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nafex - Re: [NAFEX] trimming my Myers Lemon

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  • From: Bob Randall <YearRoundGardening@comcast.net>
  • To: North American Fruit Explorers <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [NAFEX] trimming my Myers Lemon
  • Date: Wed, 27 Feb 2008 19:44:22 -0600

Ginda,

I grow a lot of citrus here in the ground in zone 9b/10a Houston including two Meyer lemons. I also have taught citrus classes for many years. Citrus in the ground is very tolerant of cutting. In 1983 and 1989 I lost all of a large satsuma tangerine in bad freezes except I preserved 1-2 buds above the graft line. I also lost all of a Meyer on its own roots down to the roots I cut the whole tree off each time and got my tree back.

Without seeing a picture of what you are describing, I can't be sure. But generally I would cut below the last damaged branch with disinfected pruning shears or saw.

These trees, in my experience recover quickly.

Bob Randall
On Feb 10, 2008, at 8:55 PM, Ginda Fisher wrote:

As you may recall, my reliable, hardy Myers lemon suffered some cold
damage this fall before I brought it indoors for the winter. (The
weather wasn't colder that what it's faced before, but it was
actively growing late into the fall, so it was more susceptible to
cold damage.) I am pleased to report that it is recovering nicely.
The cracks in the bark show a lot of callus filling in, with no sign
of disease, and the branches that didn't die back have sprouted lots
of new leaves and grown new twigs. It even set two lemons.

It's now very clear which parts are alive and which are dead. So it
seems high time to trim off the dead parts. (Probably past time to
do so, but I haven't gotten around to it.) In most cases, a branch
has died back to a crotch. Usually, I cut back damaged plants to
below the damage, so live cambium can grow callus over the cut. But
that would be hard in many cases, as the dead part gets so close to
the base of the new (or surviving) branch. Is it worth the risk and
trouble to take a sharp blade and trim off all of the dead wood, or
would simply cutting it off 1/4 inch or so out be good enough?

Thanks,
Ginda
eastern MA, zone 6.
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