Hi,everyone.I have several dwarf citrus trees in terracotta pots>They are
fairly young trees.I let the mix dry in betweens waterings but i find that when i do water,there always seems to be a leaf or two drop the next day.I use
slightly warm water,so not to shock the roots.We are just heading out of winter now and into spring.Anyone,got any theory here?My one tree has black leaf tips(new growth),Can that be too much water/Damp? Cheers

Coming out of winter, could the black tips be cold damage on new growth? What kind of trees?

Before watering one time, you could carefully try and examine the roots by laying the plant on it's side and trying to slide it out of the container. Check to see that you have white to cream colored root tips and if the bottom is still wet or compacted.

I wouldn't think it would be cold damage. He should be able to grow citrus in the ground where he is. http://www.eurometeo.com/english/climate/city_NZAA/meteo_Auckland

The black leaf tips aside, the loss of one or two leaves every now and than is a common trait of even healthy citrus trees. - Millet

Thanks for your replys.I now have a good idea what the problem is.Last year
i repotted all my new trees into a mix of potting mix,perlite,pummice.
I moved up one pot size and removed about two inches of the old medium
and teased roots out,so they would grow into the new mix.
I recently bought a soil thermometer and tested the pots today.I noticed the outside two inches around the pot was 19C but when i
tested where i new the rootball was, it was under 11C Due to the wetness.
I think my medium is drying nicely but the original mix around the rootball
is not = too wet around roots.
Is there anything i can do to help balance this out or encourage the rootball to dry out?It always seems to be these dwarf citrus i have trouble with.I have two other citrus in pots which are not dwarfs and
they are really going for it.I know that under 12c there is no root activity,on one tree,some of the nice new leaves are limp.I think this is due to the low soil temp around the roots.Should i just let them dry out nicely then water
with a little washing liquid through the whole mix? Thanks everyone

It is good that you measured the temp, many people simply won't believe how much cooler the soil can be.

Clearly, as long as the rootball temp is below 15-16C you should keep the trees out of direct sunlight. You could try heating the roots with a string of Christmas lights or heating mat.

It seems to me that the best solution is to repot and carefully rinse the old wet soil from the roots, then use a good airy soil throughout. Otherwise, just be sure to check the dryness of the old rootball before watering.

Skeet

I have one tree that still has approximately 75 percent of the original root system (root ball) . When transplanted into a larger container it is now surrounded by 4 inches of new CHC potting mixture blend. At times if the original root ball is still moist, I only water around the outside 4 inches of the new mix and not the old root system. The only time that this type of situation is a problem, is when the new growth medium is a blend that is a lot lighter then the original root ball. - Millet

That is great information.I will check all the medium and let the old rootball dry out a bit and try to get them even.I think it is a difference between the two mediums,the outside 4 inches drains well and dries out nicely.Once the roots move in ,i should be ok.I will try to encourage this.Thanks