Fertilizing at periodic intervals of weeks during active growth will ensure your lemon tree has access to enough nutrients to grow and produce fruit. When your lemon tree slows down production at the end of summer, stop fertilization until the following spring. Be sure to fertilize your lemon tree every year during the appropriate seasons. If watering your lemon tree every weeks during growing season sounds like a potentially problematic commitment, there are also slow release fertilizer methods available that reduce the frequency with which you need to fertilize.
Usually a slow release fertilizer comes in the form of spikes which you insert into the soil of the lemon tree.
If using a fertilizer with a slow release method, you will only need to fertilize your lemon tree once a year, in early spring. If your tree shows no signs of deficiency or ailment, choose a general citrus fertilizer high in nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, and including a smorgasbord of micronutrients such as magnesium, calcium, and sulfur. This general citrus fertilizer is full of a balanced mix of all of the nutrients a lemon tree needs, and is a great option for giving your lemon tree a boost to encourage healthy growth and fruit production.
Another option is to choose a slow release fertilizer formulated for citrus trees. The main benefit of using a slow release fertilizer is that you would only need to fertilize your lemon tree once a year, as a singular application will slowly release nutrients to the plant over the course of the growing season.
This one is specially formulated for citrus trees, has great reviews on Amazon, and is the perfect-sized spike for a potted lemon tree. If your tree has yellowing leaves you suspect to be a result of a nutrient deficiency, consider testing the soil to figure out exactly which nutrients your lemon tree is lacking. At-home soil tests that are sent away to a lab can be incredibly helpful in giving insight into the nutrient breakdown of the soil.
If your soil test comes back reporting ample levels of all important nutrients, look to other causes such as too much or too little water, or a pest infestation. Different fertilizers have different concentrations and therefore different application guidelines when it comes to amount of fertilizer that needs to be applies. Follow the instructions included with the specific fertilizer you choose on how much fertilizer to apply to the soil of your lemon tree.
Keep in mind that liquid fertilizers are usually concentrated and will need to be diluted with water. They need low winter temperature to cause acid levels to drop in the fruit and high summer heat to develop the sugar. Horticulturalists at the University of California-Davis consider a pH of 6.
You can buy a home pH testing kit at most garden centers. Test the soil when it is warm. Loam has roughly equal amounts of sand, silt and clay. Sandy loam has slightly more sand. You should apply only as much nitrogen as your tree needs because ammonium sulfate or ammonium nitrate, the usual sources of nitrogen, are easily are washed into creeks, ultimately contaminating estuaries and bays.
You also need to know how to calculate the amount of actual nitrogen in fertilizer. Fertilizer numbers show the ratio by weight of nitrogen N , phosphorous P and potassium K. Ammonium sulfate is frequently used for its nitrogen.
Because it contains 21 percent nitrogen, 5 pounds of ammonium sulfate contains 1. Always follow the directions of your chosen fertilizer label, it will either be to spray the fertilizer onto the leaves of your citrus tree or spread it out around the base of the tree. Have no place on your property for a citrus tree?
Go dwarf! Dwarf citrus trees are just regular citrus trees that are grafted onto smaller plant rootstock and planted into a pot. You can get that same sweet juiciness without having to plant and care for a full-size tree.
Dwarf citrus trees generally grow somewhere between 6 to 12 feet tall. The fruit from a dwarf citrus tree is the same size and quality as that of the standard-sized tree.
Incidentally, dwarf types produce a larger crop to size ratio than standard-sized trees. The nutritional requirement of dwarf and indoor citrus are the same as the citrus grown outdoors.
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