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Meyer Lemon Plant: Is this a rootstock sucker?

Hi,

I had bought a Meyer lemon plant from Bunnings about 2 years back; it has currently grown to how it appears in the attached pictures. The branch indicated by the green arrow is the original branch when i had bought & planted it; however, the pink arrow is a branch that has grown over the period of this time and appears to show the following characteristics slightly different from the original branch - a) it seems to be growing more vigorously than the green arrow one, b) it has large thorns and the colour of the stem looks a bit more green than the original one, c) it has not produced any flower or fruit till now (btw, we got a few lemons, like 3 fruits, from the original branch last year; however, no fruit this year, although there were few flowers from the original branch ie. green arrow).

Could you please help me identify if this is a rootstock sucker (i have included a closer picture of the graft zone as well)? And, if so, what is the next step for me and when is it recommended to be taken?

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Comments

MitchellMc

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @gmrinal11. It's terrific to have you join us, and many thanks for your question about rootstock.

It’s definitely a rootstock sucker. The characteristics you’ve described—vigorous growth, large thorns, and a more greenish stem—are all signs that it’s sprouting from the rootstock rather than the grafted variety. Since it wasn’t removed immediately, it’s formed a bulging section at the base of the plant.

I recommend cutting the sucker off at the base, as shown in my mark below. Since this will leave a fairly large wound, it’s important to treat it with Steriprune to help protect the tree and prevent infection. Moving forward, you’ll need to keep an eye on the area and remove any new suckers that may emerge. Regularly check for new growth coming from the rootstock and snip it off to ensure the grafted Meyer lemon remains the dominant growth.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell

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