As most of you may know, I had a lemon tree that gave 1000 lemons one year. It literally rained lemons before I lost it to pests. It was a slow death over months. This post is a compilation of the lessons learned from that to catch the signs early on. now I have three thriving lemon trees.
?Yellow Yellow Yellow – Reasons Behind the Yellow Leaves
1/ Nutrient deficiencies – particularly nitrogen, zinc, iron, or magnesium
Check the pattern of yellowing:
- If older leaves are yellowing first (from bottom up), it’s likely nitrogen deficiency
- If yellowing occurs between green veins, it might be iron, zinc, or magnesium deficiency
- If yellowing appears randomly throughout the tree, it could be because of watering
Make a note of when the leaves are turning yellow = before or after feeding manure or after irregular watering.
2/ Overwatering or poor drainage
One of the mistakes I did was to let someone else water the plant for a few weeks when we were away. This meant overwatering and watering again before the soil dried. The stress due to overwatering led to pests, mealy bugs, leaves turning yellow – which got misinterpreted as the need for water. This excessive watering caused the roots to become waterlogged, leading to yellow leaves.
Finding the right watering balance is essential. I now adjust my watering based on the seasons – water every alternate day from October to December. During summer, I water every day either early morning or late evening after the sun has set. If you water during the day, the leaves get burnt.
?? If the soil still feels damp, it’s best to wait before watering again. The top soil can be deceiving at time. It may feel like rock solid so its best to scratch the surface with fingers to feel if the soil is dry or if it feels wet.
3/ Too Much Cow Dung
Too much of anything can be bad for the plants. When I first fed cow dung manure, the plant loved it and gave me a 1000 lemons. However, when I continued feeding cow dung that was not completely dry, it introduced pests into the soil and the plant, attacking it form the roots. Too much manure can burn the leaves.
?? So keep a diary logging when you fed manure. Wait until 2 weeks before feeding again.
4/ Pest infestation
Citrus leaf miners are small moth larvae (caterpillars) that burrow inside citrus leaves, creating distinctive winding tunnels or “mines” visible on the leaf surface.
The adult is a tiny silvery moth (Phyllocnistis citrella) about 2-3mm long. The larvae tunnel between the upper and lower leaf surfaces. Their tunneling creates silvery/white winding trails that appear as squiggly lines. Affected leaves become distorted, curled, and can turn yellow. They primarily attack new, tender growth rather than mature leaves.
How to Fix These Common Issues:
Nutrient Deficiency
- Feed a balanced manure rich in nitrogen or a handful of dried cow dung manure.
- For calcium, feed diluted butter milk
- For potash, potassium nitrate or burnt leaves.
Pest Infestation
- One product that has consistently worked wonders for me is
Over & Under Watering
- Make a note of watering schedule. Monitor for a week.
