All new leafs are dying on my old lemon tree

[raoul]

Hi,



I have an Eureka citrus tree planted in my garden, it is several decades old (not sure how old exactly I moved in 2 years ago).



Last year it had very healthy new leafs, without any sign of deficienty.

However, this year's new leafs don't look so good as show in the pictures..
The tree is having hundreds of new leafs at the moment and they all seem to share this symptom : Discolored at the tip, brown/black at the very tip, and growing malformed.

Also, the flower buds don't seem to be willing to open correctly (picture below)



I water once every week since the spring (soil is pretty heavy), I didnt fertilize during the winter, but began this spring. (15-6-12 NPK, with magnesium, boron, and zinc).

I didn't spot any pest on it, and I don't think it is releated to the temperature. We recently had 2/3 cold nights but nothing below 5C/41F.

I was thinking maybe a Boron deficiency but I read its pretty rare, especially on a heavy soil..



Any idea what's going on ?

[ilya11]

Not sure that it is due to some sort of deficiency.

For me it is a winter wind chill damage.

[raoul]

Apr 15, 2022 2:27:28 GMT -5 ilya11 said:

Not sure that it is due to some sort of deficiency.

For me it is a winter wind chill damage.

Hello Ilya,
Thank you for your answer, I hope that's the reason
It is true that we have a lot of wind here, so maybe this added up to the recent cold wave which happenned right after the blooming ..

I'd like to take the opportunity to ask if you have any idea if the original tree died and the rootstock took over ? If this is the case, which rootstock could it be ?

[Sylvain]

Did you tasted the fruits?
It seems it is the root-stock.

[raoul]

Apr 15, 2022 8:15:23 GMT -5 Sylvain said:

Did you tasted the fruits?
It seems it is the root-stock.

Hello Sylvain,
Yes I did, they tasted like the regular lemon you can find in supermarkets, that's why I assumed they were Eureka citrus.
There are no fruits right now unfortunately so I can't take any pictures, but in a couple of months hopefully I will be able to

[ilya11]

Leaf photo could help.

[citrange]

There are only a few possibilities here. This could be a seedling lemon or rooted cutting. Or, as you suggest, it could be a lemon rootstock with the original top variety dead. Or it could be planted too deep so that the graft is now below soil level and your lemon is still the original top variety.
If it gives you good lemons it doesn't really matter which is correct!
The brown tips could be a chemical spray damage. Has anyone nearby been using weedkiller?

[raoul]

Apr 15, 2022 9:37:44 GMT -5 ilya11 said:

Leaf photo could help.

Sorry for the late reply, imgbb was under maintenance all evening yesterday

[raoul]

Apr 15, 2022 15:57:51 GMT -5 citrange said:

There are only a few possibilities here. This could be a seedling lemon or rooted cutting. Or, as you suggest, it could be a lemon rootstock with the original top variety dead. Or it could be planted too deep so that the graft is now below soil level and your lemon is still the original top variety.
If it gives you good lemons it doesn't really matter which is correct!
The brown tips could be a chemical spray damage. Has anyone nearby been using weedkiller?

Hello Citrange, no weedkiller have been used anywhere near our garden.
You are right, it doesnt really matters but I was just curious about what happened. It seems this tree has been through a lot of suffering, and was dying when I moved in. The pruning is also questionnable, that's why I didnt post a full picture haha, it's so ugly

[ilya11]

Does not look like a rootstock, most probably your plant, like suggested citrange is a rooted lemon cutting.

[raoul]

Thank you everyone,
Then maybe the tree partially died several times because of various cold waves, thus the trunk heavy cuttings.
I might consider replacing the tree completely by a more hardy one (like a Yuzu or something)..

[ilya11]

One nursery close to you (Bosc) has a lemon that probably is more suited to your climate (Citronnier de Pezenas).

[raoul]

Oh nice, I'll definitly have a look at this cultivar and nursery, thank you for the information Ilya !