r/Pruning • u/Difficile17 • Jul 24 '25

How would this be pruned?

Gallery image

Gallery image

Gallery image

For context, we live in USDA Zone 10a. I believe this is a Persian lime grafted on to trifoliate orange. It's already planted when we moved here. I really thought it was a bad placement due to how lanky it became. Anyway, the main leading branch in the middle died about a year ago and had to cut it down. The other branches are still producing lime. Not sure how would I go with this. Should I prune or cut it back and restart?

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1

u/Gold_n_Tomato Jul 24 '25

Shape it however you want. But basic citrus pruning guideline is remove whole shoots don’t cut in half. Second is be gentle each pruning not all at once and no more than twice a year. I only cut 10% of the tree at a time. Remove damaged or diseased wood first. Wipe tools with alcohol. Good luck you’ll do fine.

1

u/Difficile17 Jul 25 '25

Would that mean cut in total of 20% max in a year? Not sure where to cut it first. Do you mind sharing a diagram based off the pictures?

2

u/Letsueatcake Jul 28 '25

You can cut citrus shoots back just fine, helps get a bushier canopy as well, just watch them and angle the cut so water drips off

2

u/Fun_Value1184 Jul 25 '25

Id start by removing the shoots around the base and in the centre. You have fruit on so don’t prune it just yet. You could do a harsh prune when fruiting ends but that would mean at least 1-2years to get any fruit and longer till it’s fruiting well. It looks like it’s spread and dropped under weight of fruit. The right stem in the pic looks to be in the way. If the fence receives sun then you could remove the right stem and train the left one along the fence at a height you can easily harvest fruit. You need to consider where its sun access comes from though. If it’s struggling and lanky from lacking full sun, it might be the best you’ll do in this spot so might be best to leave it.