Hi, the advice that lady gave you may have killed your tree, though it was already in trouble. The white stuff is likely mealy bug (fungus) and shows up when conditions are too wet... i.e. you've watered too often and the soil isn't designed to drain quickly (plus you must have good size drain holes of course in any pot). You need to find some antidote with 'Neem Oil' either in it, or made up entirely of it - ask at a local nursery or wherever plant products are sold there. You do know I hope that your tree needs to live 100% of its life outdoors in the UK? Don't try to grow it inside as it won't be very happy at all.

Thankyou for replying, i have purchased some neem oil in hope that i can save it. I'm rather disgruntled that the 'specialist' at the shop has given me false advice, as I am a first time buyer and she insisted to keep it indoors throughout its duration. I will continue to try and save it and post a photo in a week or so's time to show the results, I really appreciate your help!

Many thanks!

Good luck! I'd normally say it was past time to repot into something larger (potwise) but now is not the time... wait til it's healthy again.

This post was edited by moochinka on Fri, Sep 5, 14 at 16:28