wrote in message
...
In article , David WE Roberts
writes
Having been touring the world for the last 7 months I have returned to the
after effects of the severe winter.

Both lemon trees were left on a sheltered south facing patio area in the
hope that they would be O.K.
[Taking them into a building would have guaranteed no watering]

I thought they were both dead - all branches withered.

However I now see that the base of the trees are still alive and putting
out new shoots.

The dilemma is should I cut all the dead wood off now, or should I wait a
bit untill new growth is more established?
Growth at the moment is tiny buds showing two leaves but still very small.


My lemon and orange trees were done for the winter before last. I failed
to move them to the unheated greenhouse until after the big freeze.

The lemon did indeed sprout again - but it is from below the graft, so the
various branches I now have are from the root stock. They are growing but
I'm not sure if they will flower, let alone fruit any time soon.

I left cutting the dead wood above the graft until recently - 17-18 months
after the 'death' - but I think it would have made no difference to have
done it much earlier.


Now you've got me looking for a graft :-)

On one, I know there is no graft because it came as a rooted cutting.
On the other, which came from Aldi as a potted tree complete with ripening
lemons, I can see no obvious graft point.

I have always been taught to cut out dead wood, especially diseased dead
wood, but this is for apples, pears, plums, roses etc.

I think I am hearing that this does not apply to citrus.
This goes against instinct, but I am listening.

Cheers

Dave R
--
No plan survives contact with the enemy.
[Not even bunny]

Helmuth von Moltke the Elder

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