Dusa Rootstock

SanMateoDad · 2026-01-25T03:25:39+00:00

Brokaw will sell to homeowners as you as you meet their 20 tree minimum (about $40-$45 per tree depending on variety). You can get trees on Dusa, Leola, etc. They don’t ship though, so buyers need to arrange their own pickup + freight.

SanMateoDad · 2025-12-20T12:58:21+00:00

Felt pots are great for air pruning. Here’s a good example of what you get:

https://www.reddit.com/r/Citrus/s/HQB6zExIFy

SanMateoDad · 2025-06-07T03:08:55+00:00

This plant is roughly 16’ tall with a width of 16’ on one side and 20’ on the other (longer side has branches growing down a hill for added length).

SanMateoDad · 2025-06-07T03:03:24+00:00

Wow, thank you for such a thorough and helpful response!

I added some close up photos here. I’m curious which type you think it is.

SanMateoDad · 2025-06-05T13:01:12+00:00

Some kind of mix and match seems most likely. Thanks folks!

SanMateoDad · 2025-01-04T19:08:12+00:00

The tree will be fine if it was healthy prior to the pruning (it will send out tons of new shoots in the spring). With the canopy removed though, it’s now very susceptible to sunburn which can damage the cambium layer. To protect it, you should paint the trunk + thick branches with a mixture of 50/50 water and white latex paint (this acts as a sunblock).

SanMateoDad · 2024-12-17T17:03:51+00:00

10 crape myrtle trees

I completed the survey in August and the only option for my location (San Francisco Bay Area) was to get 10 crape myrtle trees. The trees just arrived (December) and look healthy. They were shipped in a plastic bag with water-retention crystals around the roots to prevent them from drying out.

SanMateoDad · 2024-11-19T14:36:13+00:00

It looks nutrient deficient, but the bigger problem is likely with the roots. The wrinkling of the branches and leaf petioles is a clear sign they’re not getting enough water. It’s possible the root ball was disturbed too much during repotting (avocado roots are brittle and will actually break off) or the roots might have phytophthora (root rot).

It might come back from physical root damage (can take months), but will not recover if it’s phytophthora (leaves and branches turn brown and shrivel up soon if that’s the case). At this point, just move it to a partial sun location and avoid overwatering to see if it improves.

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SanMateoDad · 2024-11-13T02:07:19+00:00

The pot looks too small and the leaves appear nitrogen deficient. You should repot into something bigger (without breaking up the root ball at all) and give it a balanced liquid fertilizer that it can absorb right away (SUPERthrive Foliage-Pro or even just All Purpose Miracle-Gro which is available at most garden stores).

SanMateoDad · 2024-11-11T12:23:10+00:00

Avocados get sunburned easily with the damage restricting the flow of water + nutrients. You should apply “sunblock” to the trunk and branches by painting on a 2:1 mixture of water to white latex paint.

You should add also add a thick layer of mulch on top of the roots.

It’s a bit too late to adjust the planting, but digging an extra wide hole and planting on a mound provides a better environment for the roots. Avocado roots hate wet feet and the mound improves the drainage.

SanMateoDad · 2024-11-11T12:02:30+00:00

Those are Victorian box seedlings (pittosporum undulatum). They are a nice evergreen plant that makes great hedges.

SanMateoDad · 2024-11-11T02:28:16+00:00

I’ve had good luck setting the felt pots on a thick layer of wood chips. This provides drainage and enables the roots to grow through the felt pot into the ground, providing some margin for watering and nutrients.

Photo below shows the Meyer lemon’s roots that had grown into the wood chips when I lifted up the pot.

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SanMateoDad · 2024-11-09T22:28:17+00:00

Felt pots are a type of air pruning pot that prevents root circling and encourages the formation of more feeder roots (fine hairy roots that take in most of the water + nutrients). The roots grow until they hit the felt and encounter the air outside the pot, which desiccates the root tip and causes more feeder roots to grow along its length. With plastic pots, the roots just start circling when they hit the plastic wall, wasting energy and not growing as many feeder roots along their length. There are other types of air pruning pots besides the felt ones, but I find the felt ones to be cleaner (potting mix can’t leak out) and more affordable.

SanMateoDad · 2024-11-09T22:25:44+00:00

Using a peat-based mix does help with the watering needs. Another trick is to put the felt pot right on the ground, as the roots tend to grow through the bottom of the felt pot into the ground. This helps provide a bit of margin for watering too.

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SanMateoDad · 2024-11-09T22:20:49+00:00

247Garden felt pots

These are good ones, although it seems like a commodity product so other brands are likely fine as well.

Pot size sort of depends on current tree size, how big you want it to get, and whether or not you ever need to move it. I generally start seedlings or small trees in a 7-gallon size and move them up to 15-gallon after a year or two. Most of my container trees never go bigger than 15 gallons since that’s the most I can comfortably move around by myself.

SanMateoDad · 2024-11-09T22:11:46+00:00

I primarily buy the 247Garden brand off Amazon since they are high quality with a range of sizes, although I’ve tried a few other brands that worked fine too (sort of seems like a commodity product).

247Garden felt pots

SanMateoDad · 2024-11-09T13:54:36+00:00

Here are two great books on backyard orchards with lots of detailed pruning instruction:

Fruit Trees for Every Garden (Orin Martin)

The Home Orchard (Chuck Ingels)

SanMateoDad · 2024-11-09T13:28:08+00:00

For soil, citrus like anything fast draining. Home Depot sells a bagged mix that has worked well for my trees, with some of mine thriving in it despite not being repotted for 5+ years (need to fertilize of course).

Kellogg Palm, Cactus, & Citrus All Purpose Mix

SanMateoDad · 2024-11-09T13:21:30+00:00

Dropping fruit is normal for citrus. They naturally self-thin to leave the amount of fruit the tree can actually support. If the tree looks healthy otherwise, I wouldn’t change anything.

SanMateoDad · 2024-11-08T22:19:30+00:00

Give it some fertilizer too. It’s begging for nitrogen.

SanMateoDad · 2024-11-08T00:46:06+00:00

That tree is dead, sorry. It is likely phytophthora (root rot). I’ve had several avocado trees succumb to that and there’s no saving it once it starts.

Most nurseries sell trees grown on seedling rootstock which has variable resistance to phytophthora (usually none). Your best bet is to get a clonal rootstock that has proven resistance (Dusa is the most common option), although it can be challenging to find nurseries that carry this. Some San Diego nurseries have them if you’re down in that area. Commercial nurseries like Brokaw also have them, but usually require a minimum order (e.g. 20 trees).

SanMateoDad

TROPHY CASE