- Author: Maggie King
Question: I just moved into a house that has been empty for several months. There are neglected citrus and avocado trees in the yard. How should I care for them?
Susan Finn SLO
Maggie King Master Gardener
Is it any wonder that we love living on the Central Coast? In most areas of the county, citrus trees and avocados can be grown with relative ease. They are beautiful year round. They produce bountiful quantities of delicious fruit. Few scents are more intoxicating than citrus blossoms. Surely, one of our most important gardening tasks should be proper care and feeding of these wonderful gifts from nature.
Lack of proper nutrients can affect fruit size, flavor, color and abundance. Commercial citrus growers use sophisticated techniques to analyze the nutritional needs of their trees. For the home gardener these tools are not practical, but there is some basic information that will help us care for our orchards.
The primary nutrient that citrus trees need regularly is nitrogen. For young, non-fruit-bearing trees, frequent, small applications of nitrogen are recommended. Once maturity is reached, a citrus tree in the home garden should be fertilized at a rate of about one pound of actual nitrogen per tree per year.
Nitrogen is the primary nutrient need for avocado trees as well. Again the recommendations vary, but a good application of nitrogen in winter or early spring will enhance flowering and fruit setting.
Calculating the amount of ACTUAL nitrogen and other nutrients in any given product can be challenging. With the variation in citrus types, fertilizer formulations, soil types and specific planting locations, a single recommendation for when to fertilize is not possible, but most experts suggest a good dose of nitrogen in late winter or early spring. As always, the Master Gardeners are happy to answer your questions. The following websites may be helpful as well.
http://ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/GARDEN/FRUIT/CULTURAL/citfertilization.html
http://ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/GARDEN/FRUIT/CULTURAL/avocadofert.html
For now, Susan, buy a balanced citrus and avocado food at a reputable nursery, follow package instructions, sprinkle the product evenly around the root line of each tree, and water in well. Your trees will reward you for your care!
- Author: Amy Breschini
UCCE MASTER GARDENER ADVICE TO GROW BY WORKSHOP
Held: JUNE 19, 2010
Selecting the right subtropical tree for your climate: Some varieties are more tolerant of our “cooler” conditions during the foggy summer months. Varieties that require a lot of heat may never ripen. Rule of thumb – the more acid in the fruit, the less cold tolerant.
CITRUS VARIETIES - see last page for San Luis Obispo County
Citrus for the Home Garden in Contra Costa County http://ucce.ucdavis.edu/files/filelibrary/434/32989.pdf
AVOCADO VARIETIES – see last page for San Luis Obispo County
California Rare Fruit Growers
http://www.crfg.org/pubs/ff/avocado.html
Select the best location in your yard and recognize micro-climates that occur even in small areas:
To protect your trees from frost.
Frost/Freeze Protection for Horticultural Crops – http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/hil/hil-705.html
Frost Protection for Citrus and Other Subtropicals http://ucanr.org/freepubs/docs/8100.pdf
To plant the tree and suggested spacings:
Avocados: http://homeorchard.ucdavis.edu/Fruits_&_Nuts/Avocado/
Citrus: http://homeorchard.ucdavis.edu/Fruits_&_Nuts/Citrus/
Water needs and irrigation of citrus and avocado:
Mature trees in warmest months will need 60 gallons of water/week.
Watering citrus: http://ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/GARDEN/FRUIT/CULTURAL/citruswatering.html
Citrus for the Home Garden in Contra Costa County http://ucce.ucdavis.edu/files/filelibrary/434/32989.pdf
Watering avocado http://ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/GARDEN/FRUIT/CULTURAL/avocadowater.html
Weed Management for citrus and avocado:
Both citrus and avocado are very shallow rooted – only hand weeding and mulch underneath trees
Weed identification and control measures: http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/menu.weeds.html
Fertilizer requirements for citrus and avocado
Suggested application rates of nitrogen - Divide into 2 or 3 applications
- 1st year: 1 tablespoon nitrogen fertilizer 3 times per year, per tree.
- 2nd year: 0.25 lb actual nitrogen per tree
- 3rd year: 0.5lb actual nitrogen per tree
- 4th year: 0.75lb actual nitrogen per tree
- 5th year:1 lb actual nitrogen each year
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1 pound of actual nitrogen equals about 5 lb of ammonium sulfate (21% nitrogen) per year, or 100 lb of composted cow manure each year. Organic fertilizers such as manure, bloodmeal, etc. could be applied in the fall under the tree canopy.
Pest identification, including methods of reducing pest populations using the least toxic methods.
Avocados - http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/GARDEN/FRUIT/avocados.html
Citrus - http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/GARDEN/FRUIT/citrus.html
Subtropical Fruits for San Luis Obispo County
SUBTROPICAL FRUITS |
Coastal Gardens |
Inland Gardens |
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AVOCADO |
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Gwen |
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Duke |
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Hass or Lamb Hass |
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Jim |
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Fuerte |
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Stewart |
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Reed |
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Pinkerton |
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Wurtz (Littlecado) or Holiday are dwarf varieties |
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LEMON |
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Eureka |
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Lisbon |
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Variegated Pink |
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Improved Meyer |
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LIME |
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Bearss |
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MANDARIN |
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Tango |
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Fairchild |
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Pixie |
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Gold Nugget |
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Kinnow (seeded) |
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Owari Satsuma |
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Gold Nugget |
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Dancy (seeded |
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ORANGE |
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Robertson Navel |
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Washington Navel (protected areas) |
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Valencia MidKnight |
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Skaggs Bonanza |
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Trovita (indoors too!) |
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Cara Cara |
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Lane Late |
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GUAVA (FEIJOA) |
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Coolidge (pineapple type) |
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Cattley (strawberry type) |
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For printable version of this handout, click on the attached documents below:
/h3>/h3>/h3>/h3>/h3>/h2>/h2>/h2>/span>Handout Citrus and Avocado
ANR 8001 Budding Grafting Avocado
ANR 8100 Frost Protection
AVOCADO Fruit Facts
Guide to Planting an Avocad..
Questions and Answers to Citrus Management2489
Citrus for the Home Gardener
Citrus in Contra Costa 2007