It's no secret that most indoor plant lovers dream of growing a lemon tree at home. True, many are afraid of the difficulty in caring for him. A tropical lemon plant at room conditions and in the hands of an inexperienced grower can get sick, drop leaves or, on the contrary, “fatten”, refuse to bloom.
The owner needs to learn to understand the wishes of his green pet, creating the most comfortable conditions for him, and to know how to care for a lemon at home. Pruning is vital to him. If you want to not only grow a tree, but also get fruits, you will have to work hard. In order for the plant to look well-groomed and neat, it is necessary to properly prune to give a decorative shape to its crown. We will discuss the features of this procedure in this article.
Is cropping necessary?
There are a number of reasons why pruning a lemon ispotted at home needed:
- This procedure rejuvenates an old tree. If this is not done, then the lemon will stretch up and refuse to bear fruit.
- Pruning significantly reduces the risk of plant diseases.
- A correctly formed crown will increase the lifespan of the plant and the fruiting period.
- The crown should be evenly shaped even if it is not planned to obtain fruits. Otherwise, the tree will look unkempt.
Basic rules for trimming a lemon at home
It is important to carry out this procedure so that it does not harm the plant, so some rules must be followed:
- The procedure is carried out during the dormant period of the plant.
- From an adult fruiting plant, all fruits are removed.
- The shoots of the first level are cut by 25 cm, the second - no more than 10 cm. The branches following them are shortened by a maximum of 5 cm.
At first glance, the procedure is simple, but it should be approached responsibly, since incorrect pruning of a lemon at home will set the tree in the wrong direction of growth. Correcting mistakes made during an unsuccessful procedure can often only be done by removing many branches, so you should act clearly in full accordance with the recommendations of specialists and experienced owners of these plants.
Pruning dates
Regarding when to trimindoor lemons are best, experts are divided in opinion. Some of them believe that the most suitable time for such a procedure is the beginning of spring, before the formation of new shoots. For fruiting, lemon pruning at home is carried out in late autumn. Others argue that the crown can also be adjusted in winter.
First cut
In home care for a lemon, pruning is of particular importance. It is very important to carry out the first procedure in a timely manner. If it is carried out correctly, the owner can expect to receive fruits.
This is a rather lengthy process - the formation of a crown in a young tree. It can take up to four years. Having completed it, it will be enough to trim the shoots a little in subsequent years so that the plant does not lose its attractive appearance. The first pruning should be done in the first year of the tree's life. The trunk is cut at a height of 20 cm from the soil surface, keeping 3-4 buds on it, from which shoots will later form. It is desirable that they be at the same level, but on different sides of the trunk.
When pruning a lemon at home (you can see the photo in the article), you should remove all branches growing vertically. It is best to carry out such pruning in February. The height of the plant depends on the place where the plant is planned to be placed. If, for example, the lemon will stand on the windowsill, the plant should not be too tall, and if on the floor, then you can let it grow in height. This should be taken into account when forming the crown.
Subsequent cuts
In the second year of life, the seedling expels side branches, which experts call branches of the first order. There should be 3-4 of them. As you remember, during the first pruning, 3-4 buds were left. To form third-order shoots, it is also necessary to prune. After that, the tree will form a crown itself, and fruiting will occur after the appearance of branches of the fourth order.
Two methods are generally used:
- complete - old or dead tree branches that can cause various diseases are removed;
- partial - reducing the length of non-flowering branches by 25 cm.
Removal of shoots is also carried out in the case when they interfere with each other. In this case, the strongest shoot is left, and the weak one is removed. A strong shoot, but growing vertically, must be cut out, while leaving, albeit less strong, but growing horizontally. At the crown, you must first cut off the shoot that grows up.
Difficulties of the procedure
When pruning lemon at home, beginner growers may experience some problems.
Sometimes a single shoot is actively formed at the place of pruning, while at least three should develop. In this case, it is completely removed (break out) under the base. Quite often, this procedure has to be repeated several times.
So-called spinning tops sometimes appear on the plant - shoots that are incapable of fruiting and also grow vertically. They are muchgrow faster than fruit branches. Removal is the easiest and most effective way to deal with them.
Experts warn that lemon pruning at home should be done very carefully, as it is very difficult to correct its result.
Advice from experienced flower growers
For the successful formation of the crown of a homemade lemon, you must follow the advice and recommendations of experienced flower growers.
- Be sure to process the sections after the procedure. For this, garden var is usually used. But if very thin branches were removed, then such processing is optional.
- The annual pruning of the tree will help to form a beautiful crown of indoor lemon, during which branches that grow vertically and weak shoots are removed.
- It is necessary to pinch the top of the working shoots so that fruits begin to set on them. Do this after the appearance of seven leaves.
- Quite often there is a need to adjust the crown of an adult tree that grows in a pot. Such pruning is carried out in April or in early May, when shoots grow. In an adult plant, crown formation is carried out for aesthetic purposes.
- It is important to remove diseased and dead branches in a timely manner.
- Tops should be cut throughout the year, as they appear.
Removing flowers
If you grow lemon at home for fruiting, then removing excess flowers will allow you to control this process. This procedure will achievedirecting all the forces of the tree to the full development of the remaining flowers of the ovaries. The number of buds left depends on the age of the young tree. For a three-year-old lemon, half of all formed buds are removed, and then 2-3 fruits are left. For a five-year-old tree, the number of fruits is increased to seven. Up to 10 fruits are already left for a seven-year-old lemon.
The weakest flowers should be removed. If a whole branch does not bloom well enough, it is advisable to cut it completely. The more you remove empty flowers and weak flowers, the more quality ovaries will remain on the branches and, accordingly, the harvest will be richer.
Pruning for youth
Sooner or later, every owner is faced with a situation where the plant is getting old. What kind of home care is needed for a room lemon in this case? Pruning to rejuvenate the plant will not only improve the appearance of the lemon, but will also significantly increase fruiting.
When the tree is 15-20 years old, it's time for this procedure. Pruning is carried out in the spring, cutting off all branches up to the fifth order. This will cause the active growth of dormant buds and the appearance of young, strong shoots. After this procedure, the tree should be transplanted into a new container, very carefully shortening the roots by about 30%. At the same time, the roots that are inside the earthy coma cannot be affected.
