Lime Bush

2023-02-01 Sapling

I bought this lime bush in February 2023 and it had a very good year producing blossoms and even some tiny fruit. Unfortunately, I have been over watering it and it has taken a turn for the worse.

I can’t remember the exact date that I noticed this, but I recently discovered a ton of fly larvae wiggling around in the soil. There were thousands. I decided that it was probably best I repot it and give it some fresh soil, and I’m glad I did because the roots looks waterlogged and a some even looked like they were starting to rot. I emptied the pot and replaced it with Miracle Gro Citrus Potting Mix. The soil I removed from the bottom was completely saturated. I rinsed the plant’s roots, placed it in the pot, and covered it with more soil. I then gave it a good soak.

The soil is still incredibly damp and its leaves are turing yellow. I’m going to hold off watering it for awhile to see how it does.

More leaves are turning yellow and some are even becoming crispy, which could be sign of blistering from too much water. There is some new growth, but it seems to have halted. I’m going to start putting it outside to give it some sun and help dry out the soil.

I moved the plant under a grow light for a few hours since there was a light rain today. The soil is still very wet, so I still haven’t watered it.

The lime bush doesn’t look better, but it doesn’t look worse. I’m continuing to put it outide during the day and abstaining from giving it water to help the soil dry. I’m hoping that will help it recover, but leaves have been dropping a lot. Some of it is the wind, but I think the over watering and the shock of being repotted is helping them fall.

I gave it a small amount of lightly fertilized water. Most of the soil in the container was warm and damp, but the top was very dry and loose, but the roots were still located near the top and center of the pot so I poured the water close to the trunk.

The bottom of the plant’s pot is still damp, but it’s been a long time since it was watered. I repotted it in a 5" x 5" x 6" plastic pot because the roots were too small for it’s former pot. I hope that it will prevent the soil from staying too wet for long periods of time.

I gave it enough water to soak the soil and the new pot drained much better. I also gave it a few hours of sunlight.

The lime bush’s leaves were beginning to curl, which is a sign that it wants water. I gave it a soak using a lightly fertilized solution of water.

Because citrus plants like more acidic soil and the lime bush has yellowing leaves, I gave it a solution of water, vinegar, and fertilizer. I also applied some azomite to the soil.

The lime looks both good and bad. There are more brown branches on one side of the plant, but there are also new green branches and new leaf and flower buds appearing, which is an excellent sign about the health of the plant.

I trimmed the brown branches because they aren’t growing new leaves or flower buds.

There is a lot of new growth on the lime bush. There were a couple of new leaf bundles that were struggling the last few weeks, but now there are 5-6 more and they are growing rapidly. The plant is also growing many new flower blossoms. It looks very healthy.