The BEST Soil For Citrus Trees (No Root Rot!)

We've tried so many soils in the past, from pre-made citrus and cactus mixes to 5-1-1 mixes of pine bark, peat moss, and perlite. Nowadays we find it so much easier to just use plain top soil or if you want something lighter, a 50/50 blend of potting mix and sand or potting mix and perlite.
themulberries....

[@howardfowler2255]

My best citrus trees grown in Florida were in the ground beneath some large oak trees which provided a nice layer of oak leaf mulch for those citrus.Nothing else was added except an occasional sprinkle of dry fertilizer and some water during prolonged dry periods.The citrus yield was good and disease and pests were not bad. Now in Tennessee Ive got some small hardy citrus trees planted in raised up clay soil and they are doing fine.More citrus are on the way so I'll take your advice and pot them up in native soil and a little compost and sand Thanks for this helpful video!

[@themulberries]

@@howardfowler2255 That's what I've heard, thank you for sharing your experience. Citrus can be very hard to grow if you don't give them what they need. We have some in-ground that are in raised mounds as well since we have a lot of compacted clay and poor drainage. Good luck with your potted citrus! I think they'll do great in native soil + terra cotta or fabric pots.

[@BrokeFarmer]

Never thought to try topsoil

[@themulberries]

@@BrokeFarmer Give it a try and let me know how you like it! Use the stuff from the landscape supply companies, the topsoil at Home Depot/Lowe's has too much wood in it.

[@themulberries]

Edit: I meant to say 2 cubic yards for less than $80! Not cubic feet, haha, that would be quite expensive.

[@doggiefamily908]

That is awesome. I am in GA and have not been very happy with 511. That's what everyone is telling you to use in pots, but then you have to dump a ton of fertilizer. I've switched to about 50% woodchips and 50% pro mix. My plants are doing well with lots of additional plant food. Your way seems much more natural. This coming spring most of my citrus will go in the ground. The ones that will stay in pots I will try more natural top soil.

[@themulberries]

@@doggiefamily908 Mimicking nature can yield some very good results! Glad your pro mix is doing better. 5-1-1 is good for healthy root development but like you said the plants just weren't happy unless they were fed and watered constantly. Let me know how you like it! Citrus definitely perform best in the ground in a well-draining spot.

[@novastar369]

I have done that exact same thing almost! I have mine in a clay sand with topsoil and i even was letting them sit in a tray of water for a few days to see what would happen and they have been looking great. I'm very close to where you are. Ive been growing all sorts of things in the normal soil here in pots 😂 and its been amazing how well they do. I'm in Wilkes county

[@themulberries]

Oh wow, go figure! Good to hear it's working for someone else. We must have some pretty good soil! If you don't mind the weight it's a lot cheaper than potting mix too.

[@technoendo]

My initial research brought me to 5:1:1 mix which I put into Air Pots in the PNW. This turned out to be nearly a hydroponic media, doesn't hold water, so requires frequent watering. I've since switched to 4 parts Miracle Grow Citrus & Cactus mix + 1 extra part of Perlite. Interesting you are just using topsoil. Currently at around 36 potted citrus trees and still have a good dozen still in 5:1:1 to switch soils on.

[@themulberries]

@@technoendo I definitely found that premade citrus/cactus mixes did better with additional perlite, increasing the % of permanent substrate. Sounds like your experience with 5-1-1 was similar to ours and others, good luck with the last dozen!

[@technoendo]

@@themulberries Yeah and combining 5:1:1 with the drainage of Air Pots likely made the lack of water retention even worse. Been pondering using more pumice instead of perlite as perlite compresses and seems to fall apart over time. Probably should also try adding a bit of sand/topsoil and see how that does.

[@themulberries]

@@technoendo That's true, pumice is worth mentioning! It's another great addition, and still fairly lightweight, I wish it was easier to find. Sand and topsoil definitely have a lot of great attributes. Our dragon fruit are growing in a 1:1:1 mix of peat moss, sand, and perlite and they're doing great.

[@GrowsGoneWild]

Mineral based soils are the key!

[@themulberries]

@@GrowsGoneWild they really are!

[@samMTL514]

Most citrus sold in Europe use mineral based mix. Lots of clay and sand. I’m noticing Peat-moss based potting soil is mostly a NA thing.

[@themulberries]

@@samMTL514 Very interesting, I'm sure there are economical reasons that are more beneficial to the nurseries rather than the home growers.

[@jeremiahedwards2073]

Thank you for this!

[@themulberries]

@@jeremiahedwards2073 you're welcome! I hope it helps!

[@Selma_Farm]

Greetings I am from Indonesia, I just connected you please keep its friend, thank you for sharing about soil, I like agriculture 🙏🏻

[@themulberries]

@@Selma_Farm thank you and welcome!

[@edmonpierre4562]

Great info as always. Where in NC are you located, if you don't mind me asking?

[@themulberries]

@@edmonpierre4562 Thank you! We're located in central NC not far out from Raleigh.

[@paul.1337]

I want to get my first citrus inground so I don't have to deal with trying to keep them happy watering them. I'll keep this in mind if I decide to move them to a larger pot. Is trifoliate rootstock as finicky as own-root stuff?

[@themulberries]

@@paul.1337 In-ground is always so much easier between the constant moisture and the mineral soil! This was exactly part of my thought process with mineral-based potting mixes, I should have mentioned that. Trifoliate rootstock is much much easier than own-root stuff. It's more tolerant to poorly draining/wetter soils. Even the trifoliate hybrids grow pretty well in their own roots with the exception of Dunstan citrumelo which I found to have more susceptible roots and prefer to graft it onto trifoliate instead.

[@lowpoul5552]

Hi thx for the video. I bought a Kaffir lime from the Netherland. I received it with soil made of clay and rocks, i was very surprised when i did repot it. Do you know why some leaves are like cut into half?. I can see one of yours is cut into half too.

[@themulberries]

You're welcome! It's common practice to cut the leaves in half when starting citrus trees from cuttings, like ours in the video. It helps prevent the cuttings from dehydrating. Sounds like they grew you Kaffir lime in some good soil! Good luck with it!

[@lowpoul5552]

@@themulberries Thx very much. The plant is doing very good with like 15 little fruits growing and falling. But mine is different, the leaves are here but i see a cut in the middle of some. There is no other half missing, just a line in the middle of the leaf. And yeah another thing, i have 2 new little branches growing with very black color little leaves. Not green at all. Have you ever seen that on your citrus trees?

[@themulberries]

@@lowpoul5552 Oh interesting, we have finger lime and blood lime that have dark red new growth, but I haven't seen black. I have however seen branches spontaneously turn black and die, especially on kumquats and kumquat hybrids for some reason.

[@lowpoul5552]

@@themulberries This is very weird. I have them on 2 branches. New black ones and they are growing like normal branches and leaves. The first time i noticed that, i thought it was a mosquito stuck on the leaf. But now it is clearly 3 new branches with leaves on each ones. 2 cm height.

[@alanmercieca3086]

Moistened coco coir is way better than peat moss.

[@themulberries]

@@alanmercieca3086 we've used both with good results! It does hold water very well and I've used it in mixes for figs and grapes with good success.

[@Pepeekeo808]

You should define exactly what you mean by "top soil". It is soil that contains NO ORGANIC Material. NONE. Big box stores and most nurseries sell bags of Top Soil which actually contain nothing but organic material or compost, and contain NO real top soil at all. True Top Soil is mined (not made) often from river beds and is very heavy (it weighs about the same as sand.) Pure sand is an excellent potting mix for growing citrus in a container. It has perfect drainage and allows oxygen to penetrate the medium and reach the roots.

[@Jackyboi887]

Yeah, I work at a nursery and conversely, our top soil is straight up clay. That's what top soil is in the Missouri Ozarks . . . but it's totally different an hour or two north or east of here.

[@themulberries]

@@Pepeekeo808 Good point. What we're working with is a pretty balanced loam, with good amounts of sand, silt, and clay. This works nicely for trifoliate orange which prefers this to pure sand. It's true a lot of top soil at stores is very woody and not ideal, which is why we get ours from a landscape supply company. It's a shame we moved away from sand as a growing medium. If not for its weight, it works very well. I still like using it for propagating since it is cheap.