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[Alec]

Hi everyone (especially hard-working Campo Girl!)

We're new members, so I'll start with a brief intro. My wife and I live in the campo behind Algarrobo (near Torre del Mar), and our garden of 5000 sq.M. is (a) very neglected and (b) very steep. The two problems are probably connected! Our first step was to carve out two platforms and put in some steps and a handrail.

We have planted many new fruit trees (in large enough holes, with some added substrate) and on the whole they are doing well, but some of our citrus trees have gone very yellow at the tips. Worst affected are grapefruit and lemon, less so the oranges.

Drainage is generally good, and we've recently sorted the irrigation, which comes from our own well via three timers and 150 metres of pipe. Our soil is the problem, I think. It's VERY alkaline (the pH is around 9!). Also our water supply is marginally saline - just above the official limit for drinking water, so not too bad, but I gather citrus trees are quite sensitive to that.

I think we will first try and get some iron chelate such as Sequestrine, but is it available here in Spain? What is it called?

Any other ideas? And are there any other members living anywhere near us here?

Alec.

[Campo Girl]

Hola Alec

Nice to hear from you and your situation, sounds like you have got your hands full with 5,000 sq metres, the other CampoGirl has the same amount of land, we have 2,700 and that is enough for me to deal with, fighting the weeds on a weekly basis is nothing short of a nightmare.

The citrus family are beautiful all year round (especially in the winter when they are covered in delicious fruits or fragrant white blossoms) but very susceptible to cold and disease. The specially selected orange and lemon varieties grown for fruit are all grafted to improve their disease resistance.

All citrus trees like moist soil but extremely good draingae - have you got any grit mixed into your soil or sand?

Standing water will kill your tree, especially if it is in contact with the trunk - I never water my fruit trees straight down the trunk - always a bit further back.

The roots of citrus trees extend beyond the outermost tips of the branches, so for watering you should scrape up two circular ridges, the first 300mm/12in from the trunk and the other 1m/3 ft or so beyond the reach of the branches.

Fill this basin every ten days from early spring to midsummer, reducing the frequency to once every 3 weeks in the absence of rain for the remainder of the year. The water should not stand for more than a few minutes so never provide more than the soil will absorb quickly.

The tree is partly dependent on surface roots so avoid cultivating too deeply within an area equal to twice the extent of the branches.

Established trees should be given a general fertilizer high in nitrogen, at intervals from late winter to early autumn.

Only apply a little at a time since a high concentration of salts in the soil will be injurious. For the same reason, citrus trees are never happy growing in coastal situations. Alkaline conditions call for the application of iron chelate. Big trees can be moved in midsummer. If you do move the tree, pay particular attention to watering!

Lemon are much less hardy than the oranges and will take very little frost, though they mind the wind less. They should fruit and flower all year round.

Hope that helps

[CampoGirl Gina]

Hi Alec,

We don't live that far away from you, just the other side of Malaga. I live in Coin and the other Campo Girl lives in Monda.

Look forward to hearing more about your gardening experiences

[Alec]

Hi to you both, and thanks for the advice.

I spoke to the local nurseryman about the yellowing, and he said that it was most likely to be due to an iron deficiency. Apparently in very alkaline soils, some plants including citrus can't take in enough iron which is needed to produce the green chlorophyll in leaves.

I used something back in the UK which is made for this problem, called Sequestrine. Apparently it contains something called iron chelate, which provides the iron in a form which the roots can absorb, even in chalky soil that's far worse than ours. He produced a packet, and it's called Quelato de Hierro - exactly the same thing in a Spanish name! There's even a picture of oranges and lemons on the packet.

I have given the first dose and, although the very badly affected leaves aren't any better, the rest of the tree is becoming much greener.

Best regards,

Alec.

[Campo Girl]

Excellent news and thanks for sharing, I will favourite this post just in case I get any of that on my citrus trees

Pleased to hear yours are doing well, did the local gardener say whether or not you should remove the yellow leaves as that would also be one of the first things I would do.

Laters

[Alec]

Ooh, you do sound like a ruthless gardener, Campo Girl ! Sometimes it's best though, I have been amazed at the improvement this year after some rather drastic pruning of various overgrown trees and shrubs last winter.

I thought it would be best to wait a bit longer, to see whether the yellow leaves started to improve. I'll keep a close watch on them though, and if they show any signs of dying I'll chop them off without a second thought, to avoid any risk of die-back.

Alec.

[LosMontes]

Thank you Alec for this advice - my citrus trees are also suffering from yellowing leaves and changing watering regimes didn't do any good so I can't stop now - am dashing off to local nursery to get the Quelato del Hierro!

[Alec]

Hi LosMontes

Let us all know how you get on with it; you won't notice much improvement for a week or so.

If you get the same brand of sachets that I bought, they contain enough for three large watering cans. I poured mine out into three identical small jars so that it was divided equally. Don't let it stay in the light too long, its effectiveness is reduced by exposure to light (according to the instructions).

Alec.