Grow Your Own Magazine

oooooooooooooooops,,,
I thought that I killed my tangerine tree - by drowning !!

It had gradually lost it's leaves & I originally asked here about 'evergreens' & whether it might regrow them.
I have repotted the tree (about 24" high) & it has indeed started to throw out some brand new leaves.
Now comes the question of feeding !
I have always used the summer/winter feeds,,,, but in this case, I think it would be a waste of time using summer feed,,,, as there are no flowers / buds / fruit to feed yet.
Do I use Winter feed - to help the leaves grow,,,, or stick to the regular regime ?
------
I have grown a dozen or so Clementines & four cumquats (about 2" at present) as well, so this knowledge might come in handy for them later.

Two out of three mangoes are also coming on great & I have 3 nectarines on the tree.

(see other post re FIG tree)

cheers all

As it's just been re-potted I wouldn't think you would need any form of feed this year. Also make sure you don't overwater. More plants are killed from overwatering and overfeeding than ever die of neglect. You say your tree is around 24" high - what size pot is it in?

Hi Rusty,

I bought this tree in about Feb 2007 (along with a few fruits that had grown that season).
Last year it flowered profusely (as did my lemon tree) & hundreds of fruits appeared,,,,, but bit by bit they fell off to leave the biggest/strongest ones. They didn't quite ripen enough though, which I put down to not enough sun last year. The skins were green, but the insides were terrific.

It's in a pot just over 10.5" dia & 9" deep. The last pot was prob an inch narrower.
Ultimately, I want to keep my trees in bucket sized pots.

It seems that 3/4 of the tree is growing some new leaves, whereas about a quarter of it looks dead !

As I say, it seems a waste using summer feed,,,,,, as I need the general/foliage 'growth' rather than fruit growth.

thanks for your comments,,,,,

Just a thought - did you repot it into a terracotta pot? I know that it helps prevent citrus plants from over-watering and they prefer the conditions.