I have a Golden Nugget tree on C35, from Brokaw Nursery. It's in a plastic cylinder bag, 8" wide, 16" high. The entire tree including bag is about 5 ft tall. I'm going to plant it on a ledge cut into a hillside, shored up with wood.

My main question is about the soil. The hill has some crumbly topsoil, but is mostly what I'd think was clay type soil, hard when dry, easy to shovel when damp, sticky when wet. Because this area was also used as a dump for a broken cement patio, it has large (since removed) and small pieces of cement mixed in with the soil.

Calif. Pepper and scrub Oak and pine grow fine in this soil. But other fruit trees I've planted seem to languish in it. I'm wondering if I should be amending the soil where I plant this Golden Nugget tree, but I've read elsewhere in this forum that amending is the wrong thing to do.

I've also dug a large hole because I have to lay down chicken wire before I plant (I live on top of a gopher hill). I also tested the drainage in this large hole, it seems pretty good.

I'd like to ask for recommendations. Other dwarf citrus I've planted (on flat land, other side of house) have languished also, as have feijoa, and some others, even though I've fertilized them. I wonder if there is something in the soil that's not good for growing. But then I can point to some apricot trees in a shadier area that are doing fine, but they've also been here the longest.

Any ideas?

John
Topanga Canyon, 9b, near Los Angeles.

First the bad news, then the good news. C35 rootstock does very poorly when planted in clay soils, and poorly in soils with high pH or salinity. Normally it is not wise to amend the soil when a citrus tree is being newly planted. Reading the past history of trees that have been planted in your soil, the chances for a healthy citrus tree does not look hopeful. I recently planted a new Golden Grapefruit inground, in soil that was not conducive to promoting good growth. Therefore, I "broke" the rule and added amendments (CHC, sand, peatmoss, soil). However, knowing that citrus does not like amended soil, I dug a very large hole 4-ft. square, and 4-ft. deep (4 Cu. ft. hole). By do such a large area the tree does not "know" it is growing in soil that have been amended, as everything the roots are in is the same texture. The tree is doing well, look very healthy, and is now on its second growth flush since I planted it. The good news is you might try this method (lots of work). Good luck to you and your tree. - Millet

Just for teasing: "4-ft. square, and 4-ft. deep" makes 4^3= 64 cubic feet

Millet, I'm going to try the large hole/amendments idea. What percentage did you mix amendments with the original soil. I don't know what CHC is, but I have 4 bags of Miracle Grow gardening mix, which is s.peat and manure (wear gloves, they say!!). Can you remember how much sand you added. Also, was your hole 4x4 at the bottom.

My other citrus( that are languishing) were all planted with amendments, usually gardening soil mixes. I used about 1/3 amendment to soil ratio. They are 4 dwarf citrus from Four Winds, and La Verne Nursery. I don't know what the rootstocks are, but they are defintely not exploding with growth, and one has had droopy leaves for a long time, and one dropped all it's leaves earlier this year. They get watered every 2-4 weeks depending on the weather, and epson salts, miracle grow, or fish emulsion, sometimes ammonium sulfate, lately some hydrogen peroxide. I can get them to green up, but not much success getting them to grow a lot. Wish I knew exactly how to judge the soil.

You ask..........Also, was your hole 4x4 at the bottom. = Yes it was.

Four Winds Growers sell excellent trees, but they only sell TRUE DWARF citrus trees. Their rootstock is a Poncirus trifoliate variety. I did not measure the ingredient as I refilled the hole. I put a couple inches of sand, then a couple inches of soil, followed by a couple inches of CHC (Coconut Husk Chips), and a couple inches of peat moss. Then thoroughly mixed the layers together, and repeated the process over again and again until the hole was filled. You do not have to use exactly what I did, but just be sure you make a nice light aerated growth medium for the tree. Good luck. Let us know how it turns out. - Millet