Lemon cultivation and care at home. Lemon tree: care and cultivation at home. Growing conditions and care of lemon

How to care for lemon at home? This question interests every inexperienced gardener. After all, it is care that affects the growth and fruiting of the plant. Lemon is a very useful citrus for the human body. With it, you can make delicious tea and boost immunity.

Proper lemon care is a guarantee of fruit

Therefore, if you want to get all the useful vitamins, you need to know how to care for a lemon tree.

watering lemon

Home care is primarily about proper watering. In cold weather, homemade lemon is watered once a week. To do this, warm water must be defended in advance. In the warm season, watering is necessary once a day, because in the heat any plant requires a lot of liquid.

After each watering, the top layer of soil must be loosened. It is necessary to bring water into the ground clearly according to the scheme so as not to harm the root system of the lemon, because a large amount of moisture can lead to its decay, and a lack of water leads to the fact that the lemon tree at home begins to throw off the leaves. This is the first answer to the question of how to care for a homemade lemon.

Lighting

It is worth knowing about the right lighting if you are wondering "how to care for a room lemon." After all, no plant can exist without sunlight. The lemon tree does not need long daylight hours. The amount of light affects only the formation of leaves, not fruits. It is better to keep the tree at home on the windowsill, which is located in the east.

If there are no windows on the right side, then you need to protect the plant from direct sunlight. For the correct formation of the crown, it is necessary to turn the tree several times a month.

The shadow negatively affects the development of the lemon. Try to properly care for the lemon, then such problems will not arise.

The lemon tree loves color, but not direct sunlight.

Air temperature

Lemon care at home provides for temperature control. This is one of the main conditions for the fruiting of a lemon.

The temperature regime for a lemon should be as follows:

When the lemon begins to bloom or actively grow, the air temperature should be at least 17 ° C.
When active fruiting began: 20 °C.
During the dormant period, which most often occurs in winter, the apartment should be between 14 ° C and 18 ° C.

For a lemon at home, care in terms of temperature should be strictly observed. The slightest changes cause illness and lead to death.

In summer, lemon can be taken out into the fresh air.

Humidity level

Caring for a homemade lemon includes controlling the moisture level. In order for it to grow normally and bear fruit, the humidity must be high, especially in summer due to the heat. On such days, the plant must be sprayed daily and washed once a week in the shower.

To increase the level of humidity, it is necessary to place a small container of water next to the pot, which will evaporate and create optimal conditions for the growth of the tree. If desired, you can purchase a special humidifier, which should be in the same room as the lemon.

top dressing

Caring for a room lemon includes its top dressing. In summer, it is carried out once every seven days, and in winter - every month, if the lemon is fruitful. If there are no fruits, then this can be done less often. Caring for a lemon tree involves top dressing with mineral and organic fertilizers.

Before adding nutrients, the plant is watered. This will avoid burning the roots. If you are using ready-made mineral fertilizer, then the proportion of substances (N:P:K) is 14:16:18. Use the tool according to the instructions.

Organic fertilizer for lemon must be properly prepared. To do this, fill the manure with water and leave it for a week. After that, the mixture is diluted in a ratio of 1:15. Twice a year it is recommended to treat the soil with potassium permanganate, this will prevent diseases.

Manure is an excellent organic fertilizer for lemon

Growing a lemon includes not only proper care, but also its transplantation. It is recommended to do it with trees every two years while they are young. In the spring, it is necessary to purchase special soil and, by transshipment, transplant a lemon into a pot that is 4 cm larger than the previous one in diameter. Thanks to the transshipment method, the roots retain their strength and quickly take root in a new place.

It is necessary to transplant a tree several times a year, during the growing season. Use expanded clay and charcoal drainage. You can not transplant a tree during flowering and during the period when it bears fruit. Proper planting is the key to tree health.

Lemon transplantation is carried out in the spring

Flowering and fruiting lemon

Lemon trees must be carefully looked after, especially during the period when flowers appear on it. This happens for the first time two years after sowing the seeds. When the plant blooms, you can not leave all the flowers on it, because. to. a young tree is not able to grow all the ovaries that have appeared.

Flower removal process:

For the first time, a flowering lemon is cut off halfway, leaving the ovaries for four fruits.
When the tree begins to bloom for the second time, ovaries are left for six lemons.
For the third time, the ovaries for eight fruits should be left on the lemon.

These manipulations with the tree allow you to properly care for it and achieve active fruiting. The older the tree, the more lemons it will produce. Therefore, do not be afraid to pick flowers.

The plant produces fruits about four times a year, depending on the variety and care. Approximately 6 months pass from the moment of development to the moment of maturation.

A fully ripened fruit has a golden skin. It is not worth delaying the harvest, because the lemon will lose all its beneficial properties.

Lemon blossom should be regulated

Pollination of lemons in pots

Flowering and fruiting occur only in mature plants. If the lemon is still young, then it is recommended to pick off all the flowers. The tree must have about 20 mature leaves to bear fruit. Early fruiting depletes the plant, it may die. If the tree is strong, then you need to wait until it blooms, and then you can pollinate.

How to pollinate a lemon correctly? First you need to create the necessary conditions. Humidity should be 70% and air temperature 25 °C. It is also worth preparing special tools:

soft brush;
a small piece of fur;
cotton swab.

Carefully, using prepared tools, collect pollen from the stamens and transfer it to the pistils. Do this with all the flowers. If you doubt that the pollination process was successful, you can repeat it.

If desired, you can use special preparations. Biological products "Bud" or "Ovary" are popular. They allow the fruits to form, in the event that the ovary develops very weakly.

Lemons- perennial evergreen subtropical plants from Southeast Asia. They are hardy, durable, but require enough attention.

Thanks to the shiny leathery leaves, they are very decorative even in a non-flowering state. And during flowering, the whole room will be filled with its gentle invigorating aroma.

The plant releases volatile essential oils, which have a bactericidal effect, ozonize the air, improve mood, give vitality.

Varieties of indoor lemons (with photo)

For cultivation The following varieties of lemon are suitable:

Pavlovsky. Shade-tolerant, annually produces 6-15 tasty fruits weighing 200 g (up to 400 g) with a thin peel. An old popular variety. Blooms for 3 years. There are several clones of the variety, with different shapes and weights of fruits.

Lunario. The most unpretentious variety. The taste of fruits is average, their weight is 120-180 g. It gives 8-16 fruits per year. They bloom for 2-3 years. Most common in Europe.

Ponderosa. A variety up to 1 m high, unpretentious, but low-yielding (3-5 per year). The weight of tasty fruits is more than 300 g. They bloom for 1-2 years.

Lisbon. Unpretentious, resistant to heat. The branches are rounded. Delicious fruits weighing 180-200 g. Yield 6-16 fruits. Seedlings bloom for 3 years. The correct formation of the crown can reduce the height of the plant.

Meyer. The shortest (0.5-1 m), remontant, precocious. Capricious, painful, requires lighting in winter. Fruit weight 150-190 g. Their taste is average. Gives 6-15 fruits per year. Blooms for 1-2 years. Due to its size, this is the most common variety.

Suitable for growing indoors, but rarely seen varieties lemon: variegated Eureka (with white veins on the leaves), Kursk and Genoa - both with very tasty fruits, Maykop (the most productive), Villafranca, Novogruzinsky.

Lemon Houseplant Care

To get fragrant flowers and long-awaited fruits, you need to know how to care for indoor lemon.

Lighting

This plant short daylight hours. A long day enhances growth but delays fruiting. Bright diffused light is needed, so place the lemon on the east window. South windows are also suitable, but with shading from the direct summer sun.

For uniform crown growth, once or twice a month, slightly turn the lemon in relation to the sun. Lack of lighting leads to slow leaf growth, sour fruit taste.

Temperature

For growth a, flowering the temperature is + 17-20, for the development and ripening of fruits + 21-22. In summer, the plant can be kept outdoors, but do not forget to watch for sudden changes in temperature.

In winter, lemon is kept at + 15-18, lighting up to 12-hour daylight hours, or at + 7-14, while the plant is “sleeping”. Excessive heat is very harmful, especially when the air humidity is low.

Better if soil temperature close to air temperature. Sharp fluctuations that occur when keeping a lemon on the street and immediately brought into the room when it gets cold are undesirable.

Air humidity

Humidity should be very high. The plant reacts negatively to its decrease, especially in the heat. Summer- daily spraying, spraying is also necessary during the heating season. Periodically (after 7-10 days), a warm shower is arranged for a lemon.

Humidity increase by placing a wide container of water nearby for evaporation, or by placing the pot in a tray with moisture-evaporating material.

Watering

In summer it must be plentiful and regular (2 times a week). You can not overdry the earth! Water is needed at room temperature, it should not contain chlorine, for which it is boiled or settled.

Winter watering is more rare (once a week). Avoid waterlogging earth.

top dressing

For indoor lemon, fertilizers are of great importance! AT summer period - weekly winter- once a month only in case of fruiting.

use organic and mineral supplements. An hour or two before their introduction, it is necessary to water the plants in order to avoid burning the roots.

organic nutrition: manure is mixed with water 1:1 and left to ferment for a week. Before watering, the solution is filtered, diluted: horse 1:10, cow - 1:15. Top dressing is combined with watering 2 times a year with a solution of iron sulfate (3 g / l) and a pinkish solution of potassium permanganate.

Mineral top dressing: produced with citrus fertilizers according to the instructions, for example, "Citrus Mix" with a ratio of N: P: K - 14:16:18 and a complex of trace elements.

Transfer

Lemons up to 3 years transplanted annually in the spring. Transplantation should be done carefully, without damaging the root system. It is better to use transshipment with partial removal of the old earth.

adult lemons transplanted after 2-3 years at the beginning of the growing season. You can not transplant during flowering and fruiting.

pot size no more than 10-15 cm. Drainage (2-3 cm) from sand or expanded clay with charcoal is required at the bottom.

The soil should be loose, nutritious, neutral reaction.
Compound:

4 parts of leaf land with the addition of turf;
1 part manure humus;
1 part sand;
1 tablespoon of ash.

If it is impossible to make a mixture, use a purchased one, but you can only use special - for citrus fruits.

Trimming and shaping

crown pruning indoor lemon is best done in the spring, before growth begins. The crown is formed by a bush on a low (15-18 cm) stem. Shoots are cut, leaving 4-5 leaves.

To start fruiting, the plant must be branched. Most varieties set fruit on branches of 4-5 orders, only Meyer lemon can form fruits on branches of 2-3 orders.

A lemon with a well-formed crown can to please with flowers already for 2-3 years. Be sure to regulate the number of flowers, otherwise exhaustion of the entire plant may occur. In the first flowering, half of the flowers are removed, and 3-4 fruits are left from the resulting ovaries. In the second year, you can leave 5-6 fruits, then - 7-8.

Flowering and harvest

Depending on the variety, lemons can flower and bear fruit from 1 to 4 (Ponderosa lemon) once a year. flowers bisexual, forming ovaries without cross-pollination.

Growth and bud development lasts about 5 weeks. Each flower blooms for about 2 months. It takes 180-230 days from fruit set to the beginning of ripening, depending on temperature and lighting.

Flowering and fruiting are allowed only if there is a sufficient number of leaves. For every fruit- at least 10 developed leaves.

Intense golden skin color fruits indicates their full ripening. You need to remove them at this moment, because after ripening they do not fall off, continuing their growth. But their quality is deteriorating, the peel becomes thicker, the pulp is drier, the juice is less acidic.

Subject to the conditions of detention, a lemon can grow, bloom, bear fruit all year, at the same time on the plant there can be buds, flowers, fruits.

Reproduction of indoor lemon

You can grow indoor lemon as from seeds, and vegetatively(cuttings, layering).

Reproduction by seeds

More commonly used seeds from purchased lemons. They germinate easily, but it takes more than 10 years to wait for flowering and fruiting.

Vegetative reproduction

cuttings produced in spring and summer. Semi-woody cuttings with 2-3 buds (length 10 cm) are cut from fruit-bearing plants.

The lower cut is treated with stimulants ("Kornevin"). The cuttings are placed in water or a wet mixture of earth and sand, deepening by 2 cm. Covered with a transparent film on top to preserve moisture.

rooting it takes 2-3 weeks, then the cutting is transplanted into a small pot and placed in a room with diffused lighting and a temperature of + 20 + 25.

For getting layering on a developed branch of a fruit-bearing tree, the bark is removed with a sharp knife, making a ring 1-2 cm thick. The exposed wood is treated with rooting agents, covered with moistened sphagnum moss and wrapped in black polyethylene.

After 2-3 months, the branch with the formed roots is separated and planted in light soil.

Indoor lemon diseases

May be caused by the following reasons:

Violation of agricultural technology

dropping leaves indoor lemon in winter can be caused by high temperature in combination with insufficient lighting, watering with cold water, increased acidity of the soil, overflow.

nutritional deficiency

If not enough:

nitrogen: yellow spots appear on the leaves, then the leaf turns yellow completely and falls off;
phosphorus: shine disappears from the leaves, their tips turn brown and dry:
potassium: deformations in the form of pits and folds appear between the veins;
gland: foliage becomes very pale, dark green veins clearly stand out on it;
manganese, boron: new ovaries are not tied and the already formed ones fall off.

At overnutrition blackening and death of the edges of the leaves occurs.

Fungal, infectious, viral diseases

Let us briefly consider the main diseases that are characteristic of lemons and the methods of ambulance for plants in this case.

fungal diseases.
late blight- the damaged area is cleaned, lubricated with copper sulfate or special chemicals.
root rot- the affected roots are cut off, disinfected, the plant is planted in fresh soil.
sooty fungus- just wash the leaves with soap.
Mold- spraying with Bordeaux liquid or other fungicides.

infectious diseases.
Not always curable.
Gommosis (a crack on the browned bark with fluid flowing out), malsecco (drying of the shoots, incurable).

Viral diseases.
Not curable, lead to the death of the plant.
These are xylopsorosis, tristeza, leaf mosaic, citrus cancer.

Indoor lemon pests

The most common: scab, aphid, whitefly, . It is necessary to mechanically remove insects, wash the plant with soap and water using a brush, take a cold shower every 3 days, and if necessary, treat it with insecticides according to the instructions.

Prevention- regular washing of plants.

And for those who like to know more, we suggest that you familiarize yourself with a useful video in which you will learn about caring for citrus fruits and will be able to decide whether you are ready to plant these plants in your garden.

Lemon is an evergreen citrus tree. The birthplace of lemons is the subtropics, so plants love warmth and moisture. In open ground, the tree grows up to 8 meters, although there are also dwarf three-meter trees. Home varieties with good care bear fruit all year round.

Indoor lemon - a brief description

At home, lemons are grown in flower pots or tubs. Growing a lemon in a tub, you can get from 10-30 fruits from a young plant to 200 from an adult every year. Lemons that are not inferior in quality to southern varieties can be picked from a tree about one and a half meters high. You can grow a houseplant from a lemon seed, but really tasty fruits are obtained only from varietal plants. Lemon is a perennial plant and it blooms profusely, although the flowers are not too noticeable behind the dense foliage, but the room is filled with a fresh aroma from the essential oils secreted by all parts of the plant.

Growing features

Growing a lemon at home is not as easy as other indoor flowers. A home tree requires a spacious, well-lit room and constant attention. But there are obvious advantages - durability, pleasant smell, tasty and healthy fruits.

Several years pass from the moment of planting until the first fruits are obtained, so be patient and wait until your tree blooms and gives you the first medium-sized lemons. Over time, the tree will get stronger, and will delight you with a more generous harvest.

When growing a room lemon, the following conditions must be met:

Light room.
Regular ventilation.
Good drainage.
Regular feeding.
Cool winter.

Planting a lemon

If you decide to grow a lemon from a seedling, pay attention to the "pedigree". It will be difficult for a fruit-bearing tree from the subtropics to acclimatize. We recommend choosing seedlings from indoor plants or from a tree living in your climate. Lemons from the Caucasus, grafted on trifoliate, are suitable for growing in cool rooms - winter gardens or greenhouses. At home, the plant is likely to die. When choosing a seedling, carefully study the information about it.

When planting, the root neck should be only 5 mm deep into the ground. The soil level is 1 centimeter below the edge of the pot. This is necessary so that the root neck does not rot, and the soil is not washed off when watering. After planting, spray the seedling and water with a weak solution of potassium permanganate. Place the pot in a lighted place, but protect the leaves from direct sunlight, shade the tree if necessary.

Lemons do not like to move from place to place, so choose a permanent home for the plant and do not turn it abruptly so that the house flower can develop normally.

Optimal time

The best time to plant is late winter to early spring as this is when the natural growing season begins.

The soil

Pour loose and nutritious soil into the pot after laying the drainage. Soil composition:

Light loam (meadow turf) - 2 parts.
Leaf land - 2 parts.
Manure humus - 1 part.
Coarse sand - 1 part.

On ordinary land from a summer cottage, a lemon will not bear fruit well.

If you cannot assemble such a complex composition, buy Lemon or Rose land at the flower shop.

Important! The tree will grow in the same soil for several years, so the correct selection of the substrate and regular top dressing are very important.

Features of care

Lack of sunlight should not kill the plant. When the days lengthen, the growth of the tree is activated, but fruiting is delayed. South and east windows are suitable for a houseplant. The most favorable place for a lemon is the windowsills of the eastern windows, on which the rays of the sun are bright in the morning, but not scorching. In the hot summer, fence off the flower pot from the sun with a gauze curtain.

Indoor lemons do not like light changes and rearrangements, the growth and development of fruits may slow down a little, but the tree will form correctly when turned.

Advice. In winter, it is desirable to organize daylight illumination for 6 hours a day. Place an incandescent or fluorescent lamp 60 cm above the tree.

Humidity

The most difficult period for indoor plants is October-March. The air in the apartment at this time is dry due to heating. Move the pot away or cover the batteries with a damp cloth. Spray the lemon periodically, but do not get carried away so as not to cause the development of the fungus. Place a cup of water in or near the pot.

In summer, it is useful to give the tree a cool shower once a week and wipe the leaves with a damp sponge. This is necessary so that the plant can fully breathe.

Important! The plant reacts painfully to changes in air humidity, dry air is especially dangerous at high temperatures during flowering and fruit formation. Flowers and ovaries may fall off. The more humid the air, the longer the leaves of the plant live.

Watering

In May-September, lemons should be watered daily, but sparingly. Waterlogged soil is categorically not suitable, but overdried soil can destroy a tree. In winter, water the lemon less often, but provide it with sufficient humidity.

Important! Do not water lemons with cold water and in the sun. The optimal time for watering is morning or evening.

Temperature

The optimum temperature for the development of shoots and leaves is + 17 ° C, for the growth of fruits the temperature should be higher - + 21 ... 22 ° C. Lemons do not survive heat well, especially when humidity is low. In summer, when it gets warmer, flowers and ovaries can fall off, and temperature drops in autumn-winter can lead to leaf fall.

Attention! The soil temperature should be close to the air temperature. It is dangerous to bring lemon from the open air into a heated room. When it gets cold, try to gradually move the pot with the plant so that it can adapt to new conditions.

Top dressing and fertilizer

Fertilizers should be applied to the soil moderately, but regularly, since their excess is harmful to plants.

According to the condition of the leaves, shoots and fruits, one can judge what kind of nutrition a lemon needs:

The leaves turn yellow, the number of fruits decreases, and they become smaller - there is not enough nitrogen.
The leaves turn pale and fall off, and the fruits are deformed and coarsen - phosphorus deficiency.
The leaves are growing, and the fruits are shrinking - potassium starvation.
The tops of the branches dry out, the leaves turn pale and turn yellow, the lemon does not bloom and does not bear fruit - there is little iron.

In the summer, when the plant can be taken out of the house, you can feed it with organic fertilizer (bird droppings or water in which the meat was washed). It is not necessary to apply all fertilizers at the same time - lemons suffer from excessive feeding.

Carry out planned top dressing twice a month in the summer; from October to February, you do not need to feed the lemon.

pruning

When growing indoor lemon, it is important not to let it grow to the size of a tree, especially since this plant is prone to the formation of long branches. If the bush is not cut, the crown will become too large. When pruning, some of the branches are removed after the fifth leaf - the crown from such a haircut will become productive and compact.

Lemon transplant

The fact that it's time to transplant the lemon is evidenced by the roots sticking out of the drainage hole, but this is a case of extreme neglect. A planned transplant should be carried out as the tree grows, each next flower pot should be slightly larger than the previous one. Circumstances occur, a forced transplant, for example, a pot may break or you will feel an unpleasant smell from the soil.

If the lemon does not grow well, it can be transplanted in the fall, although the optimal time is the end of February, until active growth begins, or the middle of summer.

Carefully remove the plant, cut off the broken and damaged roots, and sprinkle them with crushed coal or Kornevin. The earthen ball does not need to be completely shaken off.
Put drainage on the bottom of the pot and sprinkle some river sand. Above is a layer of soil.
Cut off some of the branches to make it easier for the roots to nourish the plant.
Make a recess in the soil, set the clod so that the neck is just below the edge of the pot. If you need to raise, add earth.
Pour the earth in layers around the edges, making sure that the trunk is located in the middle of the pot.
Trample the soil with your hands so that there are no voids left.
Pour with settled water and loosen the soil a little.

Advice. To make the lemon easier to endure stress, sprinkle it with Zircon and cover it with a film for 5-7 days.

reproduction

Cultivation of lemons can be carried out by cuttings or seeds. A tree grown from a seed will bloom and begin to bear fruit no earlier than after 8 years. If you plant a cutting, you will wait for your own lemons in 4 years. A lemon cub grown from a seed does not necessarily inherit the characteristics of a variety from the parent tree, and when cutting, identity is guaranteed. But trees and seeds are more resistant to disease and better adapted to life in captivity.

Reproduction by seeds

You can get a lemon seed from any ripe fruit. Each lemon contains several seeds, take them out and plant several pieces at a distance of 5 cm. It is better to plant seeds from several fruits.

The soil for planting is well-drained peat and soil for flowers in a 1: 1 ratio. Bury the seeds 1 cm deep and make sure that the ground remains moist, but without overflow. At room temperature, sprouts should appear in two weeks. Choose the tallest ones, and delete the rest. Cover the sprout with a jar and place in a well-lit place without direct sunlight. Every day, air the sprout for several hours by removing the jar.

When a few true leaves appear, plant the sprouts in pots up to 10 cm in diameter with good drainage. When transplanting, try to keep the roots and soil around them. Pour a mixture of peat and earth for flowers into a pot. Transplant a plant that has grown up to 15-20 centimeters into an “adult” pot.

Reproduction by cuttings

In the spring, semi-lignified twigs about 10 cm long with several leaves are cut, and rooted in a makeshift greenhouse with high humidity and temperature. Soil: peat and earth for flowers.

Lay drainage at the bottom of the pot, on top - a 5-centimeter layer of a mixture of soddy soil and sand (6: 1), then a mixture of sand and moss. This layer will mainly contain the root system of the future plant. Plant a cutting, water it and spray it with warm water. Cover with a jar.

It is necessary to spray the cutting twice a day with water at about + 25 ° C until rooting occurs. At room temperature, the cutting should root in 3-4 weeks. After that, remove the jar for several hours a day, and after a week remove it completely. After another 7 days, you can transplant the cutting into a small pot with nutritious soil and reliable drainage. After a year, you can transplant a lemon into a regular pot, and after 3-4 years it will begin to bloom.

Bloom

Tops of young lemon shoots are pink-purple. The oval toothed leaves contain an essential oil. Leaves are replaced after 2-3 years. Large lemon flowers (4-5 cm) bloom in the spring five weeks after the appearance of the bud, flowering lasts more than two months. After the petals fall, a fruit is tied, ripening after 200 or more days.

If a young plant begins to bloom in the first years of life, it is advisable to cut off the buds so that the tree can develop normally. When the buds appear for the second time, they are no longer cut off - the lemon itself “decides” how many fruits it can feed. Extra buds will fly around themselves. You can allow flowering when the tree already has at least 20 leaves. It is believed that each fruit requires at least 10 mature leaves.

Care after flowering

Lemon grows all year round, blooms and bears fruit. On one tree there may be ripe fruits, ovaries, flowers and buds. It is not necessary to pluck faded inflorescences, as they turn into ovaries. If the lemon bloomed in summer, the fruits ripen faster than in spring flowering.

Problems, diseases, pests

Many diseases of decorative lemons are caused by improper care. With a lack of light and nutrients, lemon leaves brighten. Buds and leaves fly around if there is not enough moisture. The dry air in the room is especially hard for the plant, flowering may stop, the leaves darken and fall off.

Pests also often settle on the plant:

Shchitovki lead to the drying of branches, leaves and the death of a lemon. Remove the pests with a toothbrush and wash the lemon with soapy water.
The spider mite settles on the wrong side of the leaves and the web gradually envelops the entire tree. Spray with a 0.15% Aktelik solution three times, every 10 days.
The mealybug leaves sticky secretions on the leaves. The fruits and leaves fall off. It is recommended to inspect the plant and collect the larvae.
Citrus aphid. The Aktelik solution helps to get rid of this pest.
Thrips and whiteflies also settle on lemons, which must be collected by hand, and the tree should be washed in the shower and treated with soapy water.

Popular types of indoor lemon

If the lemon leaves turn brown, increase the humidity in the room and water the plant more often.
Small leaves and thin shoots indicate that the lemon urgently needs to be fed and put in a more lit place.
The leaves dry and curl when there is not enough light and moisture. Spray the lemon every day, water and feed with complex fertilizers.

Answers on questions

Lifespan of indoor lemon

With careful attention and proper care, lemons live up to 45 years. The indoor flower dies prematurely due to diseases and pests.

Why isn't the lemon blooming?

You probably planted the plant in a too cramped pot. Transplant it and feed it with complex fertilizer.

What to do if a lemon sheds leaves?

For a lemon, leaf fall is a reaction to stress. Perhaps after the summer you moved it into the room or, on the contrary, abruptly placed it under bright rays. Arrange artificial lighting or create a shadow. The reason may be excessive or insufficient watering - souring of the soil and drying out of the earthy coma are equally harmful to lemons. If the tree has not been watered for a long time, do not moisten the soil abundantly, add water little by little over several days.

Why does a lemon shed fruit?

Lemon sheds fruit when it does not have enough strength to develop them. The first flowers that appear on a young lemon must be cut off, and only 2 fruits can be left on a three-year-old plant. In the future, each fruit should have at least 10 leaves.

How to winterize?

The main task in wintering is to save the leaves. The room should not be too hot - no more than + 20 ° C. Keep the plant pot away from the batteries and place a container of water next to it. If the windows are reliably protected from cold air, arrange a tree on the southeast or southwest window. Watering a lemon in winter should not be as plentiful as in the warm season.

The lemon tree is a perennial plant that loves warmth and sufficient moisture. Under natural conditions, it grows in a subtropical climate and reaches a height of three meters (dwarf varieties) to eight. Due to its unpretentiousness and love of warmth, a lemon tree can be grown in an ordinary city apartment or house.

Lemon tree sprouts. © Megs

Lemon trees grown at home, with proper care, produce edible fruits throughout the year. True, such trees begin to bear fruit at the age of 7-10 years from the moment of planting. Planting can be done in two ways: from a simple lemon seed bought at any store, or from cuttings and seedlings. Lemon trees grown from seeds grow more actively, they are healthier and more unpretentious than those grown from seedlings or cuttings, but the latter begin to bear fruit much faster.

To grow a lemon tree from a seed, you need to choose neat, ripe and well-formed lemons in the store, without signs of spoilage. Seeds are extracted from them, the best specimens of which are used for planting. It must be done immediately after extracting the seeds from lemons.

Seeds are planted in small pots or boxes with a distance of five centimeters from each other. Suitable for planting soil, mixed from peat and flower soil in equal proportions. At the bottom of the pots, drainage from expanded clay or small stones must be present. Seeds are planted to a depth of 1 centimeter.

Lemon Tree. © Pam

The soil must not be allowed to dry out, but excessive flooding with water is not permissible. Shoots of a lemon tree will appear within a couple of weeks after planting. Among the sprouts that appear, you need to choose only the strongest and grow them until several true leaves appear. Growing is done by covering the lemon sprouts with a jar and placing them in a bright place. In this case, direct sunlight should be avoided. Once a day, the jar rises briefly so that the plant gains access to fresh air.

When the leaves appear, the strongest sprouts of the lemon tree are transplanted into separate small pots with soil from flower soil and humus. A layer of drainage is laid out at the bottom of the pot. Lemon sprouts should be in this pot until they reach a height of about twenty centimeters, after which they are transplanted into larger containers. Growing lemons need to be watered twice a week. Soil moisture should be balanced: without drying out or waterlogging.

The lemon tree sprout is ready to be transplanted. © Megs

To grow lemon cuttings, you need to take a branch that has a thickness of five millimeters and a length of about ten centimeters. The cut stalk is placed in water for several days, after which the twig should be planted in a small pot or box.

The soil for rooting such a seedling should consist of sand, flower soil and humus, which are taken in equal proportions. The branch is buried in the ground to a depth of about three centimeters. The soil is well moistened (without flooding), and the plant itself is sprayed daily with water from a spray bottle. After a month and a half, the plant that has taken root can be transplanted into a pot.

Meyer lemon sapling. © Josh Puetz

For a permanent place in which there will be a pot with a lemon tree, it is necessary to choose a bright room where direct sunlight would have access to the grown plant. The lemon tree does not like moving around the house, so it is better to immediately find a suitable place for it, where the plant will be all the time. It is only allowed to slightly turn different sides of the plant towards the light to form a uniform crown. Yes, and this must be done carefully, gradually turning the lemon tree at a small angle.

Every year, the lemon must be transplanted into a slightly larger container, carefully moving the roots and the old earthen lump into a new pot. After that, new soil is poured into the free space in the pot. When the size of the pots used to transplant the lemon tree reaches 10 liters, you can limit yourself to updating the topsoil and regular top dressing. Also, once a week, you need to spray the lemon from the sprayer. During the heating season, this should be done daily.

Lemon tree sapling. © Maja Dumat

To form a beautiful dense crown, the top shoots of a lemon tree must be pinched off. Thanks to this, the plant will produce side branches, thereby ensuring density.

When the plant begins to bloom, it must be pollinated with a cotton swab or brush, with which the pollen is gently transferred from the anther to the sticky stamen. Further, active fruit setting will begin. To avoid depleting the tree with too many ripening fruits, some of them are best removed when the ovary is abundant.

Plant lovers grow citrus fruits even on the windowsill. What factors are paid attention to in order to see flowering and enjoy exotic fruits?

You can grow a beautiful tree that will delight with fragrant fruits at home. But this plant has a whimsical character, requires attention not only to watering, but also to the temperature regime of the room where it is located. An obligatory element of care is top dressing, which is performed in accordance with certain rules. Air humidity, lighting, and timely transplantation are also important. If all elements of care are performed regularly and efficiently, then the plant will bear fruit and delight with ovaries.

Factors That Affect Lemon Growth

A lemon that is grown on its own windowsill may differ slightly from those sold in the markets. This is due to the fact that indoor varieties are chosen for home breeding. Small lemons, which have a very thin skin, are especially valued. In addition, they are very bright and look beautiful on the window. Larger fruits will have a dense and thick skin, and will look no less exotic.

The difficulty of caring for this fruit-bearing tree is that it is accustomed to the climate of the subtropics, where it comes from. This determines that its comfortable air temperature should not be more than 17-18 degrees. In an apartment in winter, due to heating, this figure is higher. The presence of batteries also affects humidity. It goes below 70%. And the compliance of the indicators characterizing the air with the standards is very necessary for the tree to grow.

No less important for the growth of lemons and the degree of illumination of the room. The right place for a tree indoors is chosen taking into account the fact that it does not like direct sunlight. The most ideal location will have a good degree of illumination throughout the day, but this light will be diffused.

Crockery for the tree also matters. To enter the phase of active growth and the formation of the ovaries of future fruits, it should be placed in a closer pot. If the root system is too spacious, then the flowering phase will be postponed indefinitely. Ideal for planting a plant will be dishes made from natural materials. These are clay products or boxes made of wood.

Land for growth does not really matter. But it must correspond to the qualities of air and water permeability. The soil mix may contain peat and sand. Fertility will add humus. The soil should be loosened.

Moisture has a direct effect on growth. Therefore, abundant watering in spring and summer, when the ambient temperature tends to rise. In winter, the frequency of watering is reduced. Older trees require more moisture. It is desirable that watering is carried out with prepared water. Suitable pre-collected in a container and standing. You can also use thawed water, although the most ideal option is rainwater.

In order for the lemon tree to bear fruit, it is fed. Any of the organic or mineral types of fertilizers will be suitable. The frequency of this procedure should not be too intense. The optimal period of time is after 20 days.

Lemon care at different times of the year

To grow a lemon, home care for a plant must take into account some differences depending on the time of year. In the spring season, it begins a phase of active growth, and then forms buds, which later become fragrant fruits. The temperature regime should be in the range of 14-18 degrees. An excessively warm room will lead to the dropping of buds and ovaries. And such an event can provoke the death of the entire tree.

Fresh air contributes well to the natural growth of lemongrass. From the moment the air temperature outside the window stabilizes at 13-14 degrees, the plant can be placed on the balcony or terrace for the entire warm period. However, they monitor possible temperature differences due to possible still frost and its decrease by night time. To avoid the death of the plant, it is wrapped.

In summer, the danger for the lemon tree is open sunlight. Therefore, this situation is carefully controlled to avoid burns.

Winter time for lemon is characterized by the stage of final ripening of the fruit. Optimal conditions for this period include moderate temperatures (16-18 degrees). Be sure to maintain optimal humidity (about 70%). Another important condition for the good condition of the tree in winter is the exclusion of air flows that come from heating sources. A pot of lemon is removed away from heaters and radiators. It is also provided with a light source for at least 12 hours.

Lemon tree care is quite capricious. Too high temperatures are not suitable for him, as well as too low. Watering should be moderate, but very dry soil should be avoided. The plant does not like direct sunlight, but requires prolonged exposure during the day to diffused light. Without taking into account and fulfilling all these conditions, it is impossible to achieve the appearance of ovaries, which will subsequently delight with fragrant fruits. Timely watering and fertilizing, proper soil are also of great importance.

Lemon Growing Mistakes Video

You bought a young lemon tree in the hope of receiving crops of fragrant fruits all year round for tea parties and strengthening immunity.

And it really will give a lot of fruit if you know how to care for a lemon: water it, feed it, replant it, etc. We will learn all the intricacies of caring for home-grown lemon trees, including crown formation and fruit picking.

Indoor lemon: home care

Lemon care consists in regular watering, sufficient lighting, top dressing, observing the temperature regime and air humidity. It is equally important to know how to transplant a homemade lemon.

Having decided to grow a lemon tree at home, familiarize yourself with the intricacies of care:

Watering a lemon

How to water a lemon? In the cold season, from October until spring, we moderately water the tree once a week using warm water. In the spring and summer months, as well as in September, we spill the soil well with warm water once a day. Periodically loosen the top layer of the earth.

The main thing in watering a lemon is to prevent stagnation of water in the soil, leading to rotting of the roots, and not to overdry the earthen ball: this is fraught with twisting of the leaf and falling leaves and lemons.

lighting for lemon

How to care for homemade lemon in terms of lighting? Lemons don't need long daylight hours if you want more fruit than leaves. The tree bears fruit well in bright diffused light: it is better to keep it on windows facing east. If the window is south, in the summer we must protect the plant from direct sunlight.

In order for the crown to grow evenly, 2 times a month we turn the lemon tree in the direction of the sun. And we do not allow low lighting: in partial shade and shade, the leaf grows slowly, and the fruits turn out to be too sour.

Temperature regime

Caring for a homemade lemon involves maintaining a certain air temperature.

While the lemon grows and gains green mass, or blooms, we keep it in a room where 17-20 degrees of heat is observed.
When the fruits appear and ripen, you need a temperature a couple of degrees higher.
In winter, during the dormant period, a temperature of no higher than 14 degrees, or 18 ° C, is required if the plant is not “sleeping” yet - in this case, we provide it with a 12-hour daylight hours using fitolamps.

Do not keep the lemon in a hot room and do not allow sudden temperature changes.

In the summer, you can take the tree outside - the main thing is to have time to bring it home before evening (if cool weather is expected).

Indoor lemon: home care

Humidity level for lemon

How to water a lemon, we figured out: we will find out what level of air humidity is suitable for growing it. He needs a fairly high humidity, especially during the hot season - in summer or during the heating season.

When it's hot, we spray the tree every day and give it a warm shower once a week.

To increase the humidity level, place a wide-mouth jar filled with water near the lemon pot so that it evaporates, or put the pot in a tray, placing moisture-evaporating material in it.

The third option: turn on a household air humidifier next to the plant.

Top dressing lemon

Indoor lemon needs regular feeding: in summer - every week, in winter - every month (if there are fruits).

What to feed a lemon? Mineral and organic fertilizers, watering the plant 2 hours before the procedure so as not to burn the roots.

Fertilizer with minerals. For top dressing, you will need a ready-made product such as a “citrus mixture”, in which the proportions N: P: K are 14:16:18. Dilute it in water according to the attached instructions and water the soil.
organic fertilizer. We make an infusion by mixing 1 part of water and 1 part of mullein (horse manure) and, after waiting 7 days, dilute it with water: mullein infusion - 1 to 15, horse balls infusion - 1 to 10.

Twice a year we water the soil with a weak solution of potassium permanganate - to enrich and disinfect the soil.

Lemon transplant

Young lemon plants in a pot, which we will learn today, need to be transplanted 1 and 2 years after planting.

In the spring we buy soil for citrus fruits or make it ourselves from humus (1 part), earth from under deciduous trees (4 parts), calcined sand (1 part) and wood ash (1 tbsp).

We simply transfer the plant, gently shaking off part of the old earth, into another pot with soil. The diameter of the new pot should be 4 cm larger than the diameter of the previous one.

Subsequently, we transplant the plant every two years, when the growing season begins. When transplanting, do not forget to put drainage (expanded clay + charcoal or a layer of sand) with a layer of 2 cm. Thanks to transshipment, you do not have to think about how to root a lemon. The main thing is not to transplant while the lemon is blooming or bearing fruit.

crown formation

As the lemon grows, the crown should be cut - in the spring, on a low trunk of about 18 cm, before the green mass begins to grow. We cut off the shoots, leaving 5 leaves, so that by the beginning of fruiting the tree has branched.

A tree with a well-formed crown blooms in the second or third year.

Formation of the crown of indoor lemon

Lemon blossom on windowsill and harvest

While the lemon is blooming, you can not leave all the flowers on the plant:

At the first flowering, we cut off half of the flowers and leave no more than 4 fruits from the formed ovaries.
At the second flowering, only 6 fruits are left.
At the third flowering, we leave 8 fruits, etc.

Regulation of flowering is necessary to maintain a strong and healthy lemon tree: extra inflorescences will quickly deplete it. Each ovary should have at least 10 developed leaves.

Flowers do not need pollination and bloom for about 2 months.

Fruiting of lemons is possible up to 4 times a year: it depends on the variety. The development of the fetus and the beginning of maturation takes about 6-8 weeks. The peel of fully ripe lemons acquires a rich golden hue: it means it's time to harvest.

If you tighten it with the collection, the skin will become thicker, the slices will dry out and the juice will lose its characteristic acidity.

Now you know how to care for a lemon at home so that it grows strong and healthy, and gives a lot of fruit. Follow all the rules for keeping a room lemon, and it will delight you with beautiful flowering and abundant fruiting all year round.

Proper lemon care is a guarantee of fruit

Therefore, if you want to get all the useful vitamins, you need to know how to care for a lemon tree.

watering lemon

Lighting

If there are no windows on the right side, then you need to protect the plant from direct sunlight. For the correct formation of the crown, it is necessary to turn the tree several times a month.

The shadow negatively affects the development of the lemon. Try to properly care for the lemon, then such problems will not arise.

The lemon tree loves color, but not direct sunlight.

Air temperature

Lemon care at home provides for temperature control. This is one of the main conditions for the fruiting of a lemon.

The temperature regime for a lemon should be as follows:

When the lemon begins to bloom or actively grow, the air temperature should be at least 17 ° C.
When active fruiting began: 20 °C.
During the dormant period, which most often occurs in winter, the apartment should be between 14 ° C and 18 ° C.

For a lemon at home, care in terms of temperature should be strictly observed. The slightest changes cause illness and lead to death.

In summer, lemon can be taken out into the fresh air.

Humidity level

top dressing

Before adding nutrients, the plant is watered. This will avoid burning the roots. If you are using ready-made mineral fertilizer, then the proportion of substances (N:P:K) is 14:16:18. Use the tool according to the instructions.

Manure is an excellent organic fertilizer for lemon

Transfer

Lemon transplantation is carried out in the spring

Flowering and fruiting lemon

Flower removal process:

For the first time, a flowering lemon is cut off halfway, leaving the ovaries for four fruits.
When the tree begins to bloom for the second time, ovaries are left for six lemons.
For the third time, the ovaries for eight fruits should be left on the lemon.

These manipulations with the tree allow you to properly care for it and achieve active fruiting. The older the tree, the more lemons it will produce. Therefore, do not be afraid to pick flowers.

The plant produces fruits about four times a year, depending on the variety and care. Approximately 6 months pass from the moment of development to the moment of maturation.

A fully ripened fruit has a golden skin. It is not worth delaying the harvest, because the lemon will lose all its beneficial properties.

Lemon blossom should be regulated

Pollination of lemons in pots

How to pollinate a lemon correctly? First you need to create the necessary conditions. Humidity should be 70% and air temperature 25 °C. It is also worth preparing special tools:

soft brush;
a small piece of fur;
cotton swab.

If desired, you can use special preparations. Biological products "Bud" or "Ovary" are popular. They allow the fruits to form, in the event that the ovary develops very weakly.

If a lemon has “settled” in you, caring for it at home will require a lot of work. It belongs to remontant plants, therefore, under certain conditions, it is able to bloom and bear fruit all year round. But not everyone succeeds not only in tasting the fruits of their citrus, but also simply admiring the flowering. What is the reason? Let's figure it out.

Variety selection

First of all, for planting in the house, you should choose varieties specially bred for this purpose. They do not grow to gigantic dimensions, but at the same time they are characterized by high yields. Pay attention to these varieties of dwarf and semi-dwarf lemons:

Meyer
Pavlovsky
Novogruzinsky
Maykop
Eureka
Genoa

Among the most common varieties in our latitudes is the Meyer lemon, caring for it is the least troublesome compared to other species. This variety is sometimes referred to as Chinese Dwarf and its fruit is not as acidic as other varieties. Dwarf lemons do not have a rich harvest, but they will add comfort to the interior of the apartment.

Video about indoor lemon

Tall lemons will certainly please you with tasty and large fruits, but at the same time they require a lot of time for care, because in addition to the usual activities, they need more frequent pruning, garter and crown formation. If you are interested in such citruses, choose among the following varieties:

Novogruzinsky
Kursk

Creating the optimal mode of lighting, temperature and humidity

How to care for a lemon in an ordinary city apartment, when there is no heating, then windows to the north, then the air is too dry for citrus? You will have to provide the tree with comfortable conditions for growth and development.

The first thing that is important for a lemon is light.

Homemade lemon photo

For the arrangement of pots, it is better to choose south-east windows with moderate lighting, if you are lucky, of course, and you have them. But what to do if all your alternative is the north or south side.

On the northern windows, the lemon will noticeably lack light, so you will have to use fluorescent lamps, extending the daylight hours for the plant up to 12 hours. This is especially true for the winter period.

On the south side of the house, there is always plenty of light, and for a lemon, even in excess. Therefore, at noon it is necessary to shade your citrus, saving it from the destructive effect of direct sunlight, which can leave real burns on the leaves.

Lemon is a native of the Pacific tropics, so it is not surprising that the tree is demanding on thermal conditions.

In spring, during the budding period, the temperature in the room should be 14 - 16 degrees. A high degree contributes to the drying and dropping of buds, and a low degree slows down or even stops this process. During the dormant period, room temperature up to 26 degrees is sufficient. If possible, move your pet to a glazed balcony for the summer. Fresh air will benefit the lemon and the question of how to care for the lemon will not be so acute. However, you should be wary of both sudden changes in temperature and drafts. Like a true southerner, indoor lemon requires scrupulous care.

Pictured is homemade lemon

Moisture. This parameter is very important for a lemon. Therefore, it is necessary to control that the soil in the pot is constantly slightly moist. In summer, it is reasonable to increase the number to 3 waterings per week, and in winter you can reduce it to 1 time, but spray the air around the tree. This is provided that the heaters are far from the plant. It is imperative to water the lemon with non-cold water, which has settled for 5 hours. Water should not be poured directly under the root, but evenly over the entire surface of the soil. The air around the tree should also not be dry - at least 60% humidity. Otherwise, you risk seeing twisted, browning leaves on the lemon.

We fertilize, feed ...

Lemon, like the rest of the plants in your home, needs support, so it needs to be fed periodically.

Young lemon trees do not need additional stimulation; lemons that have reached 3-4 years of age need to be fertilized.

Pictured is a lemon tree

You can purchase specialized mixtures of organic fertilizers, or you can use folk methods:

For abundant fruiting, sometimes ordinary watering is replaced with an infusion of eggshells. But you should not get carried away in this way, so as not to reduce the acidity of the soil with an excess of calcium.
If the plant develops normally, has a healthy appearance and pleases with flowering, fertilization can be abandoned.
During the growing season, it is worth feeding the lemon twice with superphosphate (50 grams of fertilizer per 1 liter).
Ammonium nitrate is highly recommended to improve growth. It is taken in a proportion of 30 grams per liter of water. You can irrigate with this fertilizer monthly.
Periodically water your lemon with a 7-day infusion of horse manure, ten times diluted.
Lemon requires trace elements for normal development: magnesium, phosphorus, nitrogen and others. To make up for their deficiency, you can use the Citrus Mix fertilizer once a quarter. 2-3 grams of this fertilizer is diluted in a liter of water and used instead of the main watering.

Pruning and transplanting indoor lemon

Young lemon trees should be transplanted at least once a year.

Instances older than 3 years - with a frequency of 2-3 years. However, the need for a transplant may arise "unscheduled", for example, due to illness or deterioration of the lemon.

Pictured is a lemon transplant

The soil around the trunk is watered abundantly so that it softens, then the tree is carefully removed. In this case, extreme caution must be exercised so as not to disturb the earthen ball and not to hurt the root system.
If you find spoiled roots, cut them with a sharp knife or blade.
For transplanting, take a container 30-50% larger than the previous one. Too big, as well as too small a pot, contributes to growth retardation. Give preference to a cone-shaped container.
At the bottom of the pot, on the drain hole, place the shard in such a way that its convex side is on top. Then a drainage layer is laid (small pebbles, pebbles), a thin layer of dry manure and earth mixture.
Closer to the center of the pot, a tree is set along with a clod of earth. Slowly begin to fill the container between the lump and the walls of the pot with soil. You can lightly press the laid soil, but it is not necessary to compact it tightly.

Lemon pruning is done in order to form a beautiful crown and improve fruiting.

At a tree height of 20-25 cm from the ground, pinch the stem, allowing the side branches to develop. Please note that the first fruits appear on the branches of the 4th-5th order (row from the bottom) and until they are formed, there is no need to wait for the fruits.

Vertically grown branches should be pruned without pity.

To form the correct shape, the flower pot must be gently rotated relative to the sun every 10 days. Gardeners sometimes improve the crown using copper wire - they fix individual branches with it, giving them the desired direction of growth.

Photo of a lemon pruning

The formation of the crown is also carried out at the time of picking the fruit. A ripe lemon is cut not only with the stalk, but also with a section of the branch itself with 1-2 internodes. Thus, the growth of the branch is stimulated.

Homemade lemon - emergency care

Lemon is very whimsical to the environment and reacts instantly to the slightest fluctuations in temperature or humidity. Measures must be taken to save the plant.

Dried citrus needs watering. By the appearance of the foliage - it becomes yellowish-brown and rare - it is easy to guess the cause of the disease. But do not rush to irrigate the soil abundantly, you can ruin the root system. It is better to pour a little settled water under the root, and spray around the crown. You can wrap the trunk with gauze, folded in several layers and soaked in water. Let the tree stand in such a “dress” for several hours, but do not leave it overnight.

Excess watering will quickly make itself felt with sudden leaf fall. Healthy-looking leaves suddenly fly around en masse. As soon as a symptom is identified, immediately transplant. Carefully remove the tree from the pot, place it along with the earth clod on newspaper or cardboard so that the roots dry out. You need to plant in the soil, slightly moistened and continue to water sparingly.

Pictured is a homemade lemon with fallen leaves

A frozen lemon is very difficult to save. In conditions of a sharp cold snap, the vital activity of the plant may stop. In addition to falling leaves, the trunk darkens when frosting. You can try to "resuscitate". To do this, move the lemon to a warmer room, extend the daylight hours with the help of artificial lights. It makes sense to transplant into another pot. When excavating, be sure to inspect the rhizome, remove dead and rotten parts. Remove dead branches.

Overheating is no less dangerous for citrus. The brown spots that appear on the leaves clearly indicate overheating. Therefore, on hot summer days, remove the container with the plant deep into the room. Make sure that the air from the air conditioner does not get on the crown. Additional watering or cooling is not required.

Important! You can not often change the place and habitat, it takes a long time and poorly adapts to new circumstances. Therefore, it slows down growth and fruiting, and may even show signs of illness. Both drafts and unventilated rooms are equally detrimental to him.

Photo of a lemon tree

Pests and diseases of lemon

Appearing white flies may indicate congestion. Their larvae feed on roots and cause significant damage to the plant. To combat them, insecticides of various types are used - solutions for irrigation and aerosol forms to kill insects that have managed to hatch. Karbofos and Aktelik are quite effective in the fight against these insects.

It is necessary to regularly look at the leaves of the lemon, on which mites and scale insects can settle. Outwardly, ticks look like tiny spiders. They are given out by the color orange or brown, which stands out noticeably against the green background of the back of the leaves. They tighten the damaged areas with a thin cobweb, by which it is easy to recognize pests. Rinse the twigs and leaves on both sides several times at intervals of three to four days under a shower head with strong water pressure. Effective multiple spraying infusions

garlic (1 medium-sized head insist in 0.5 liters of water),
onion (1 onion, grated on a fine grater, poured with a liter of water),
bay leaf (2-3 leaves per 0.5-liter jar of water)
strong brewing of green tea (for 2 cups of boiled water, 2 tablespoons of dry tea leaves).

Attention! It is not recommended to water the soil with these means.

Scale insects look like small brown turtles, motionless and tightly attached to the leaves. It's hard to fight them. Three times at weekly intervals, thoroughly wipe the plant, including leaves on both sides, twigs and trunk, with a mixture of soap and kerosene, taken in a ratio of 1 / 0.5. Cover the ground with cardboard or polyethylene, wrap the trunk at the very bottom with a narrow bandage to prevent liquid from penetrating into the root system.

Often lemons "get sick" from improper care. Browning leaves on an outwardly healthy plant, and even during the flowering period, is one of the ailments. In this case, reconsider the conditions for keeping the flower, it may make sense to transplant it. But in this case, choose a soil other than at present. Maybe it was the acidity of the soil that caused the disease.

Video about indoor lemon pests

As for the human body, disease prevention is important for citrus fruits. To prevent diseases, follow the regimen, transplant, trim damaged areas. Sometimes a sudden disease can be dictated by the depletion of the plant itself. In this case, limit flowering to a few buds, and, no matter how sorry, remove the rest. Each house has its own separate microclimate, not always suitable for lemon. The task of the owner of the plant is to gradually adapt it to the existing conditions.

Sometimes the process of caring for a lemon at home is comparable in terms of trouble to caring for young children - it is difficult at the beginning, but all work is rewarded when the tree begins to grow actively.