How to properly grow lemons at home?

Lemon grown in a pot on a windowsill will saturate the air in the house with phytoncides and essential oils, protecting against infectious diseases and bacteria. And in order for a miniature tree to regularly please not only in appearance, but also in fruits, it must be grafted. You can buy seedlings in specialized stores, but it is more interesting and cheaper to plant a seed in the ground and wait until it turns into a young sprout.

how to properly grow lemons at home

Choosing planting material

Where can I get a lemon seed? Go to the supermarket or the market, choose the largest fruit of a rich yellow hue and get a bone out of it. The main thing is that there are no spots and other damage on the citrus peel. In planting material taken from a dented or rotted sample, an infection or disease can lurk, which will destroy the fragile shoots that hatch from the ground.

The purchased lemon is carefully cut, trying not to touch the shell of the seeds with the blade, and the seeds are removed. The planting material is immediately sorted: large specimens are left, small ones are thrown away, because they rarely sprout.

It is advisable to plant seeds in pots immediately, while they are still wet. But if there are several dry lemon grains left in the cabinet, which are a little more than a month or two, the workpiece is soaked in warm water for several hours, and then buried in the ground.

Lemons are also grown from cuttings, which can be obtained from friends or neighbors. Cut off a young twig from a fruiting tree, put it in water, add heteroauxin and wait a day. The cuttings must have at least 3 buds, and the mother lemon must produce at least 6-10 citruses per year.

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Soil and pots

Some indoor trees grow up to 8–10 m in height, others stop at 3–4 m. Beginners, who are first engaged in lemons, try to plant a seed or cutting immediately in a huge pot or wooden box. The plant needs space, but when there is too much of it, the root system does not develop properly. Therefore, in the first step, a small clay pot or disposable plastic cup will suffice.

how to properly grow lemons at home

You can create a container for growing lemon from a bottle:

  1. Cut off half or a third. Discard the top with the lid, leaving the bottom of the bottle.
  2. Make many small holes in the bottom to ensure air circulation.
  3. Place the homemade pot on a plastic plate or tray so that excess water drains onto the stand and not onto the windowsill.
  4. Fill a bottle with earth and plant a lemon seed in it.

You can also grow citrus seedlings in a flower pot, several pieces at once, but there should be a distance between them. It is recommended to mentally draw an equilateral triangle on the surface of the earth and stick 1-2 grains at each vertex of the geometric figure.

Used for growing lemons and wooden rectangular boxes. Between the seeds, 15–20 cm recede so that the root system has room for development. Regardless of the container chosen, a drainage layer 1–1.5 cm high is laid on the bottom of the pot or box. If it is absent, moisture begins to accumulate, the air circulates poorly and a fungus appears in the soil. The root system of the lemon rots and the plant disappears.

Used as drainage:

  • small stones or pebbles;
  • small pieces of pottery;
  • grated foam;
  • coarse sand;
  • expanded clay or crushed wine cork.

Tip: To provide the plant with a nutrient medium, it is recommended to put a layer of peat, dried cow or horse manure, or a little moss on top of the drainage. The top dressing height is 1.5–2 cm, then the soil goes.

Perfect soil
Lemon is considered an unpretentious plant that can take root in any land. The main thing is to be warm and have enough moisture. Often seeds are planted in a mixture of sod soil, river sand and humus. More experienced gardeners add wood ash to the soil, which will feed weak sprouts.

Suitable for growing citrus trees and soil intended for indoor plants. You can buy soil in flower shops, it is advisable to add a little peat to the soil. If lemon cuttings are planted in pots, then a layer of sand is poured over the ground. This helps the citrus take root faster and take root in a new location.

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Disembarkation process

Make a small depression in the soil, about 1.5–2 cm, slightly moisten the soil and stick a few seeds into it. It is recommended to take 2-3 grains per hole, because some of the planting material may be empty and unviable. If several shoots hatch from the hole at once, the strongest and healthiest specimen is left, the rest are carefully pulled out or cut off to the very root.

how to properly grow lemons at home

How everything happens:

  1. Put seeds in moistened soil, sprinkle them with earth and lightly tamp the soil.
  2. Spray the ground with warm distilled water or melt water using a spray bottle.
  3. Cover the pot with a plastic bag to create a greenhouse effect.
  4. Place the lemons in a room where the temperature does not drop below +18. Before the first sprouts appear, the seeds do not need light, so citrus can be kept in any room.
  5. Periodically open the film and ventilate the soil in the pots, regularly moisten the soil with a spray bottle, but make sure that the soil is not too wet and damp.

They do it a little differently with cuttings:

  1. A twig, which has stood for several days in a special solution, is planted in the ground after the appearance of thin roots.
  2. The plant is buried so deep that only two buds remain on the surface, the rest must be hidden underground.
  3. At first, the stalk needs abundant watering, because the lemon does not have strong roots that can draw moisture from the soil.
  4. The plant feels comfortable at a temperature of + 18-20 degrees.
  5. It will take about 1.5–2 months for a citrus cut to take root in the pot and start growing actively.

Tip: If you overdo it with watering, and the earth cannot dry out in any way, you should not wait for mold to appear. The pot is freed of wet soil and filled with new dry soil, into which the lemon is transplanted.

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Citrus sprout care

Plant pots should be kept away from drafts, which citrus does not tolerate very well. The sprouted sprouts are watered twice a week, regularly exposed to the sun.When full-fledged leaves appear on the seedlings, the film is removed.

how to properly grow lemons at home

Little trick
You can cover the hatched lemon shoots not only with a bag, but also with an ordinary glass jar. Place the container upside down to create a greenhouse effect. Lemons stretch faster in humid conditions that resemble tropical climates. If citruses were planted in a pot in winter or early spring, the plant is placed next to a radiator or heater, and watered 3 times a week.

Water is used rain or thawed, warmed up to room temperature. The liquid for irrigation should settle for several days so that harmful impurities precipitate.

Fertilizer and transplant
Seedlings are fertilized every two weeks. Top dressing such as "Ideal" or "Zdraven" is suitable for citrus fruits. You can buy special fertilizers created for lemons and other exotic plants, but they must include:

  • boron;
  • manganese;
  • zinc.

Citrus leaves are regularly wiped with a damp cloth to remove dust. The seedling pot should be on a well-lit window so that the plant receives a lot of ultraviolet radiation. But so that the sprouts stretch evenly and do not shed the leaves, the lemon should be turned around its axis by 1.5–2 cm every month. The seedlings should not be sharply twisted, otherwise such unexpected changes may result in the “baldness” of the young tree.

In early spring, the grown citrus is transferred to another, more spacious pot. In the first year, the lemon must "move" 4 times. An adult tree can live in its pot for several years, the main thing is to renew the topsoil from time to time.

How do you know if a lemon needs a new home? If its roots reach the drainage layer and try to crawl out of the pot, the tree becomes cramped. Move the lemon from one container to another carefully so as not to damage the base. A little soil is left on the root system so that the plant quickly adapts to new conditions.

Tree formation
So that the seedling does not turn into a shaggy bush of an incomprehensible shape, you need to take care of it. When the central shoot becomes strong and begins to stretch upward, acquiring twigs and additional leaves, it is cut off. A stump with a height of 20 cm should remain. Further, branches of the second order are formed on the central trunk, which are pinched when they reach 18-19 cm. Repeat the procedure again until the shoots of the fourth "generation" appear. It is on them that buds, flowers and fruits are formed.

If you do not cut off excess shoots and branches, the crown of the lemon will become thick, and the tree will spend too much energy on feeding the leaves and unnecessary shoots.

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Growing fruiting citrus

When the stem of the seedling is as thick as a pencil, the lemon should be grafted. You need to ask friends or order in a specialized store a two-year-old cutting cut from a fruiting citrus. You will also need:

how to properly grow lemons at home

  • well sharpened knife;
  • a roll of electrical tape;
  • plastic bag;
  • garden var.

First, cut off the lemon branch extending from the central trunk, leaving a stump 5–10 cm high. It must be carefully split into two equal parts. Sharpen the bottom of the handle in the shape of a blade and insert into the stump. Coat the open "wounds" with garden pitch, pull tightly with electrical tape so that it covers the stump.

The top of the scion is also cut off, leaving 2 to 4 buds. Treat the cut with garden var, cover the pinned lemon with a bag to create a warm, humid microclimate. In such conditions, wounds heal faster, and the stalk takes root better. Remove the cellophane after the first shoots appear. The grafted lemon will begin to bear fruit in 2-3 years.

For the first time, 2 flowers are left, which must be pollinated with a cotton swab. Collect pollen from one dish and transfer to another. In the future, as many fruits can ripen on the lemon as the ovary appears.

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Recommendations

  1. In late autumn, the temperature in the room where the citrus pot stands should be gradually reduced to 15 degrees so that the plant adapts to the harsh conditions. At the same time, daylight hours are increased, otherwise the tree will begin to shed its leaves.
  2. In winter, it is recommended to wrap the lemon tub with insulation or thick blankets to protect the roots from hypothermia.
  3. The soil is loosened every 5–6 irrigations to improve air flow into the soil and prevent soil acidification.
  4. In late spring and summer, it is useful to take a mature citrus tree outside, but hide it from direct sunlight.

Lemon, like other plants, needs regular care and attention. The plant loves warmth, moisture and sun in moderation, sometimes it needs feeding and protection from pests. If you do not forget to water the tree, apply fertilizer and keep it away from drafts, it will live a long time and regularly delight with fruits.

Video: how to grow citrus fruits at home

Hello dear readers!

I would like to present you another article from the cycle "Garden on the windowsill". In this article, we will talk about growing lemons at home.

Homemade lemons - universal healers, the richest suppliers of vitamins. This evergreen tree with fleshy leaves can decorate any interior and will become a source of pride for the owner. The process of growing lemon itself is one of the most exciting activities in floriculture. What is it useful for?

  • A generous, uninterrupted supply of the most valuable vitamins to your table.
  • Unique air ionizer in the house. Leaves lemon at home emit useful volatile phytoncides that refresh the microclimate, fill the air with the healing aroma of essential oils.

All the secrets of the home doctor

In fact, a lemon is a hybrid. A mixture of bitter orange and citron. Its official name is Citrus Limon. With proper care, this tree can provide your household with up to 50 fruits annually (the fruit bearing depends on the plant variety).

Let's make a reservation right away, in order to get a fruiting lemon at home, we need not only to grow it from the seed, but also to graft it. You can use already grafted, young seedlings, but it is expensive and not so interesting. Therefore, we are patient and nurture our fragrant pet on our own. In the house they take root best of all, such varieties of homemade lemons as:

  • Meyer. Short stature. Fruits with a more sour taste, they can be eaten unripe.
  • Pavlovsky. The height of a lemon can reach 2 m. Large fruits with thin skin, very fragrant. Most adapted to home conditions. Reproduces well by cuttings.
  • Novogruzinsky. The fruits have a strong, delicate aroma, practically have no seeds. Can bear fruit all year round. The trunk has many spikes.
  • Genoa. Small in stature, this lemon is very fruitful at home, it bears juicy, tasty fruits.

How to grow a lemon from a seed

Seed selection is one of the main conditions for the emergence of a strong, healthy lemon at home. We select the largest seeds from the lemon fruit in the amount of 10-15 (to guarantee a seedling). You do not need to dry them (this will slow down germination). The bones must be soaked in epine (dissolve 4 drops in 100 ml of water).

  • Epin. Immunomodulator of plants, regulator of their growth. It can be purchased at any hardware store.

After a 24-hour stay in the healing solution, we transplant the bones into the ground. The soil can be purchased ready-made (for citrus fruits). Or do it yourself.

Land for a young lemon

  • sheet land 1 part;
  • turf land 2 parts;
  • humus (compost) 1 part;
  • clean, washed sand 1 part.

Sift the mixture thoroughly to remove unnecessary impurities and lumps. In order for lemon seeds to take on well at home, you need to plant them in small plastic containers (you can take cups).Remember to punch holes in their bottom for drainage.

Place the seeds in the loosened soil about 2 cm and put them in a warm place. No need to water (the roots can rot in a humid environment). It is better to make a "mini-greenhouse" for future young lemons (cover them with glass jars, or wrap the glasses with plastic wrap).

Growing lemon at the first stage should take place in a warm room, where the temperature should not fall below + 18 ° C. After 3 months you will enjoy the first shoots. When the leaves appear, the baby is ready for transplantation.

Adult lemon at home

Pot

It is best to purchase a clay pot. Clay is a moisture regulator. If the soil is excessively moistened, the clay will absorb excess moisture, and if there is a shortage, it will willingly give it to the plant. Drain the bottom of the pot.

  • Drainage layer. A small layer of material that can quickly carry away excess water when watering. It fits at the bottom of the pot. As a drainage layer, you can use small clay shards or pieces of red brick, expanded clay, coarse, coarse sand, pebbles, even crumbs of foam or wine cork.

To make the lemon feel more comfortable at home, cover the drainage with an additional 2 cm layer of moss, peat or dried manure.

Land for an adult plant

  • humus (compost) 1 part;
  • sod land 3 parts;
  • sheet land 1 part;
  • sand 1 part.

Immediately after planting, place the young lemon sprout on the windowsill of the north or west window (there is the least amount of sun). A week later, the tree is ready to start living on a warm south-facing window. Such a small preliminary hardening will help to strengthen the health of the plant, make it stronger.

How to properly grow lemon at home

Operation Season What Lemon Loves Advice Notes (edit)
air temperature spring Summer normal room temperature south window (lemon is very sensitive to climate change) the best temperature for flowering, fruit setting from + 15 ° to + 18 ° С
autumn winter from + 8 ° to + 14 ° С transfer the lemon to a light, insulated balcony, or enclose the windowsill with plexiglass after a dormant period, gradually accustom the lemon to the temperature rise
Light spring Summer bright diffused light in the morning, evening hours - directed sun rays, in the afternoon (from 12 to 16) light partial shade some lemons like the heat (Meyer's lemon), other lemons can do with artificial lighting
autumn winter full lighting at t ° from + 5 ° to + 14 ° С additional lighting is not needed, if t ° is above + 16 ° С additional lighting is required you can supplement the lemon at home with fluorescent lamps (white, blue spectrum)
Watering spring Summer plentiful drink the soil should have time to dry in the upper third of the pot by the next watering watering lemon at home is best with settled tap water
autumn winter rare, moderate watering watering depends on the temperature of the air in the room, make sure that the soil does not dry out completely in winter, provide breathing for the roots - loosen the soil more often so that the water does not stagnate
Air humidity spring Summer humid climate sprinkle lemon at home regularly during the warm season suitable humidity 60-70% (if rainy), if the weather is dry, hot - humidity not less than 50%
autumn winter moderate humidity if the tree is in a residential area, spray it also in winter in the heating season, the humidity will be ideal at 20-30%

Lemon nutrition

At the beginning of summer (its first half), feed it with fertilizers. They will increase the sugar content of future fruits and reduce their bitterness. Fertilize lemon at home only apply to moist soil once a month in winter. From March to October, feed the lemon three times a month. Complex fertilizers will suit him.

  • Lemon is very afraid of chlorine! Even a small part of it can destroy a tree. Make sure that chlorine is not included in the fertilizer.

Lemon transplant

Homemade lemons need to be transplanted once a year. But the transplant cannot be done if the earthen lump is not braided by the rhizomes of the plant. In this case, simply replace the drainage and topsoil of the tree.

Fruiting trees need to change their place of residence every 3 years. Usually this procedure is done in February-March. When replanting lemon at home, be careful with the earthen lump - do not damage it. The plant may not tolerate trauma to its root system.

You can add birch or alder coals to the new soil (a glass on a bucket of earth), it will also be useful to add pine bark (put 1 cm of bark on the bottom and fill it with a liter of water) and vermiculite in the same proportion.

  • Vermiculite. Layered, environmentally friendly mineral, protects plant roots from fungal diseases. Vermiculite should be slightly moistened before use.

If the lemon has long lived in the same pot, then you need to mulch it (add fresh soil or compost on top). Provided, of course, that the soil sank and caked. The top soil layer must also be changed when a whitish salt deposit appears.

We are waiting for the long-awaited fruits

Homemade lemon (grown from seed) usually begins to bear fruit 5-8 years after planting. Do you want to enjoy its first juicy fruits after a year? To do this, we need to inoculate him. There are two most convenient methods of grafting. Prepare in advance:

  • garden knife (you can take a razor);
  • elastic tape (scotch tape, electrical tape);
  • garden var (you can use oil paint, which is smeared with fresh plant cuts).

Budding method (budding)

You can do lemon peeling at home at any time. On the bark of the tree with a knife we ​​make a neat T-shaped incision (length 3, width 1 cm). It will be ideal if you purchase an eyepiece knife for these purposes. With it, you can gently bend the bark in the place where we will place the kidney.

Pre-cut the bud itself from the cutting. Gently take it by the petiole of the leaf and place it in the incision. Return the bent bark to its previous state. Secure the graft area with elastic tape. But leave the kidney visible. And cover this place with pitch (so that no water gets in). After three weeks, the result will appear - the petiole will disappear. Remove the bandage, remove the var. Your lemon will bear fruit in its second year.

Splitting method (grafting)

You can plant lemon at home by cuttings only in April and May. The tree should not be more than 3 years old and have a trunk diameter of about 2 cm. We need a 10 cm shoot of a healthy annual plant taken from its upper section. Remove all leaves from the cutting and wrap it in a damp cloth, wrap it with plastic wrap on top. Keep it this way for 3 days. You can put the stalk in the refrigerator, then it will last longer.

Water the lemon tree itself abundantly 3 days before grafting. At home, it is better to plant the tree in the split in the center. Cut the crown off the lemon 10 cm from the ground and split the stem to a depth of 3 cm. At the base of the cutting, make two oblique cuts and insert it into the split. Wrap this place with tape, secure with a pitch. The grafted lemon should be in high humidity conditions, protect it from direct sunlight.

Indoor lemon, grown with your own hands, will give the owner a lot of pleasant moments, starting with the appearance of the first young sprouts and ending with the first fruits. With its appearance in the house, you will forget what colds, vitamin deficiency and stress are.

Good luck to you and your lemon tree!

See you soon, dear readers!

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Tags: lemon

Do you want to grow a beautiful tree with fruits from a lemon seed? Planting a lemon in the ground and watering regularly is not enough. So that the result does not disappoint you, it is important to know in advance about some of the nuances. In addition, the condition of the lemon seed at the time of planting is also important.This article will give you the information you need to get it done!

What should be the bone

First of all, pay attention to the appearance of the lemon itself: it should be fresh, large and free of dark spots. After slicing the lemon, select the largest seeds. The faster you plant them, the better your chances of success. The dried bone will have to be soaked in water for some time and it is not yet a fact that it will sprout.

It is advisable to plant several lemon seeds at once - at least 10 pieces, because not all will germinate. From the sprouts, you can choose the tallest and strongest, and only then grow a lemon tree from it.

Which land to choose

First of all, the soil should be light. Heavy soil, such as black soil, is undesirable for the young lemon sprout you plan to grow.

How the lemon grows directly depends on the quality of the soil. Many people use ordinary forest soil or land from a nearby forest park to grow lemons and other citrus fruits at home, and some take the sprouts quite well. Of course, you can take risks, but there is little guarantee that you will be able to grow a healthy lemon. The fact is that the forest land is inhabited by parasites that harm the root system, and wild plants are resistant to them, which cannot be said about exotic ones that need special conditions.

Purchased peat-based soil is also a double-edged sword. The main advantage is the absence of parasites and the composition useful for the plant. The store soil contains fertilizers, thanks to which the lemon sprout will feel just fine at first, but after a while (1-1.5 years, depending on the manufacturer), the plant will pull out their remnants. Transplanting to another land is stressful for any plant, so the soil will need to be fertilized periodically. How often to do this and what fertilizer to buy, you will be advised in any flower shop. All fertilizers are different, so there can be no general recommendations.

Lemon pot

A lemon tree can be up to 3 meters in height, but if grown at home, naturally, it will turn out to be more modest in size. Small pots and even plastic bottle bottoms can be used for seedlings, but this is only a temporary option. The bottom of the pot must have holes for excess moisture to escape.

Drainage

Drainage is what the bottom of the pot is covered with before covering it with earth. You can use walnut shells, pottery shards, or small stones. The drainage layer is usually 1-1.5 cm, depending on the size of the container in which you plan to grow the lemon.

Planting homemade lemon

Now that you have everything at your fingertips to grow a fruiting lemon at home, you just have to follow the step-by-step instructions. She is in front of you:

  • Soak lemon seeds overnight;
  • In a flower pot that already has drainage and the required amount of soil, plant a lemon seed about 2 cm deep;
  • Watch the room temperature! The mark on the thermometer should not fall below 18 degrees. If the pot is on a window or windowsill, place the thermometer right next to it.

Lemon care

Lemon is no more difficult to care for than any other houseplant. Here are the basic rules:

  • Fertilizers. For the first 6 months, there is no need to fertilize the soil in which the lemon grows. An oversupply of fertilizer is sometimes worse than a lack of it;
  • Watering. In the homeland of lemons, the climate is arid, so the plant does not need abundant watering. Spray the soil with a spray bottle as it dries. A more accurate watering schedule depends on the humidity level in the room;
  • Humidity. Avoid sudden changes in humidity - this can adversely affect the growth of homemade lemon! During the heating season, you need to be especially careful and, if necessary, artificially increase the humidity level;
  • Sun protection. Sunlight is certainly necessary for a lemon tree, but too much UV light is also not good. If the pot is on a window, do not expose the plant to direct sunlight during the summer. All the same applies to drafts - the plant will suffer greatly from the sharp wind;
  • Appearance. After 8-12 months, depending on the intensity of the seedling's growth, start shaping its crown. Curved, weak branches, with a disturbed direction of growth, are carefully cut.

This video explains in detail how to properly grow fruiting lemons at home.

Video source: PaniGanya

Table of contents:

  1. Lemon - perennial bonsai
  2. How to grow a lemon from a seed
  3. How to grow a lemon at home from a cuttings?
  4. Choosing a place where the lemon tree will grow
  5. How to choose and prepare the soil for lemon
  6. How to properly fertilize the soil with lemon
  7. Features of watering a lemon tree
  8. We take care of lemon correctly
  9. Features of caring for a lemon tree different seasons

Lemon is a delicious, aromatic and healthy fruit. It can be added to tea, salads, sauces, zest used for baking. You can not even mention the miraculous power of lemon: everyone knows that this fruit is a real treasury of vitamins, and the tree itself purifies the air with phytoncides from harmful bacteria. If so, why not learn more about how to grow lemon at home and not buy more fruit on the market?

It turns out that the domestic lemon culture has become widespread not only in Russia, but in the whole world. We will gladly tell you about how to grow a lemon at home and what the plant and its fruits are.

Lemon - perennial bonsai

Lemons are small trees that can grow for over 45 years. They bloom surprisingly beautifully, bear fruit with natural fruits. Of course, home-grown lemons will be slightly smaller than supermarket lemons. But in terms of the content of nutrients and vitamins, homemade lemons are in no way inferior to store-bought lemons, and in some ways even superior.

On one lemon tree, up to 20 small fruits can grow, but only on condition of regular proper care of the plant. Lemon fruit should be cut from the tree as soon as it ripens using a knife or pruner. Too long ripening of lemons will lead to a deterioration in the growth of young growth, as well as to a deterioration in the quality of the fruit.

How to grow a lemon from a seed

In fact, it is not necessary to browse an unlimited number of documents on the Internet on the topic of how to grow a lemon at home from a seed. The photo will really be of invaluable help. But everything can work out without additional materials if you follow the recommendations below for those who really set out to grow a lemon tree at home.

The pits for the tree will need to be taken from ripe lemon purchased from the market. To do this, the lemon will need to be carefully cut in half. Place the bones in a pot of earth no deeper than 2-3 centimeters. When the job is done, they will need to be watered abundantly, while it is important to close the pot of earth itself with polyethylene, periodically letting in air there. After about a month, the first green shoots will appear. They will need to be divided and planted in different pots.

How to grow a lemon at home from a cuttings?

Lemon can be grown from a cuttings at home only if you have patience and make some effort. Growing the plant itself is not the most difficult thing. The main thing is to make it bear fruit, and this can cause problems. From the pits of an ordinary lemon, with which we drink tea, it will turn out to grow the most ordinary tree of traditional sizes. Naturally, you won't be able to keep such a tree at home.And in the garden, the tree will bear fruit only after grafting, and this is one of the most difficult stages in care.

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For grafting, you will need to take a bud or stalk from an already fruiting lemon tree. On the trunk of the "new" tree, you will need to make a T-shaped incision, and then insert a bud or stalk there. The incision is made on the trunk, the diameter of which has already reached the diameter of the pencil at the level of 10 centimeters from the pot.

Choosing a place where the lemon tree will grow

Before delving into the intricacies of planting a lemon tree and caring for a plant, you should decide on the place in the room where it will grow.

If the lemon will stand on the windowsill, then you should provide for the location of the plant at a safe distance from the battery. You can choose any window in the apartment, including the one facing the north side. It should only be borne in mind that in winter, in order to avoid hypothermia of the plant's root system, it would be better to rearrange it from the northern window to a warmer place. If there is nowhere to remove the lemon, then in winter you can wrap the skating rink with a cloth with thermal insulating properties, and put foam plastic under the bottom.

Lemon does not tolerate drafts, this fact should also be taken into account when choosing a place for a tree. It is best to place the plant in a light, dry and moderately warm room. The percentage of humidity should not be less than 40 percent, so in winter you can put a container with water near the tree.

How to choose and prepare the soil for lemon

To obtain a soil suitable for planting a plant, it will be necessary to mix garden soil with ash, humus, sand, preferably river sand. The proportion looks like this:

  • 1 glass of sand;
  • 2 glasses of earth;
  • 1 tbsp. a spoonful of ash;
  • 3 tbsp. spoons of humus.

All this will need to be mixed until a single mass is formed, which is diluted with water. The mixture should be added to the container where the lemon will grow. It is important that no air voids remain near the root system.

After the plant grown in the container grows up a little (after about 6 months) it will need to be transplanted into the same soil composition, but into a container with a large diameter. Buying ready-made soil in specialized stores, based on peat, is not recommended due to an alkaline reaction, since it is better to grow lemon at home in soil with a neutral reaction.

How to properly fertilize the soil with lemon

In order for a dwarf tree to grow well and bear fruit, it will need to be abundantly fed with fertilizers. You can use the same list of dressings that are recommended for indoor plants, the same "Rainbow", for example, which is available in any of the hardware stores.

To grow a lemon tree at home as quickly as possible, you should fertilize it, but in moderation. An excess of fertilizer can lead to the death of the plant. Most of all, the tree needs fertilization in the spring, during the period when it grows and gains strength, as well as during the ripening period.

In winter, tree feeding is minimized. It is better to add fertilizers to the water for irrigation, as well as use nitrogen-containing fertilizers, sawdust, ash, which will help the tree gain strength and grow stronger. It is imperative to use zinc and copper as fertilizer for the lemon tree.

Features of watering a lemon tree

Watering a lemon tree grown at home should be water settled for 24 hours in an open container with precipitated chlorine. If possible, it is better to use water from a well or well, preheated to room temperature. It is not recommended to use rainwater for irrigation, as it contains a large number of harmful impurities.

You can water the lemon every time the top layer of the soil dries out so much that it will crumble when checked in your hands.You need to water so that the roots remain in the ground and are not exposed. It is best to do this gently along the edge of the pot until water appears in the pan.

We take care of lemon correctly

how to properly grow lemons at homeLemon branches of the fourth-fifth order begin to bear fruit. To do this, you need to prune the tree regularly. Every time the plant reaches 20 centimeters, it will be necessary to cut off the top of the head without touching its buds, it is from them that the first-order shoots will go. This procedure will need to be repeated with subsequent shoots until the shoots of the fourth and fifth order appear. They are the ones who will bear fruit.

Thus, it will take at least 2 or 3 years for a tree to bear fruit. Remember that for one lemon to ripen, there must be at least ten leaves on the tree, so you need to take care of their safety.

Features of caring for a lemon tree different seasons

  • As soon as spring comes and the air temperature rises to 9 degrees Celsius, it will be possible to take the tree outside. At first, it is better to arrange it in a place where the sun does not fall by digging the plant into the soil along with the pot until the level of the soil in the pot and in the garden completely coincides.
  • The soil in the pot with the plant will need to be covered with dry leaves in a layer of a few centimeters in case of heat to prevent it from drying out. You will need to water the lemon tree every day, except on days when it rains. This must be done carefully in order to prevent acidification of the soil and stop the growth of the tree.
  • In cases where it was decided not to bury the tub in the ground, it will be necessary to carefully monitor the moisture after watering in the pan. The lack of water in the pan will indicate that the pot is too large or the drainage is not working. If the reason is soil acidification, then the tree will need to be transplanted and the soil replaced, loosening it every 5 or 6 waterings.
  • In the fall, the lemon tree should be moved to a warm and dry place before the onset of frost. At home, plants are good, but sorely lacking the sun. This should be taken into account when choosing a place for a tree. It helps to preserve the plant in winter by spraying it daily with settled water at room temperature.
  • Once a month, the ground in a container with a plant will need to be covered with polyethylene to treat the crown with soapy foam. This is necessary in order to avoid the appearance of parasites. When processing the lemon tree, tie a bandage to its trunk, the end of which hang below the level of the sides of the pot so that the solution flows down it and does not clog the soil.

Growing a fruiting lemon tree at home is not easy, so often experts, in order to simplify the task a little, recommend purchasing a ready-made lemon tree, completely ready to bear fruit. Everyone has the right to choose for himself - to grow a tree from a stone or buy a ready-made one, caring for it while waiting for the fruit.

To abandon the process of growing and caring for a lemon tree means depriving yourself of the pleasure of enjoying your own fragrant and healthy lemons grown with your own hands. And difficulties are fixable, especially when there is somewhere to look for advice on how to grow lemon at home with videos, photos and detailed instructions and recommendations from specialists in this matter.

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