Autumn Citrus Care

Feeding citrus regularly is the key to promoting bucketfuls of juicy fruit. Citrus are very hungry plants and lack of nutrients can lead to a decline in fruit quality. Yates Thrive Citrus Liquid Plant Food is a complete plant food that has been specially formulated to provide citrus with the nutrients they need. Apply Yates Thrive Citrus Liquid Plant Food around the root zone of in-ground and potted citrus trees every 1-2 weeks during autumn, while citrus trees are busy maturing their fruit.

In addition to nutrients, having access to sufficient moisture is important for fruit quality. Citrus trees have a shallow root system and can dry out rapidly. Keep the soil or potting mix moist with regular, thorough watering. Applying Yates Waterwise Soil Wetter around the root zone of in-ground and potted citrus will help water penetrate evenly and effectively down into the roots and spreading a layer of mulch around the root zone will help retain moisture.

Spreading a layer of mulch, such as bark chips, around the root zone will help retain soil moisture. Keep the mulch 5-10 cm away from the trunk. This allows for improved airflow and helps reduce the risk of trunk diseases.  

Remove any weeds and grasses growing around the base of citrus trees. Weeds steal water and nutrients from the citrus tree. They also reduce airflow around the trunk, creating damp conditions for diseases to develop.

Many citrus trees are grafted. The variety of citrus we want is grafted onto the root system of a vigorous type of citrus. This helps promote fast and productive growth. It’s important to remove any green stems that grow below the graft (the bump on the lower trunk). This growth is the root stock and will not produce the fruit you want. This root stock growth can also be very thorny and eventually take over the entire tree.

Citrus trees can be prone to Root and Collar Rot diseases, particularly in areas with heavy or poorly drained soil, or when there has been prolonged wet weather. One of first signs of Root and Collar Rot diseases are leaves starting to wilt and shoot tips dying. The diseases damage the plant’s roots and moisture transport system. You may also notice dying or blackened patches on the lower trunk.

To help prevent Root and Collar Rot diseases, spray citrus trees with Yates Anti Rot Phosacid Systemic Fungicide. Spray the tree until all the leaves are just wet. The fungicide travels from the leaves down to the trunk and roots, helping to kill Root and Collar Rot diseases.

Check your citrus trees for signs of pests. Common insect pests include Scales and Aphids.

Scales appear as raised white, brown or pink-coloured bumps on stems, leaves and fruit.

Masses of tiny Aphids enjoy feasting on tender new leaves and stems and cause leaves to curl under.

Scale and Aphids are both sap-sucking insects and excrete a sweet sticky substance called honeydew.

Ants are attracted to honeydew and if you see ants moving up and down your citrus tree, it's likely to be a sign of a sap-sucking insect like Scale or Aphids. 

The disease black Sooty Mould, appearing as a black film over the leaves, is another consequence of honeydew. Living off the honeydew, the black Sooty Mould will disappear once the sap-sucking insects are controlled.

Another citrus pest during autumn is Citrus Leaf Miner. The adult Citrus Leaf Miner moth lays her eggs on new autumn foliage and the eggs hatch into larvae that create silvery tunnels in the leaves and cause leaves to twist and distort. 

It's easy to protect your citrus trees from Aphids, Scale and Citrus Leaf Miner with regular sprays of Yates Nature's Way Citrus & Ornamental Spray. Based on natural pyrethrin and vegetable oil, it's a ready-to-use spray that will control common citrus pests like aphids and scale and help prevent Citrus Leaf Miner damage.

In Fruit Fly prone areas, citrus fruit can be vulnerable to attack by Fruit Fly, even from when the fruit are still small and green. To control the adult Fruit Fly before they get a chance to lay eggs, which turn into destructive maggots, apply Yates Nature’s Way Fruit Fly Control as a band or spot spray onto the trunk or lower foliage of trees. There is no need to spray the actual fruit. It’s important to re-spray the plants each week (or sooner if there has been rain) to maintain effective protection.