Sick Grapefruit Tree

[mwdcanuck]

I am a snowbird in the Coachella Valley of Ca. 13 months ago I decided to heavily prune back a 10' high grapefruit tree. I pruned it very heavily in either the month of Dec. or Jan. Here I am 1 year later and the poor tree is doing terribly. The leafs are curling and dying and some of the finer branches are drying and dying. The bark is splitting and peeling on portions of the trunk and larger branches. Any new growth comes in hundreds of small branches mostly in the interior part of the tree and it was looking more like a dying bush than a tree. I sprayed with Malathion, fertilized with 16-16-16 and tried to thin out some of the thick interior growth. I fear the poor tree is dying and badly need some advice. Thanks. mwdcanuck.

[Charles]

Usually the splitting bark on the trunk of a citrus is an indication of fungus in the tree. comes from over watering, among other things.

Best bet is to take the tree out and don't plant citrus in that area for a long time.

[Ricky]

It sounds like the tree is on the way out. The split bark is a very bad sign. You might be getting new suckers from the main trunk but the rest of the tree has had it. You have probably over pruned it and then over-watered it. Citrus needs a minimal amount of water and fertilizer once established. Best to get it out of the garden and buy your citrus at supermarket or farmer's market. I've stopped planting citrus trees in S. Florida because of the Citrus Canker problem. There are hundreds of viable alternatives if you want a fruit tree.