How to grow lemon seeds at home?

Lemon - a tree of the genus Citrus, everyone knows its fruit. The homeland of this plant is China, India and the Pacific tropical islands.

Lemon was first introduced by the Arabs to the Middle East, North Africa, Spain and Italy.

Is it possible to grow a lemon from a seed at home?

People know about the benefits of lemon firsthand. Lemon is an excellent remedy for many ailments.... It strengthens the immune system, normalizes hormones, improves vision, and stimulates the digestive tract.

It is used for colds, as it contains a huge amount of vitamin C and many people just like the sour, aromatic taste.

It is possible to grow lemon at home. If you cut a lemon, you can see a lot of seeds. It is quite possible to grow a full-fledged lemon tree from these seeds.

To a man who decided to plant a lemon at home, it is important to consider the following rules:

• the fruit should be yellow, the most ripe, since if the lemon is green, then due to the fact that it is not ripe, the germs of sprouts in the seeds of such a lemon may not sprout;
• for planting, it is important to choose several large seeds - from 10 to 15 pieces, so that later you can choose a beautiful and actively growing seedling;
• it is important to choose a suitable variety that will grow well at home.

For cultivation, you must choose the right variety of lemon, the fruit must be ripe, the seeds are large

Suitable variety for a house or apartment: Pavlovsky, Meyer and others

There are many varieties. Below are some of them that are suitable for growing in a house or apartment:

1. Pavlovsky - differs from other varieties in its large fruits, which can reach 500 grams, has a sweetish taste, and the tree of this variety is quite large - more than 2 meters. This variety is distinguished by fragrant leaves. The scent is so sharp and strong that the whole house will be filled with it.
2. Meyer - a hybrid of lemon with grapefruit, has a sweet and sour taste, a small tree with a rich harvest, the size of one lemon can reach 150 grams, blooms in bunches, there is a seasonal dormant period.
3. Ponderosa - a hybrid of lemon with grapefruit, has a bitter taste, as well as the presence of a large number of seeds. Pleases that it constantly blooms. According to the people who grow this type of lemon, it is a very grateful plant and quite unpretentious.
4. Genoa - an average tree, gives a large yield already for 4-5 years of life. Fruits with delicate pulp, have a sour, aromatic taste. You can also eat the rind. This variety is considered not whimsical. For 2-3 years, the seedling is already blooming.
5. Anniversary - a medium-sized tree, considered a variety that gives a rich harvest, the fruit is distinguished by its thick skin. Very suitable for growing in a house or apartment.

After the stage of choosing a variety has been passed, it is necessary to proceed to the very planting of the seeds in the pot.

Varieties that are suitable for growing in a house or apartment: Pavlovsky, Meyer, Genoa, Yubileiny, Ponderoza

How to plant plant seeds: highlights

Some active citrus growers with a wealth of experience it is advised to free the bone from the upper husk, which in their opinion allows you to get seedlings in the shortest possible time.

This must be done very carefully, since any damage to the seed can lead to the fact that the germination of the seed will never occur.

But you can plant bones without the above procedure.

Lemon seeds must be wet before planting... It is advisable to soak them for a day in water or in a solution of sodium humate. You can buy this growth stimulant at any botanical store.

But even if the seeds were planted without soaking, and as soon as they were removed from the lemon, they will most likely sprout.

Next, you need to find a suitable small, shallow pot or glass, pour earth into it. There should be holes in the bottom of the pots... They are important so that excess moisture, due to which the roots of the sprouts may die, flows down.

Make holes in the bottom of the pot, fill with small pebbles, soil

Put 1.5-2 cm of expanded clay, small pebbles or very coarse sand on the bottom of the pot. Planting soil can be purchased at the store, but you can prepare yourself. To do this, you need to mix garden soil, sand, humus and a little charcoal.

It is better to plant bones to a depth of no more than 1.5-2 cm... It is important to moisten the soil before planting. It should not be dry, but excessive moisture is also undesirable.

The pot can be covered with plastic wrap. The air temperature in the room where the seed pot is located should be above + 18 ℃.

Spray the soil once every 2-3 days... If the ground has become completely dry, then you can water it a little. After the first shoots appear, the film must be removed.

It is better to rearrange the pot with sprouts in a bright place and water with settled or rain water, at room temperature.

The first shoots will sprout no earlier than 3-4 weeks after planting.

According to experienced citrus growers, the best time to plant lemon is late winter, early spring... Since the increasing daylight hours will only benefit the young sprouts that have appeared.

Will the indoor lemon tree bear fruit?

Many people think that growing a lemon from a seed is a thankless job. Since it will take 5, 7, or even all 15 years to wait for fruits from such a lemon, and its fruits will be small in size.

For, in order not to wait for decades when the lemon tree begins to bear fruit, it must be grafted... This can be done in two ways during the warm season (summer or warm spring):

1. Into the cleft - the preferred type of grafting. It is necessary to take a stalk of a cultivated fruiting lemon. A branch is cut on the seedling, and the remaining stem of the seedling is split. A "wedge" is sharpened on the cutting of a fruiting lemon, which is then introduced into the split in the stem. Next, you need to tie the vaccine with electrical tape. 2-4 buds are left on the cutting of a fruiting lemon, everything else is cut off. The inoculation is covered with a plastic bag. When the vaccine has healed, the bag can be removed.

Lemon grafting - by budding or splitting - is necessary for early fruiting

1. Oculated - the shoots are cut off from the seedling, a "stump" 10 cm high remains from the tree. Next, they take a sprig of cultivated fruit-bearing lemon. Under each leaf of the twig is the so-called "dormant bud". A slice must be made in front of this kidney. Next, cut off the leaf plate, but leave its petiole. Cut the bark on the "stump" of the seedling and insert the petiole with the cut down. Tie the vaccination site with electrical tape. The stalk of the cut leaf plate will serve as an indicator.If the petiole falls off after 2-3 days, then we can assume that the vaccination was successful, but if it dries up, then the vaccination has failed and must be repeated.

I wonder what grown lemon from seed adapts to home conditions faster and better, it is less picky than grafted and grafted seedlings.

Why lemon grown from seed does not bear fruit:

Optimal growing conditions, care after planting

It is advisable to be very attentive to a lemon that has risen in a pot. When on lemon seedlings 3-4 leaves will appear, they are transplanted into separate pots.

It is recommended to replant young lemon trees up to 2 times a year. It is advisable to do this very carefully so as not to damage the root system.

Typically, lemon can react to both extreme heat and sunlight, as well as cold and strong winds. Therefore, when changing the location of the lemon pot, it is advisable to keep this in mind.

And the best solution would be not to change the place of "residence" of the lemon. The best place for a lemon would be the south or southwest side of the apartment. In terms of temperature, lemon can tolerate temperatures from + 14 ℃ to + 27 ℃.

The best place for a lemon would be the south or southwest side of the apartment.

Lemon create conditions without sudden temperature jumpssince they can kill him. It is desirable to maintain a moderate air humidity of 60-70%.

Water the plant best with rainwater at room temperature. In hot summer, it is better to do this 2 times a day. And on cloudy and cold days, it is important to add lighting to lemon with LED or fluorescent lamps.

Feed in summer a seedling can be a solution of humus and liquid mineral fertilizers.

Lemons, like all houseplants susceptible to disease and pest attacks... Therefore, they need careful care, and it is also recommended to carefully examine the plant every day in order to detect the appearance of this or that pest as early as possible and take the necessary measures in time.

Courting and Protecting: The Main Enemies of Citrus

Lemon gets sick if you do not follow the rules of care. If the tree is watered a little, it will dry out. If the soil in the pot is oversaturated with moisture, then yellow leaves will appear on the lemon, and this will be a sign that the roots of the tree are beginning to rot.

Also the appearance of yellow spots on the foliage, after which the leaves dry and fall off, indicate that the wood lacks iron.

Dry leaf ends say that the tree needs phosphorus. A lack of potassium and manganese leads to wrinkling of the leaves and falling off of the ovary.

Knowing how to grow a tree is not enough; it is important to be able to care for it. If a pest is noticed on the plant, it is necessary to figure out what kind of parasite it is and urgently take measures to combat it.

Below are some common parasites that can attack a home-grown lemon:

1. Mealybugs, popularly known as "hairy lice" - on a tree they can be recognized by a white bloom. They prefer dry conditions, they are afraid of moisture. A good prevention of this parasite is to regularly rinse all the lemon leaves.
2. Shield - small shiny droplets appear on the leaves, sticky to the touch. Leaves dry and fall off. Soapy or garlic water is used against this pest. Soapy water is prepared as follows: 2 tablespoons of liquid soap are dissolved in 1 liter of water. The resulting mixture is treated with the affected tree. An hour after the procedure, they are washed under the shower. It is desirable to repeat the treatment after 2 days.
3. Spider mite - small, light dots on the sheet plate. The leaves are curling up. A cobweb is visualized on their back. If this parasite is found on the lemon, it is necessary to treat the tree with sulfur. For prevention purposes, the lemon is washed under running water, paying more attention to the underside of the leaf plates of the tree.Spraying with a solution of water and laundry soap helps to fight the mite well.

Common parasites that can attack home-grown lemon: mealybugs, scale insects, spider mites

Prevention measures

There are several simple preventive measures that will prevent the attack of parasites or damage to the tree by diseases:

• give a lemon tree a hot shower... The plant will not suffer from this, and unnoticed parasites will be neutralized and washed away;
• spray the leaves (especially from the bottom side);
• wipe the lemon leaves once a week with soapy water (it is better to use laundry soap).

"Fitosporin" is considered a good remedy for many diseases and pests. It is non-toxic and odorless. It is also good for prevention.

The lemon tree is not geranium, it needs proper care and it is very difficult for a beginner to figure out what, how and when to do it.

With the effort and study of the rules for caring for lemon, you can get a pleasant result. Home-grown lemon will delight not only with its aroma, but also with delicious fruits.

Growing lemon from seed:

Many types of citrus fruits grow well at home. But how to grow a lemon from a seed, which would not only decorate the room with leathery dark green foliage, but also bear fruit?

It is the lack of ovaries on grown plants that often disappoints home citrus growers. Indeed, in the best case, from the moment of planting to the flowering of an indoor lemon, it takes from 4 to 7 years. And yet, getting a lemon from a seed is an exciting and not a futile exercise. A strong tree can be used as a rootstock by grafting a stalk of a cultivated specimen on it, or push it to fruiting with competent care and crown shaping.

Preparing seeds for growing lemon

If you are going to grow a lemon from a seed at home, you need to be patient and have some knowledge.

The main mistake of indoor plant lovers who have failed in growing lemon or other citrus fruits is that they used seeds that had been extracted from the fruit long ago and that had time to dry out for sowing.

It is much more correct to remove the seeds from ripe fresh lemons, rinse them with warm water and embed them in the substrate immediately, without drying. This will multiply the number of seedlings.

Experienced citrus growers recommend another way to increase the speed and quality of germination. To do this, wet lemon seeds intended for growing at home are gently freed from the hard surface shell with a sharp knife, which is the main obstacle to the sprout hidden in the seed.

Following this advice, you need to be extremely careful and careful. Wrong movement threatens to damage the cotyledons or a tender embryo, and then the lemon will definitely not appear from the seed.

If lemon seeds remain in the shell, it is useful to immerse them in a growth stimulant solution for several hours, preventing the surface of the seeds from drying out between processing and planting.

Growing lemon from seed at home

Before planting lemon seeds, choose shallow wide containers with mandatory drainage holes. A 2-centimeter layer of fine expanded clay or vermiculite is poured onto the bottom of a pot or other container so that all excess moisture, dangerous for delicate roots, does not linger and leave the ground in time.

You can make your own soil for growing lemon from a seed at home by mixing garden soil, humus and sand. It is useful to add a little crushed charcoal to such a substrate, which will reduce the risk of developing bacterial infections. If you don't have the right ingredients on hand, a ready-made citrus substrate, which is easy to buy at a specialty store, will do.

All preparatory work has been done. Now it's time to start sowing.How to grow a lemon from a seed at home?

The best sowing time is at the end of winter. Then the sprouted sprouts will receive good support in the form of increasing daylight hours.

The seeds are buried in moist soil to a depth of about two centimeters. Several seeds can be planted in one container at once. Since the seedlings are waiting for the first transplant, when 3-4 true leaves appear on them, the plants will not interfere with each other.

The containers are determined in a greenhouse or placed in a warm place, previously covered with a bag or film. Do not forget that all citrus fruits are thermophilic, therefore, it is possible to grow a lemon from a seed at home only if a certain temperature regime is observed.

Seedlings will not start growing if the air and soil in the room are colder than +18 ° C. It is optimal if seed germination and subsequent growth takes place at a temperature of 22 to 25 ° C, with constantly high humidity, the absence of drafts and other negative factors. Compliance with simple rules on how to grow a lemon from a seed allows you to get friendly strong shoots.

On average, from sowing to the moment the shoots appear, it takes from a week to a month. During this time, the soil in the pot can be carefully sprayed, but it should be watered only when there are obvious signs of drying out.

Lemon Seedling Care

With the appearance of green shoots above the soil surface, they gradually begin to accustom them to room conditions, airing and opening the greenhouse. When 3-4 leaves appear from the seed on a young lemon, the film is removed altogether, and the seedlings are sorted and transferred into their own small pots.

Since the seeds of hybrid fruits do not always carry parental characteristics, citrus growers seeking to get a lemon from the seed at home risk growing wild.

To understand how soon the tree will begin to bear fruit, and what quality the ripe fruits will be, it is already possible by external signs. First of all, cultivated citrus trees are distinguished by a small number of thorns on the shoots.

Further care in the first year of seedlings consists in timely watering, transplanting and pinching for the initial formation of the crown of the future tree. In addition, plants:

• in the summer months, after 10-14 days, they are fed by alternating humus solution and liquid mineral fertilizers;
• on cloudy days and in the cold season, they are additionally illuminated using fluorescent or LED phytolamps.

The duration of illumination largely affects the flowering and fruiting of plants from the tropical zone. Therefore, the purchase of such lamps should be attended to before growing a lemon from a seed.

Transplantation for young lemons is carried out annually, and the plant should be transferred very carefully, without disturbing the root system. If the roots have not yet mastered the entire earthen ball, you can do with replacing the surface layer.

Interested in how to grow a lemon from a seed, many enthusiasts look forward to the shoots first, and then the first flowers. But in order not to weaken the plant, the lemon should not be allowed to bear fruit until it is 2-3 years old. The seed lemon ripens for flowering when there is only one flower per 15 leaves of its crown.

If the earlier formation of the ovary weakens the tree, then pinching at the age of about a year only contributes to the formation of the crown and will lay the foundation for future good yields. Therefore, in a very young plant, it is necessary to remove all shoots directed deep into the crown, pinch the tops of excessively long shoots, and also sometimes turn the pot with a tree so that it illuminates and develops as evenly as possible.

We grow a lemon from a stone - video

Part 1. Planting seeds

Part 2. The appearance of the first shoots

Part 3. Transplanting seedlings

Everyone sometimes wants to show off a yellow fruit grown at home.But how to grow a lemon from a seed, so that it also gives fruit, and not only grows wood? It is very easy if you follow the correct farming techniques.

How to properly grow lemon from seed

In general, propagation of lemons by cuttings is used much more often. However, they can also be grown from seeds. Healthy seedlings are easy to obtain by following a few simple citrus farming practices.

Lemons, like all citrus fruits, quickly lose their germination. We take seeds from well-ripened fruits. We extract seeds from them. Immediately after that, we sow them in a pre-prepared planting substrate. With prolonged storage, the outer shell of the seed begins to dry out and become covered with cracks. That is why germination very quickly decreases to almost zero. Therefore, we sow seeds the faster, the better, while they are still moist from the pulp of the fruit.

Video about growing lemon from seed

The soil is prepared from two parts of peat, one part of leafy soil and one part of sand. Mixes thoroughly, loosens, moderately moisturizes. Future shoots grow from one end of the seed, and roots from the other. It is important not to confuse them with the sides, so the seed sits horizontally in the soil. We lay them on the ground, fill them with one and a half centimeters of soil, moisten, cover them so that the soil does not dry out.

For the next four to five weeks, we monitor the crops, do not allow both drying out and waterlogging. In a little more than a month, the seeds will begin to hatch. Small lemon sprouts come to the surface. Water them carefully, trying not to wash out the topsoil. After the appearance of the fifth or sixth leaf, we dive the seedlings. Until this time, it is undesirable to touch the root system of the sprouts.

The reason is that citrus fruits have one powerful deep root. While a small sprout, the root is also small, weak. Disturbing it before 5-6 leaves are formed - you can lose our lemon seedling.

Pictured is a small lemon

During transplantation, we cut off the root, stimulating its branching. Sometimes it is convenient to do this even before transplanting, for this, seedlings growing in a box are pruned to a vertical root without removing them from the ground. This operation is done as follows: we dip a horizontally sharp knife 10 centimeters into the soil and hold it under the sprouts. After that, to disinfect the damaged roots, we spill the plantings with a weak solution of potassium permanganate, that is, potassium permanganate. Such an operation less injures the delicate root system of lemon trees, while stimulating its branching, the formation of lateral roots.

Preparing the soil for planting lemons

So, a young lemon grown from seeds is ready for planting. We dive the seedling immediately to a permanent place. For the next year or two, it will grow in the pot that we define for it. Answering the question of how to plant a lemon from a seed, we note that, first of all, a very high-quality, properly prepared substrate is needed.

In the photo, the soil for planting lemon

Here is the recommended soil composition for lemon:

• one or two parts of birch or linden leaf humus;
• one part of manure humus;
• one part of meadow land, preferably from meadows where clover or alfalfa grows, such land is enriched with nitrogen;
• one part of calcined gray (not yellow) river sand;
• half of the wood ash, but not conifers.

Lemon is very sensitive to the presence of petroleum products in the soil. You can check your soil for cleanliness from them as follows: we dilute a handful of earth in a bucket of water. If no oily rainbow bloom appears on the surface, then the substrate is clean.

In addition, to get rid of various soil parasites that may be in your substrate, it is worth disinfecting the soil. Moreover, this operation will be useful regardless of whether you took land from the surrounding meadows and forests, or purchased soil mixtures in a store.It's never harmful to play it safe.

The soil is poured into an enameled steel bucket, filled with a liter of water, put on fire. Close with a lid and wait 30-40 minutes until the mixture is well steamed. After this operation, let the soil cool and dry.

In the photo, planting a lemon

You can now fertilize the soil before planting lemon seedlings. It is best to use organic complexes containing humic acids or effective microorganisms. This will bring your sterilized soil into a natural ecological balance. Next, pour a solution of complex micronutrient fertilizers containing iron, manganese, molybdenum, selenium, zinc. We fertilize with nitrogen, potash, phosphorus fertilizers.

Later, when transplanting mature trees, the composition of the substrate is slightly modified. If the above mixture, due to its lightness, is recommended for young plants, then for older plants, the addition of loam, lake silt, peat, and an increase in the proportion of sand is characteristic.

For lemons aged 3-4 years, the following composition is recommended

• 2 tsp leaf humus;
• 4 hours of manure humus;
• 2 hours of high-moor peat;
• 1 hour river sand.

For trees from 4 to 8 years old, the following composition is suitable

• 4 parts of meadow chernozem;
• 2 hours of leaf humus;
• 2 hours of lake or river silt;
• 1 hour river sand.

Photo of lemon

For aged lemons, over ten years old, the optimal composition of the soil is as follows

• 6 parts of meadow chernozem;
• 2 hours of leaf humus;
• 2 hours of high-moor peat;
• 4 hours of lake silt;
• 1 tsp sand;
• 0.5 hours of hardwood ash.

Planting and caring for a lemon tree

So, we have grown a seedling from a seed. Cut the vertical root and now it is ready to be planted in the main place. We cover the bottom of the pot with a layer of expanded clay 1.5-3 centimeters. Pour a layer of substrate in the form of a mound on top. Powder the lemon roots with ash, spread over the mound. Then we begin to cover it evenly with earth. Periodically tamp the soil lightly with a small stick, it is best to use a sushi stick for this purpose. This must be done to prevent the formation of air voids at the roots of the tree. We fall asleep to the level of the root collar, that is, to the place where the roots go into the trunk.

Deepen the root collar - you will get rotting of the lower part of the bark, it will begin to burst, release resin, most likely it will get sick with gommosis - a fungal disease of citrus fruits. A young seedling may even die from this.

It is very important! The root collar must not be buried.

Next, follow the growth of the lemon. In a year or two, the root system will completely fill the space of the pot. We check it as follows - turn the pot over, knock it on a hard surface. The lump should easily fall out of the pot. The bottom of the soil should be well braided with roots. So we transplant it into a container that is large in size, but not too spacious. 3-4 centimeters larger in diameter.

Homemade lemon tree photo

Most often, plants suffer from:

• insufficient or improper feeding;
• excessive dryness of the room air;
• dust;
• non-compliance with the temperature regime.

Water the lemons often, but the soil should not be waterlogged. Feed once every two weeks with small amounts of compound fertilizers. Spray the leaves weekly with a spray bottle, sometimes clean the fox from dust with a damp sponge (in case of strong dust pollution of the room). Put your tree under the shower every month. Observe the temperature regime. Lemon should be cooler and drier in winter than in summer. This means that you need less watering, dressing. That's actually all in brief, what you need to know about the normal care of a lemon tree grown from a stone. Next, let's talk about lemon propagation by cuttings.

Photo of a watered lemon

Propagation by cuttings

Let's take a close look at some important aspects of cuttings so that the question "how to grow a lemon from a cuttings" is no longer a problem.

Here are some points to keep in mind:

1. The main thing is that we take cuttings from an already fruiting tree.
2. We take a stalk from a healthy, vertical branch.
3. Too young (still flattened) or already lignified (should bend normally) is not suitable.
4. The best time for cuttings is April.
5. We use the branches of last year's autumn growth.

We cut off cuttings of 2-3 buds, leaving only two or three upper leaves. We put in a solution with a root formation stimulator: heteroauxin, root, epin. We plant the cuttings, deepening them in half, in an equal mixture of light soil and calcined sand. We cover the top with a centimeter layer of sand to avoid rotting of the lower part. We cover all this with a glass jar or glass. This will prevent the moisture from evaporating from the cuttings, which is detrimental to them, until they have acquired a root system. We protect our future lemons from direct sunlight. We block them with matte paper. Or we put on the northeast or east windows. Pour water two to three degrees above room temperature. After two or three weeks, roots will begin to form. A sign of this is the appearance of new leaves. in another two weeks you can plant our seedlings. As you can see, grafting a lemon is a fairly simple operation.

Photo of lemon

The timing of the onset of fruiting lemon plants grown in various ways

We are often led to believe that it is extremely easy to get seed-grown plants to bear fruit. That regardless of whether you are the owner of a grafted plant grown from a cuttings or a tree seed, you will still get the first harvest no later than four years later. You are being deceived.

• First, the timing of the entry into fruiting of citrus fruits grown in different ways is different.
• Secondly, the mere presence of a tree at home does not imply that it will bloom at all. It requires proper care, attention, the creation of optimal conditions for fruiting, feeding, lighting, temperature, microclimate and much, much more.

The timing of the onset of fruiting in various lemons is as follows:

• seed trees bloom in 8-10 years;
• citrus fruits obtained by cuttings from a previously flowering tree will give the first fruits in 3-4 years;
• plants grafted with a layering from a fruiting tree can bloom as early as the next year after grafting;
• all these terms become irrelevant if the cutting for rooting or grafting is taken from a previously never fruiting adult plant.

Video about how to grow a lemon from a seed

If the lemon blooms and bears fruit at least once, it will do so every year with proper care.

It is also worth knowing that our acidic citrus fruits can delay their flowering if you overdo it with feeding and grooming. This is especially true for nitrogen fertilizers. Trying to provide the plant with ideal conditions, we are doing it a disservice. The lemon rushes upward, completely without thinking about laying fruit buds. Indeed, the plans of our green pet do not at all include supplying us with a crop.

The need to grow yellow fruits arises when the tree feels some threat to its comfort. Such threats activate the mechanisms of leaving offspring, that is, the harvest. What are we hindering by pampering our lemons. Such excessive care, as well as insufficient attention to the plant, lead to a shift in the timing of fruiting. To stimulate fruiting, indoor citrus only needs: regular watering with additional fertilizing during active growing season, a dormant period, a lot of sun, room humidity.

It is also sometimes recommended to ring the trunk - to remove a layer of bark 1 centimeter wide in a circle perpendicular to the soil and graft it with the back side to the cut site. There is a technique of wrapping branches with wire or similar banding, like a trunk.Please note that these methods are auxiliary, and sometimes their effectiveness is controversial.

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Everyone knows lemon - this evergreen perennial - a guest from the subtropics, which quite comfortably took root in our houses and apartments. The homeland of lemon is Southeast Asia, more than a thousand years ago, these fruits were brought from India, and over time they found popularity in Africa and America. This deservedly popular citrus can be found in your home. How to grow a lemon from a seed at home, you will learn from this article.

This citrus tree produces flowers several times a year. Home-grown lemon fruits have a thinner crust and a more intense aroma than those grown outdoors. To grow a lemon from a seed, you need to create comfortable conditions for it: high-quality ventilation, lighting, periodic fertilizing, an individual approach according to the season.

One of the main stages is the selection of quality seeds - this is the guarantee of the future harvest. For planting material, seeds from purchased ripe lemons are quite suitable. Sow many seeds at once so that later you can choose the strongest shoots.

↑ to the table of contents ↑ How to plant a lemon from the seed?

Phased process:

1. At home, remove the seeds from ripe large citrus fruits, select the largest of them. Most often, the seeds are sown immediately, but some gardeners recommend pre-treating them with a solution of sodium gummate. The solution is diluted with water according to the attached instructions, the seeds are immersed for 24 hours.
2. Drainage (small pebbles, charcoal or expanded clay) is pre-poured onto the bottom of pots or special containers, and soil is poured on top. Soil for indoor lemona should consist of equal proportions of peat, earth for flowers. You can purchase a ready-made potting soil mixture for citrus plants. Lemons feel great in black soil mixed with leaf humus (1: 1), sand can also be added there.
3. The bones are deepened by about 1 cm, the distance between them should be at least 5 cm, and from the sides of the container - at least 3.
4. To maintain the temperature regime necessary at home, the soil must always be moistened, but not oversaturated with water. The ideal temperature for seedlings is + 18..23ºC.
5. After about 10-14 days, the first seedlings appear. From the very beginning, stronger specimens are visible, it is they who are selected for further growing.
6. In order for the indoor lemon to begin to grow, to reveal the first full-fledged leaves to the world, it is necessary to create an appropriate microclimate for it. To do this, the sprouted sprouts are covered with glass jars, and then put in a well-lit place, however, direct sunlight should be avoided.
7. Airing should be daily. Banks are removed from the sprouts for 15-20 minutes.
8. When full-fledged leaves appear (two or three pieces), it is time to transplant the room lemon into separate containers. The pot for a sprout should be no more than 10 cm in diameter. Drainage at the bottom of the pot with a nutritious soil mixture is a must.

Here, a young seedling from a stone should grow to about 17-20 cm, after which it is transplanted. The volume of the new pot should be larger than the previous one.

↑ back to content ↑ Room lemon - home care

This tree loves bright, but diffused light, so that in summer the scorching rays of the sun do not harm the leaves, it needs to be shaded. Here, as when watering, you need to adhere to the golden mean, since with a lack of light, the fruits will be sour, and the foliage will be lethargic and sparse.

The optimum temperature regime for flowering, fruit formation (set) is approximately + 17..20 ° C.

Indoor lemon does not like being moved from place to place, but being outdoors (for example, on a balcony) still does not hurt him. Keep an eye on the weather forecast, as a sudden change in temperature can harm the plant (it will shed foliage). Wintering should take place in cool home conditions, a temperature of + 15..18 ° C will be enough.

How do I care for my lemon in terms of watering? Like all citrus fruits, it loves moisture. In the summer, it is necessary to provide the perennial with abundant watering, two times a week is enough. In winter, one watering per week is enough. Overfilling should be avoided. In this case, the water must be boiled, have room temperature or be well settled. This plant does not tolerate chlorine, which is rich in tap water - take this factor into account.

Photo of indoor lemon at home:

Citrus fruits require frequent irrigation of the crown with moisture. This is especially true in summer, and in winter (with constantly working batteries or heaters), spraying becomes simply necessary. Sometimes you can arrange a warm shower for the plant - this is a good prevention against the appearance of a tick, scale insect. To further increase the humidity, the lemon pot can be placed on a tray with wet expanded clay (or charcoal, gravel).

Fertilizer for indoor lemon is a prerequisite for harmonious development and fruiting. Compared to other domestic perennials, this citrus needs to be fed more frequently than its green counterparts. In summer, fertilizers are introduced weekly (with water for irrigation), in winter, once a month will be enough.

Mineral dressings are more effective, but organic ones contain all important microelements, have a beneficial effect on the structure of the soil, and activate the vital activity of all important microorganisms. When minerals are combined with organics, such a union will provide the best nutrition for this citrus at home.

During the activation of the growth of shoots (in the spring), it is appropriate to introduce potash, nitrogen fertilizing, and when flowers appear, phosphoric ones. Carefully study the information on the fertilizer package - compliance with the dosage is very important, since you will subsequently consume these lemons. With the onset of the so-called "dormant period" (autumn-winter time), the dose and frequency of feeding is reduced to once a month.

↑ back to content ↑ Transplanting a lemon into a new pot, pruning, forming a crown

Every year, preferably in the spring (beginning of the growing season), a lemon is transplanted. Transplanting should be carried out carefully so that the perennial root system is not disturbed. The transshipment method is the most preferable for this case. Only young specimens are transplanted annually, when they reach 3 years of age (some varieties are 5 years old), the transplant is carried out every 2 or 3 years. It is highly discouraged to carry out this process during flowering or fruiting - the plant can discard inflorescences with fruits.

Do not forget that good drainage at the bottom of the tank is a prerequisite for citrus crops. The size of the pot is also important, because if the capacity is too small, then the plant will not have enough soil or nutrients. Too large a pot will not work either - the soil will sour, and the root system will rot.

Lemon Pot - Size (Diameter):

• small bushes up to 2 years old - about 20 cm;
• plants 3-4 years old - 30 cm;
• young trees 5-6 years old - 35 cm;
• citrus over 7 years old - 45 cm

It is desirable that the pot is made of clay, but wood, glass, plastic are also acceptable, the main thing is that the container has drainage holes.

It is also better to shape the crown, remove excess branches in the spring (April), until the active growth of shoots has begun. At the first formation of the crown, the trunk of the bush is cut to a length of 25-30 cm. On the sides, the strongest buds remain (these are shoots of the first order), from which skeletal branches will grow later. Usually there are three or four of them, make sure that they are evenly spaced, since the beauty of the future crown depends on this. Each subsequent order of shoots must be pinched 5 cm shorter than the previous one.

In most citrus fruits, the ovary is observed on branches of the 4th and 5th order, these branches grow in the second or third year of life. On branches of the first order, fruits are not tied at all, and on branches of the second and third order - only in certain varieties (for example, Meyer).

Meyer's lemon The number of flowers also needs to be controlled so that the vitality of the plant is not depleted. In order for the tree to develop harmoniously, at about 3 years of age, you need to start removing half of the inflorescences (the harvest will be smaller, but the fruits are larger), and leave 3 or 4 pieces from the ovaries. For the same purposes, after a year, you can leave already 5 or 6 citruses, and for the future, not leave more than 7 or 9.

The growing branches can be carefully, without undue enthusiasm, trimmed by eye so that the crown has a visually attractive shape. It should be borne in mind that a short cut provokes the growth of new powerful shoots, and a long one contributes to the emergence of fruit buds.

The skeleton of a tree is considered formed after the young shoots of branches grow back, lignify. A properly formed crown gives all leaves the required amount of light and air.

How to pinch a lemon? If it actively branches, forms shoots, then the excess fragments must be removed as soon as they appear. In those shoots that are left for development, the tops are pinched after the appearance of the 6th leaf.

↑ to contents ↑ Diseases of indoor lemon

Often, diseases appear due to non-observance of the rules of care: under-watering leads to the drying out of the tree, when the root system is saturated with moisture, the root system rots, and the leaves turn yellow.

If the foliage becomes covered with yellow spots, and then turns pale and dries up, then the lemon most likely lacks iron.

If the tips of the leaves dry, and they themselves seem to rust, then this indicates a lack of phosphorus.

Lack of potassium leads to wrinkling of the leaves, and with a deficiency of manganese, the ovaries disappear altogether.

Competent, timely fertilization of a plant is an ideal prevention of the above negative manifestations.

It is not enough to know how to grow a lemon, you need to know how to protect it in a timely manner. Weakened plants are the first to fall into the risk zone, it is they who are most often exposed to diseases. Proper care is the basis for keeping lemon at home. If the tree is sick, then the affected leaves, flowers, fruits, branches must be removed immediately. If a pest is found, then you need to immediately carry out a defensive "attack", but after certain types of processing the lemon can no longer be eaten.

Good results are shown by the drug "Fitosporin". It suppresses a wide range of citrus pathogens. It is also good because it is odorless, does not contain toxic compounds. It is diluted with water during irrigation, plants are irrigated. This drug is very good for the prevention of diseases.

Communicating with fellow-interests, you can often hear complaints: "The room lemon has dropped the leaves, what should I do?" The main reasons for this reaction are insufficient lighting, overflow or underfilling, depleted soil, excessive dryness of the air, heat or extreme cold. For reference, we list the most common diseases of homemade citrus fruits, and give a short recommendation to eliminate the cause:

1. Scab or wart - has a fungal origin, manifests itself on young shoots and leaves: first pale yellow spots appear, which subsequently become grayish warts. The growths grow, cover shoots, which subsequently die.Scab also affects fruits: bright yellow spots appear on them, which then turn red and darken. All affected parts of the plant must be cut off and destroyed, and the trunk with the crown must be abundantly treated with 1% Bordeaux liquid (a mixture of a solution of copper sulfate and milk of lime).
2. Anthracnose is the most common fungal reason why indoor lemon leaves turn yellow at home. With this disease, the tree loses its buds, brown spots appear on the fruits, branches die off. All affected shoots, fruits must be removed, and the plant itself must be treated with the above-described "Fitosporin" or Bordeaux liquid.
3. Sooty fungus is a consequence of damage by pests - mealybug or scabbard. Active preventive measures are a sure way to protect a tree from such consequences.
4. Hommosis - manifested by the appearance of dark red spots on the trunk and branches, at the sites of lesion, the bark cracks, a sticky liquid (gum) is released from the crack, which subsequently hardens. There are many reasons for this disease: improper deepening of seedlings, "dirty" soil, mechanical "injuries" of the plant, improper care of indoor lemon. Treatment - finding out the root cause of the disease, as well as radical cutting of the affected areas with a sharp knife. Damage should be treated with a 3% solution of copper sulfate, and then covered with garden varnish.

This citrus perennial needs to be examined regularly in order to notice the disease at its very beginning. As you know, any disease is easier to cure at the initial stage. You need to inspect not only the trunk or foliage, but also the root system of the tree, the soil.

↑ to the content ↑ Lemon in the apartment - benefit or harm

Of course, the benefits of it are much more than the possible harm. Everyone knows the medicinal, protective properties of this citrus for the human body. Vitamins, flavonoids, biologically active substances successfully suppress viruses, create a powerful shield against pathogenic bacteria.

The use of this yellow citrus strengthens the immune system, normalizes hormones, improves vision, and stimulates the digestive tract. Lemon mobilizes the internal resources of the body, helps with angina, colds. It is widely used in cosmetology: face masks (whitening, healing, cleansing) and hair (growth stimulant). Even a simple green tree (indoor lemon from a stone, grown at home) saturates the air with phytoncides, improves mood, and makes breathing easier.

Contraindication to use may be individual intolerance, gastric ulcer, duodenal ulcer, chronic gastritis, pancreatitis. In everything you need to know when to stop, since eating lemon in large quantities will not lead to anything good.

Considering all of the above, now you know how to grow a lemon from a stone at home. Despite the abundance of information, this process does not require special knowledge or skills. It is necessary to understand and take into account the main criteria - the rules of maintenance and care, competent pruning, timely prevention of diseases.