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Is this water log or wrong fertilizer or something else? Help me to save my orange tree and lemon too as they lose their leaves and vitality.
Hi @John57
Thank you very much for the photo updates. Hopefully, the agi drain will be enough to divert all the extra water going to the area and your baking soda additive will fix the ph imbalance in the soil.
Please keep us updated with your progress, we look forward to seeing your orange tree green and healthy.
Eric
This is not yet completed but the agi drain is done. Sulphur was laid down to correct the ph level, and water absorbent pellets laid on the three most affected trees. The whole ground area was re-leveled to properly follow the natural gradients. A bund was added to the agi drain downhill side. Later we’ll add small agi pipe to become feeding points for each tree. The three affected trees have been trimmed. Awesome work by one man Ashley today.
Well judgements are finally in. Mulch is down and agi drain completed. Two citrus trees lost. Primarily acid soil was the culprit along with moisture. Too much water… we will remove these trees and replace in due course. The third at risk tree the lime may survive. Mernda Vic has had severe wind, frost and rain this winter. Poor soil, and drainage don’t help. Mulch came too late as did the agi drain, itself may not fully control moisture from rainfall either. Reflection is that the transition from excavated site to garden was largely overlooked. I mean the clay soil had very little top soil, and was not topped with any good quality soil to begin growing in. And the holes we cut in the clay to plant the trees were not large enough diameter, to the tree line for example, they were more like large pot size say 30-45cm. We get winds up to 90km/hr in our backyard because of site location and facing - great views come with this cost. Initially we put in screens around the trees and this worked. The acid soil was the killer.
Hello @John57
Thank you very much for the update and I'm sorry to hear that you lost two citrus trees. I believe the outcome could have been much worse had the agi pipe not been installed. Because of the clay soil that you have, I suggest digging a larger/deeper hole for the new citrus tree. I propose using Scotts Osmocote 25L Citrus & Fruit Premium Potting Mix as the main mix for your new citrus trees.
Again, thank you for sharing the results of your garden revamp.
Eric
First of three replacements gone in. A Valencia orange. This one lifted well above the clay. First a layer of gravel above the gypsum over clay, followed by a mix of citrus soil, standard soil and compost. Topped with some mulch.
When taking out the old stock it was thoroughly wet on the root ball. Not sure it’s clear here but it was dripping wet.
Hopefully the new planting can drain sufficiently to survive.
