I have a beautiful Meyer lemon tree that I bought and planted in a big container located in my rooftop terrace. It has been happy and producing tons of lemons for two seasons already. I think it must be about 3-4 years old but I'm not sure. The only issue is that it is leaning to one side. The weight of the branches and fruit did not help. The pot is level. I am planning on pruning in mid to late winter (here in Southern California), but was also wondering if I could loosen the soil to try to straighten the trunk but I am afraid I might kill it :(. Any advice?

One way to fix:
Lift the plant from the pot.
Examine the root mass to see where material needs to be shaved.
Shave roots and soil until the plant can be stood upright in the pot.
Fill in any voids with fresh media and water well.

Better way:
Root congestion is an insidious robber of your plant's potential in terms of growth rate, vitality level, yields, and it's ability to defend itself against insect herbivory and disease pathogens. The only way to completely eliminate the limitations imposed by root congestion is to do a full repot. Potting up to a larger pot only eliminates a fraction of the limitations. A full repot includes bare-rooting, root pruning, and a change of soil, and it removes ALL limitations imposed by root congestion. If you do a full repot in the spring it would be a small matter to return the plant to its existing pot and reorient it so the trunk is in a more eye-appealing position - 2 birds with a single stone.

Al

I would lift it out of the pot and straighten it. Is that the direction of the prevailing winds?

Thank you! It sounds a little daunting for a beginner like me, but you have given me something to think about. I did not you could shave the roots! It's a big container already…I may have to hire a professional 😅.

tapla said: One way to fix:
Lift the plant from the pot.
Examine the root mass to see where material needs to be shaved.
Shave roots and soil until the plant can be stood upright in the pot.
Fill in any voids with fresh media and water well.

Better way:
Root congestion is an insidious robber of your plant's potential in terms of growth rate, vitality level, yields, and it's ability to defend itself against insect herbivory and disease pathogens. The only way to completely eliminate the limitations imposed by root congestion is to do a full repot. Potting up to a larger pot only eliminates a fraction of the limitations. A full repot includes bare-rooting, root pruning, and a change of soil, and it removes ALL limitations imposed by root congestion. If you do a full repot in the spring it would be a small matter to return the plant to its existing pot and reorient it so the trunk is in a more eye-appealing position - 2 birds with a single stone.

Al

Thank you! Yes, that's the usual direction of the winds…and we get strong Santa Ana winds!!

When you say "lift it up", do you mean I have to loosen the soil, grab the tree by the bases, lift it up and set it again making sure it's straight? Are there any videos on how to do it? 😅

Lucy68 said: I would lift it out of the pot and straighten it. Is that the direction of the prevailing winds?

Your tree is being 'wind trained.' No matter what you do to fix it, the tree will lean because the wind is pushing it in that direction. That's the reason the majority of branches are growing on the down wind side of the tree. We don't have Santa Anas but we are in a river valley. Trees are always planted at a pretty good slant so they lean into the wind then the wind straightens them.

My suggestion was too pull the tree so it leans into the wind. Another solution would be to turn the pot the tree is in. If its to heavy to turn, can you put the pot on a pot trolley so you can periodically turn it?

Another problem I see is your tree stake is keeping the trunk of the tree from moving. Unless the trunk has the ability to move, it won't grow strong. The stake has become part of the support system of the tree. Without the stake, the trunk will collapse. Time to change how the tree is staked to allow movement.

Take advantage of the wind to fix the lean.

This is very helpful! Thank you!

Lucy68 said: Your tree is being 'wind trained.' No matter what you do to fix it, the tree will lean because the wind is pushing it in that direction. That's the reason the majority of branches are growing on the down wind side of the tree. We don't have Santa Anas but we are in a river valley. Trees are always planted at a pretty good slant so they lean into the wind then the wind straightens them.

My suggestion was too pull the tree so it leans into the wind. Another solution would be to turn the pot the tree is in. If its to heavy to turn, can you put the pot on a pot trolley so you can periodically turn it?

Another problem I see is your tree stake is keeping the trunk of the tree from moving. Unless the trunk has the ability to move, it won't grow strong. The stake has become part of the support system of the tree. Without the stake, the trunk will collapse. Time to change how the tree is staked to allow movement.

Take advantage of the wind to fix the lean.

@rljohio Your tree isn't tending toward laying over because the trunk is being bent, it's laying over because the canopy in the wind is acting like a sail, increasing the leverage the trunk has on the root system. The soil at the top of the pot has been compressed on the leeward side and the soil at the bottom of the pot is compressed on the windward side. On the opposite side of the compressed soil, top and bottom, the soil and root mass were pulled away from the pot walls. Subsequent waterings have forced soil particles to settle into the areas where roots/soil were pulled away from pot walls to fix the tree in the new position.

IF, you attempt to turn the tree or use the wind to fix the lean w/o changing the planting angle, you'll end up with a curved trunk. Do you really want to try to straighten the tree to a more vertical orientation, even though the trunk now exits the soil many degrees off from a vertical position? Or, would you rather that the trunk exits the soil vertically AND the trunk is straight?

The fastest, simplest fix is to reorient the root/soil mass so the trunk is vertical. Once that's done, you can engineer something like this:





Above and below, a wire was wrapped around the pot as an anchor point to which twine or wire can be attached to provide stability while new roots are appropriately anchored.




Here ^^^ the wires are anchored through the drain holes and are being used to hold branches in a particular position until they 'set'. The set-up could as easily be used to hold the tree in a fixed position relative to its pot.

Al

I see what you're saying. Thank you! I guess I will have to wait until late winter to reorient the root by planting so the trunk exits the soil vertically. That's how one ovoids shocking the tree, right?

tapla said: @rljohio Your tree isn't tending toward laying over because the trunk is being bent, it's laying over because the canopy in the wind is acting like a sail, increasing the leverage the trunk has on the root system. The soil at the top of the pot has been compressed on the leeward side and the soil at the bottom of the pot is compressed on the windward side. On the opposite side of the compressed soil, top and bottom, the soil and root mass were pulled away from the pot walls. Subsequent waterings have forced soil particles to settle into the areas where roots/soil were pulled away from pot walls to fix the tree in the new position.

IF, you attempt to turn the tree or use the wind to fix the lean w/o changing the planting angle, you'll end up with a curved trunk. Do you really want to try to straighten the tree to a more vertical orientation, even though the trunk now exits the soil many degrees off from a vertical position? Or, would you rather that the trunk exits the soil vertically AND the trunk is straight?

The fastest, simplest fix is to reorient the root/soil mass so the trunk is vertical. Once that's done, you can engineer something like this:

I added some images and additional comments to my post just above your most recent.

Yes, late winter. Your tree is no jeopardy of becoming something that you cant fix or is harder to fix if you wait until you're ready to repot or for the better timing offered by doing the work closer to its spring push. The only issue you have now is in the fact that when your tree lays over, the branches will still want in what would be their normal orientation relative to the horizon or vertically. That's a minor issue if you're not trying to create a showpiece, and could be avoided entirely if, for now, you simply tip the pot so the trunk is oriented vertically and fix the pot in that position. That way, when you DO move the trunk to a vertical position, the branches will be where they would have been had the trunk been oriented vertically all along.

Al

So now you agree with me? The tree needs to be picked up and straightened in the pot? Thank you!

There you go rljohio, two votes for pick it up and straighten it.

I had been thinking of something like you show on the pictures, but it is very helpful to actually see it. I will try what you suggest and tilt the pot a little. My rooftop's floor is uneven in certain areas to allow for water drainage so we had placed pieces of wood to make the pots as level as we could, but I guess now we will have to shuffle them around to make the trunks look straight, until we do the final arrangement.

tapla said: I added some images and additional comments to my post just above your most recent.

Yes, late winter. Your tree is no jeopardy of becoming something that you cant fix or is harder to fix if you wait until you're ready to repot or for the better timing offered by doing the work closer to its spring push. The only issue you have now is in the fact that when your tree lays over, the branches will still want in what would be their normal orientation relative to the horizon or vertically. That's a minor issue if you're not trying to create a showpiece, and could be avoided entirely if, for now, you simply tip the pot so the trunk is oriented vertically and fix the pot in that position. That way, when you DO move the trunk to a vertical position, the branches will be where they would have been had the trunk been oriented vertically all along.

Al

Lol yes, both of you were actually advising it and I'm very grateful. Now I have a better idea of what can be done.

Lucy68 said: So now you agree with me? The tree needs to be picked up and straightened in the pot? Thank you!

There you go rljohio, two votes for pick it up and straighten it.

Can the pot just be rotated to make it face the prevailing winds? Gradually, of course...
I'm really curious!

That would be easier!

snowyhorse said: Can the pot just be rotated to make it face the prevailing winds? Gradually, of course...
I'm really curious!

I suggested that. Putting the pot on a tree dolly would make it even easier to rotate.

The trunk is so thin, I doubt it could hold up its own weight if the stake was removed. It may be the stake that's crooked, not the tree trunk.

I have never seen a "tree dolly" but I doubt we have the space to use one (and it would likely mess up all the aesthetics of the rooftop).

I also worry about the thin trunk and the stake. That's why I never removed it. Being on the rooftop the tree is exposed to strong winds during this season, but I think that some time after we shift the planting direction this late winter, we may try to remove the stake.

Lucy68 said: I suggested that. Putting the pot on a tree dolly would make it even easier to rotate.

The trunk is so thin, I doubt it could hold up its own weight if the stake was removed. It may be the stake that's crooked, not the tree trunk.

By "tree dolly" I'm sure Lucy meant just a plant stand with wheels, like this one from Amazon:


On wheels, it's simple to just give it a quarter turn routinely so it grows evenly. Google for "plant stands with wheels" or "rolling plants stands" or "plant caddies" and you'll find a huge assortment capable of holding various weight.

Yes, that's what I was talking about.

That looks quite useful and makes sense. However, our rooftop's floor is not smooth (it's covered with wooden IKEA tiles) and it has a slight slant to allow for rain water to flow towards the storm drains. The planters are very heavy to move, much less "pick up" to put on a dolly. To make the planters "level", we had placed pieces of wood under them. But today, we shuffled them so instead the trees are the ones that look straight, in preparation for the final re-planting in late winter (as advised by one of the very helpful people commenting on this thread).

Murky said: By "tree dolly" I'm sure Lucy meant just a plant stand with wheels, like this one from Amazon:


On wheels, it's simple to just give it a quarter turn routinely so it grows evenly. Google for "plant stands with wheels" or "rolling plants stands" or "plant caddies" and you'll find a huge assortment capable of holding various weight.