When to apply fertilizer?
The practice of automatically adding fertilizer in the spring is no longer considered a best practice. Excess fertilizing can cause excessive growth resulting in higher water needs, and might well contribute to softer growth which can make plants more open to insect infestations, etc. We now recommend holding off on fertilization unless we think there is an actual nutrient deficiency. Here is a link to an article from the University of California about
Fertilizing and Watering that provides more information about fertilizing plants.
Related Articles
Why are my citrus leaves yellow (winter)?
Yellow citrus leaves are fairly common in late winter, often after winter fruit production and before spring new growth. You will want to apply fertilizer before the tree begins to bloom again. The UC Integrated Pest Management website has cultural ...
Citrus Tree Problems
If you have problems with a citrus tree—including orange, lemon, lime—UC has resources that may help: Citrus Diseases and Disorders of Leaves and Twigs covers a range of problems including branch dieback, sooty mold, yellow leaves, and more. This ...
Lawn Alternative Demonstration
We have a Lawn and Lawn Alternatives area in our Palo Alto Demonstration Garden waterwise area. It demos choices for lower water, lower maintenance, and less fertilizer-using plants for home landscapes in three categories: Lawns, four types, with ...
Tomato plants are beautifully green but don't produce fruit
There are several reasons that tomato fruit may fail to set: If the plants are producing flowers, they may not produce due to nighttime temperatures below 50º F or daytime temperatures over 90º F. Pollination failure or blossom drop may result. The ...
Planting Trees
According to the UC publication on Planting Landscape Trees: "The performance of a landscape tree depends a great deal on how it is planted. Survival after initial transplanting, rate of growth and establishment, root development, and many other ...