Leaf drop in Tangerine Tree

[Furkin]

hi all,

TANGERINE: My young tree which I bought last year has lost about a third of it's leaves over the past couple of months.
As they're evergreen, I wondered if they should grow now ones as it gets warmer ?

There are about 6 fruits on it at the moment, about golfball size which are slow in ripening, due to (I hope) a bad season last year,,,, having said that (see previous post) a did open a couple of fallen ones, & they seem o.k inside.

A couple of the fruits have likewise dropped off since the original post - which brings me back to the original question - should this tree grom more leaves as it gets warmer ?

cheers

[crichmond]

It sounds like it is suffering from shock of some sort, as this is exactly what happens when a citrus is shocked by such things as over watering or moving from somewhere that it is used to to somewhere a lot warmer of a lot colder.
If it survives and its possible it wont then it will put out new leaves and flowers.

I killed one of my lemon trees by turning on the greenhouse heater when the weather started getting colder at the end of last year, I noticed it was in shock after about a week by which time it was too late despite my best efforts to save it like pruning back a third of the tree and moving it into the unheated greenhouse.

Cheers Chris

[drichard12]

hi all,

TANGERINE: My young tree which I bought last year has lost about a third of it's leaves over the past couple of months.
As they're evergreen, I wondered if they should grow now ones as it gets warmer ?

There are about 6 fruits on it at the moment, about golfball size which are slow in ripening, due to (I hope) a bad season last year,,,, having said that (see previous post) a did open a couple of fallen ones, & they seem o.k inside.

A couple of the fruits have likewise dropped off since the original post - which brings me back to the original question - should this tree grom more leaves as it gets warmer ?

cheers

I feel a bit more information is needed, Like is your tree in a container or planted outside in the ground.

[Furkin]

Thanks folks,
I started witha few different things about 3 years ago. I only have a rear porch which gets the sun in the afternoons.
This tangerine I bought about spring last year. It's about 24" high and the trunk is almost an inch thick. It had very nice foliage last year along with loads & loads of flowers & tiny fruits. I expected to lose most of the fruits,,,, but not the leaves.
It's in a pot of about 9" dia and 8" deep. It is kept in the porch with the others (tho' I id put most things out on good days last year [west cornwall])
I use Winter / Summer feeds.
-----::-----
I also have a Lemon tree of about 3 years old. This flowered a fruited from day one, but wouldn't keep hold of the fruits past about marble size. Last year it managed to hold onto 3 fruits, which are just ripening now. They are averaging just over golfball size.
Trouble is, one half of the tree (opposite fruiting side) seems to have died (or at least lost leaves) but it has thrown out 2/3 new shoots - one of which comes from near the soil & is almost as tall as the mother tree now !
This is in a full size plastic holed bucket.
----::----
My Nectarine had two fruites last year that grew to completion. This is in a full size plastic holed bucket.

I also have young fig tree, olive tree, kiwi (grown from seed - hope to fruit this year).
I have just grown a dozen or so Clementine trees & a couple of cumquats - from pips, & a couple of mango's - from stones.

thanks for your interest

[crichmond]

wow with all that in the porchway how do you get to the door??

[deadwood]

I have some Limes and Lemons. The lime came in some months ago and I didn't lose any leaves, but I left the lemons out and they got cold a couple of times. Before the heavy frosts we had I brought both lemons in and one dropped all it's leaves. Became just a bunch of twigs on a stem. However it has now grown a new set of leaves and is flowering.

I suspect that it got cold and that killed off many leaves and the change of location caused the rest of the leaf loss. It has happened other years and I simply find that the leaves grow back.

I have wondered if they become a little decidious when grown here and cease being evergreen. If I recall trees lose leaves as much owing to hours of sunlight as the temperature change. And in the winter months we get a fair bit less sunlight. Just a thought.