Lemon is an evergreen tree that does not have high frost resistance, but under favorable temperature conditions it can bear fruit all year round. To keep in an apartment, it is enough to choose the right variety of this plant and provide suitable conditions for obtaining a crop. The Pavlovsky lemon, which came to us from the Pacific tropics, is very popular.
Variety history
More than 150 years ago, a merchant from the city of Pavlov-on-Oka named I. S. Karachistov, having visited Turkey, brought several cuttings of an exotic tree as a gift to one of his relatives. The fashion for growing lemons in an apartment began to grow very quickly. Homemade lemonaria have become a very popular phenomenon in Pavlovo. In the 30s, an enterprise was created in the city, where Pavlovsk lemons were studied and grown in detail. Today, this variety is known throughout Russia as one of the most suitable for growing at home.
Description of the plant
Pavlovsky lemon is a small tree (or bush), rarely exceeding 1.5 m in height and having 2-4 branches fromtrunk. The rounded crown reaches a diameter of up to 1 m. The branches, covered with gray-green bark, hang down. They have spines 1.5-2 cm long with sharp ends and noticeably expanded at the base. Glossy dark green leaves are quite large - up to 15 cm in length. Special glands located on their surface make it possible to smell citrus fruits and evaluate the antibacterial properties of this tree. Lemon Pavlovsky changes leaves no more than once every 2-3 years. The number of leaves on a tree is directly related to its fertility - the more he althy leaves, the higher the yield.
Lemon is a self-pollinating plant with bisexual flowers up to 3 cm in size. With proper care, flowering lasts all year round, so both flowers and ripening fruits are on the tree at the same time.
Reproduction
Pavlovsk lemons can be propagated by air layering, seeds and cuttings. The latter method is the most reliable and is more popular, because the ripening of the fruit does not have to wait very long. Such a tree begins to bear fruit already in the third year of life.
From a he althy fruit-bearing tree, a stalk is cut off at an acute angle, 10-13 cm in length and up to 0.5 cm in diameter. The lower cut is made 2.5 mm from the kidney, and the upper one is above 2 cm. It is necessary that there are 4-5 leaves on the handle, of which 2 lower ones are removed, only the upper ones remain. Before planting the cutting, it is necessary to treat the lower cut with crushed charcoal or a special growth solution (0.1 g"Heteroauxin" per 1 liter of water).
The planting container is prepared in advance. Drainage is poured at the bottom (pebbles, expanded clay or broken brick), then a mixture of turf and earth is laid with a layer of 5 cm, after which the container is filled with a special earthen mixture purchased at a store or made from sand and peat, mixed in equal parts. Moisten the soil well and plant cuttings. After planting, they should be sprayed, in the future, performing this procedure regularly. After rooting, the plant is transplanted into a larger pot.
Growing conditions
Young lemon seedlings are especially demanding for care. The Pavlovsky variety is a guest from a tropical climate, so good lighting, humidity and thermal conditions are very important for it.
The best place for a tree is windows on the southeast side, where there is enough light and at the same time at noon the plant is protected from sunlight, the action of which can cause a burn on the leaves of the plant.
Pavlovsky lemon is a heat-loving plant, the most suitable indoor air temperature for it is 20-25⁰С. And only in the spring, during the budding period, it can be several degrees lower. In summer, it is recommended to put the plant on a glazed balcony, if possible. A sharp temperature drop and a draft should be avoided, it can be fatal for such a southern resident.
Watering is done on average 3 times a week in summer and once a week in winter. Necessarymonitor soil moisture. It is imperative to carry out regular spraying of both the plant itself and the air around. Its humidity should not be less than 60%.
Feeding
The Pavlovsky lemon looks much more advantageous and has much more fruit, which is cared for with top dressing. Fertilize, as a rule, trees that are more than three years old.
Young plants do not need additional stimulation. As a top dressing, special organic fertilizers purchased in a store, or mixtures made at home, are used. Infusion of eggshell contributes to more abundant fruiting. To improve growth, use a solution of ammonium nitrate (30 grams per 1 liter of water). From time to time it is recommended to water the lemon with horse manure infusion at the rate of 1:10.
Fertilizers can be discarded if the plant develops normally and looks he althy.
Lemon transplant
Once a year, indoor Pavlovsky lemon needs to be transplanted. This is especially necessary if the rhizome occupies the entire space in the pot. When transplanting, carefully remove the remains of the old substrate from the roots, remove rotten and diseased roots. Add drainage and fresh nutrient soil to the pot.
If the substrate in which the tree grew is in a normal state, then the transshipment method can be used. First you need to thoroughly shed the soil. Then, carefully taking the tree by the trunk in the neck area, you need to turn the pot upside down,holding the soil, and shaking slightly, release the earthen ball with the rhizome from the pot. After that, remove part of the old drainage, the top layer of soil and put the lemon in another pot prepared in advance in such a way as not to damage the root system.
Pests and diseases
Growing Pavlovsky lemon at home, you need to make sure that pests do not appear on it. Most often, the plant is affected by aphids, spider mites, scale insects. In order to scare away these insects, they use ordinary geranium, planting it next to a lemon. You can spray the leaves from the spray bottle with special tinctures and decoctions of tobacco, onion or garlic peel, red hot pepper, bay leaf.
The defeat of a lemon by a scale insect can provoke a disease such as soot fungus. It leads to the fact that photosynthesis is disturbed and the plant “suffocates”. First of all, you need to get rid of this pest by spraying the plant with Bordeaux mixture.
Incorrect use of fertilizers can cause gommosis, when part of the bark dies off, forming wounds on the trunk, the leaves fall off. In this case, the affected areas are treated with a 3% Bordeaux mixture and the plant is disinfected by spraying with copper sulfate.
The process of caring for this plant is quite troublesome, but all the work will be rewarded when a tree with bright juicy fruits grows at home, just like the Pavlovsky lemon, whose photo delights with its beauty from the pages of gardeningmagazines.
