How to Prune Dieback on a Citrus Tree
Dieback on citrus trees is caused by a variety of factors including cold injury, disease, pests or physical injury. It may also occur because of environmental factors such as drought. Pruning off citrus tree branches with dieback as soon as possible can help keep the rest of the tree healthy, especially if dieback is due to disease or pests invading the limb. Check citrus trees often and prune as soon as dieback is spotted. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
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Examine the citrus tree for dieback symptoms such as wilting or brown foliage or branches that have dropped their leaves. The bark may peel, be a darker color than surrounding branches, have lesions or bear other signs of disease or pest invasion.
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Trim off all the twigs and small branches with dieback using hand pruners or loppers. Cut them back to healthy green wood.
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Make the first cut no less than 1 foot below the part of the limb affected with dieback to ensure you cut into healthy wood. Remove branches using loppers or a curved tree saw if the branches are more than 1 1/2 inches in diameter.
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Tips & Warnings
Wait until early summer to assess dieback of citrus trees from cold injury during severe freezes before pruning.
Use the branch collar -- a rough ridge of bark on the underside of the limb near the trunk -- as a guide when cutting branches. Cut the branch on the outside of the collar.
Do not cut off branches flush with the tree trunk to avoid seriously harming the tree.
References
Resources
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