Wouldn’t it be great to have a constant stash of fresh home grown lemons? It’s not as difficult as you think. Follow these simple rules and you have it made.
Whether in the ground or in a large
pot, there are only 2 issues: pest control and nutrition.
The Key to success is Pest Oil: Buy it ($10) or make your own.(0.50 cents)
Recipe (concentrate)
Pests
The leaves and stems are under constant attack from sucking pests like
scale, aphids and citrus miner. This leads to curled and deformed leaves or
sooty mould that develops in the sap. This brings ants. The gall wasp is
another constant threat because its young burrow into the stem causing damage.
Thankfully, you need only PEST OIL to control all of these threats. Spray it on
monthly and see the difference. You can easily make your own or choose WHITE OIL. These oils leave a thin film of oil on the leaves
and stems which stops pest action. Spray the underside of leaves as well. Add some seaweed solution to make it a foliar feed as well!
Nutrition
The lemon tree is a ravenous feeder Ever hungry, it needs large amounts
of added nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium, trace elements and water. Depending on soil conditions, most
established trees will respond to a feed every 8 weeks. Fertilizers come ready
mixed so simply follow the instructions on the packet. An established tree in
the ground should be deeply watered at least twice a week and a pot bound tree
thrice weekly.
Hot tip.
Put a thick layer
of mulch around trees that are in the ground or coir around a potted tree.
Citrus have shallow roots and love the coolness of mulch. This makes a huge difference in potted citrus which is susceptible to drying out.
Ensure continuous harvest
Pick the lemons when they start
yellowing very slightly. This will encourage new flowers and allow a more
continuous harvest.
Make lemon pickle and Moroccon pickled lemon with the excess!
