Hi all. I have a 6" tall lemon seedling about 5 months old that looks very ill. All of its leaves turned brown and fell off over the course of about 2 months. Now the top tip of the stem is turning brown and about an inch down the actual stem is turning brown and has shriveled - I can now easily bend the stem at that point because it is so soft.

I thought maybe I was watering it too much or the medium (compost + sand) was retaining too much water so I changed the medium about 2 weeks ago to a lighter one (compost + sand + well draining garden soil). This didn't prevent the final 3 leaves falling off or it's current condition. When I changed the medium I checked the roots and they looked healthy enough, they were a dirty whitish, definitely not brown or rotting.

I'm being careful not to over or under water it. I definitely haven't over fertilized it. It hasn't experienced any cold temperatures. I did move it indoors from the small greenhouse a month ago so it could be warmer but this didn't prevent the current condition. I have no idea what the cause could be.

Sorry no pics at the moment but does anyone know what could be causing this? What can I do to save this seedling?

Thanks for any help.

If there are no pests for me it looks that your lemon has root problem (lack of oxigen). Lemons are very susceptible to root diseases. Growing plants in container the 95% of problems are coming from pot.

I never add sand to potting soil because the sand particle are to small and obstruct air ways, your soil become compact.

Good luck!

It may take a while for the tree to adjust to the new environment (new dirt/location)

I believe Karoly is correct. Many people believe adding sand to a medium helps the drainage and aeration. This is true only if the particle size of the sand is larger than 3-4 ml., otherwise it fills the available air pore space, driving out oxygen. The roots, although they do not die, can stop growing within 1 hour after the root zone's oxygen is eliminated. The lower the height of a container, the higher the level of oxygen is required. Lastly, adding actual soil (dirt) to a container is not a good idea. - Millet (439-)

Lemandarangequatelo,

I agree with Karoly and Millet. I think you need another medium with no sand and no garden soil. Try pine bark chips instead.

Perhaps it is not correct but I was able to rescue one seedling with similar problem by abundant watering it with dish soap solution after re-potting and giving no water after that for two weeks. I think this should stop any root rot.

Good luck!

A big thank you to all who have replied. The consensus seems to be that it is a problem with the growing medium. I will try repotting the seedling again. I am using horticultural sand which is course, hopefully it isn't blocking the air gaps in the medium. My garden soil seems to be good draining but I will omit it this time as recommended. Hopefully I can save this seedling and find the right medium for future seedlings. Thanks to you all again.

Hi,

I have some Limequat seeds that are sprouting. Does anyone know if these will be "true" to the parent plant?
Thanks

Hi Nicky, yes limequat seeds should be true to type and give you limequat trees.