Lemon is a citrus plant native to the tropics.Therefore, he will not grow in the garden. But many flower growers manage to regale the fruits grown in the apartment. How to grow a lemon from a bone at home? What can I do to make the plant bear fruit?
Description of the lemon
Lemon refers to evergreen plants.Its young shoots have a purple color, over the years they become brown. Leaves are thick, leathery, oval. Each of them lives about 3 years. On their surface are glands with essential oils.
The adult plant forms flower buds.They develop slowly, each dissolving for 5 weeks. After the bud reveals itself, it blooms 7 ... 9 weeks. Flowers have a strong pleasant smell.
Gradually, the fetus forms on the spot of the flower.First it is green, then gradually turns yellow. The fruits are covered with thick fragrant skin. Inside there is a yellow flesh, sour for taste. The fruit is divided into several lobules. Inside are the seeds. The process of maturation lasts 9 months and longer. At this time, the plant needs to create certain conditions. Lemon can be bought or grown on its own.
Growing lemon tree
How to grow a lemon from a bone at home? You can use for this seed obtained from the purchased fruit. It is necessary only that it is ripe, the seeds are large and firm.
After a while, plant better to plant. After all, lemons grown from seeds, enter into fruiting not earlier than in 6 years, and vaccinated - the next year after vaccination.
Cuttings 10 cm long andthickness of 4 mm. They should be at least 2 leaves and 3 kidneys. They are working on the cutting with Kornevin. A couple of days are kept in water, then planted in pots. The earth for them consists of soil for flowers, sand and humus. Every day, the seedlings are sprayed. Do not pour the soil. At a temperature of up to 25 degrees, the roots will appear in a month and a half.
Planted in a pot a young lemon. Transplantation and care at home of plants derived from the cuttings are the same as those grown from seeds.
Soil lemon needs loose, it must pass air and moisture well. Take a primer for flowers from the store and peat.
Sowing
Prepare dishes with large drainage holes, to the bottom lay drainage. Cover the layer of prepared soil mixture. Sow the seeds to a depth of 2 cm. They germinate in a couple of weeks.
Care of seedlings
Soil should be regularly watered with warm, settled water. When the seedlings have a pair of leaves, they are planted in a separate bowl. You can immediately plant one or two seeds in the pot.
The transplanted plants are covered with cans. This will help to create the optimum temperature regime and moisture level. Every day they are removed for half an hour, so that they adapt and are ventilated.
Light mode
Lemon refers to plants of short lightday. Therefore, it can grow and develop in conditions of insufficient illumination. Such conditions accelerate the fruiting of the lemon. If the light day is increased, this can lead to a delay in the formation of fruits.
But in winter, if the lemon develops, it should be illuminated up to 6 hours with a special lamp.
Place for the lemon
The lemon grows well on the southern and eastern windows. If there is no natural shading, it should be organized in the afternoon.
To the crown of the tree is not inclined in one direction, it is regularly turned. Do this once a decade. And it needs to be rotated by 10 degrees.
Temperature
The room temperature depends on the phase of developmentplants. In the period when it does not bloom, 17 degrees is enough. The optimum temperature for the formation and development of lemon buds is 14 ... 18 degrees. If it rises higher, the flowers and already formed ovaries fall. When the fruits grow and begin to ripen, the temperature is raised to 22 degrees.
In summer, lemon can be grown on the street or on the balcony, but at this time there should be no temperature changes. Therefore, it is advisable to wrap a pot with a plant for the night.
In winter, at rest, the lemon is installed indoors at a temperature of about 13 degrees. There should not be a radiator near.
Watering
During fruiting (May-September) lemonwatered every day with filtered or distilled water at room temperature. Then increase the intervals between irrigation, bringing their number to two per week. Water plentifully, but only when the earth dries. If in the autumn or winter to re-moisten it, then the roots can rot. To avoid this, you need to completely change the ground.
Lemon leaves need additional moisture. This is especially important in winter if the room is heated. Spray the leaves with warm boiled water.
Lemon that overwinter in a cool room is not sprayed. Excessive moisture can lead to the development of fungal diseases.
Lemon transplant in a new pot
After the seedlings grow to 15 cm, theirtransplanted into a new pot, the diameter of which will be 5 cm more from the previous one. In such dishes, the roots will quickly grow, filling the pot space. If a home-made lemon is transplanted immediately into a large pot, the soil in it will sour from moisture.
It is better to plant the seeds immediately in separate pots. This will reduce the number of transplants, improve the condition of the lemon. This will keep the root system intact.
Lemon transplant in a new pot is carried outmethod of transshipment. A new pot should also have good drainage and holes for drainage. Its diameter should be 2-3 cm more than the previous one. The soil can be taken the same as when sowing seeds. You can take the mixture from the store or a mixture of garden soil with humus. Lemon is transplanted into a new pot so that the root collar remains at ground level.
Application of fertilizers
A good harvest of lemons cannot be obtained withoutconstant feedings. The easiest way to make a complex fertilizer for indoor lemons. It responds well to the introduction of ash diluted with water. To do this, they are crushed, kept in water for 2 days. You can use the infusion of manure, diluting it in the ratio of 1:10.
For young plants, just one additional feeding in one and a half months.
In spring and summer, the adult plant is fed 2 times per month. In the autumn, a lemon located in a warm room is watered once a month and a half. The plants in a cool room do not need additional feeding.
Do not apply fertilizer to dry ground. Therefore, before carrying out feeding, water the plant with clean water.
With the help of fertilizers, you can accelerate the fruiting. To do this, reduce the amount of nitrogen fertilizers, increase the amount of phosphate.
Trimming indoor lemons
A lemon crown needs to be shaped regularly.Do this in two ways, depending on the destination of the plant. If it is grown only as an ornamental, cut so as to get a small bush.
For active fruiting, you need to get a tree with a sufficient number of shoots and leaves. Usually fruits are formed on the branches of the fourth order. They need to form as quickly as possible.
Основной способ формирование – прищипывание young shoots. The first time it is done when the sapling reaches 20 cm. Then they pinch at a distance of 15 cm from the previous one, making sure that there are at least 4 buds in this area. Of them subsequently receive the main shoots.
The branches of each subsequent order should be shorter by 5 cm from the previous ones. This will allow to form a compact crown.
In the future, cut down the shoots broken and growing inside.
Lemon Diseases and Pests
For many lovers, the leaves on a lemon turn yellow and fall off. This may be caused by:
- dry air;
- malnutrition;
- high temperature in the room in winter;
- when infected with a spider mite (you need to fight it with "Fitoverm", "Akarin").
Often, beginning gardeners complain that indoorlemon shed the leaves. What to do in this case? You need to see which of the care points is not performed, and change the mode. Perhaps this is a consequence of the transplant. If it is not done correctly, the root system may be damaged, causing the leaves to fall. Therefore, the transfer of lemon into a new pot in the first years of life is carried out once every 2-3 years.
Leaves and stems, especially young ones, candamage aphids, scale insects, whiteflies, mealybugs. To get rid of them without the use of chemicals, undesirable in the apartment, use infusion of garlic. To cook it, chop the garlic, insist in water for 5 days. Filter out, pour 6 g of infusion into 1 liter of water, spray the plant. But if the pests have spread over a large area, such a tool is unlikely to help.
