack of bees that they now have to pollinate all their fruit trees by hand – one by one, with a small paint brush – now that’s dedicated.
I wish you success with your citrus trees, there can be nothing better than going out in the morning and picking your breakfast!
Jacki
