Martin Fish is giving citrus plants some seasonal TLC
During summer, tangy oranges and lemons need TLC so they fruit well
My three citrus trees – orange, lemon and calamondin – growing in the greenhouse are all looking good. Last year’s attack by scale insects was controlled by spraying a couple of times with a natural insecticide based on fatty acids and, so far, there are no signs of any new infestation on the plants.
All three plants are fairly thirsty and need plenty of water in warm weather to keep the compost moist. I also spray them with water from overhead a couple of times a week to keep the glossy foliage clean and dust-free. I’m feeding weekly with a high-potash fertiliser to help the young fruits develop and swell, and the lemons are doing very well, with blossom, plus fruit at various stages. New growth, especially on the lemon, is vigorous and upright and the plant is now getting tall. I want to try to keep the growth bushy and compact if possible, so have decided that some summer pruning is called for. As the flowers are produced on older wood, I can safely cut back much of the new growth this year, although leaving around one third will encourage fruit buds to develop.
This pruning will also stimulate sideshoots to sprout and when they reach 15-20cm (6-8in) I’ll pinch out the growing tips to make even more sideshoots. What I’m aiming for are short, strong branches and a bushy plant, rather than a tall, leggy specimen.
I’m also going to do a little thinning of orange branches to promote new growth, as some of the existing stems are thin and being weighed down by the weight of the fruit.
Pruning the orange trees now may well affect the number of fruit that the plants produce next year but, for me, the most important thing at this stage is to get the shape of the tree right and then flower and fruit will follow.