What can you cook from squid: quick and tasty

Growing citrus plants in indoor conditions Is a laborious, energy-consuming process. Their varieties, as a rule, are poorly adapted to growth and development in a residential environment. The cultivation of citrus fruits is associated with the observance of regular maintenance rules, the selection of soil and the adjustment of the optimum values of temperature and humidity.

To choose a soil for citrus fruits, you need to familiarize yourself with the characteristics of these plants. Indoor varieties differ significantly from those that grow in natural conditions:

indoor species bloom twice throughout the year;
fruit indoor species have a less pronounced citrus taste;
dimensions indoor varieties different from wild ones.

At the right choice the soil for planting a variety of citrus plants and observing the conditions of care, the crop is harvested in the third year of the plant's life. The soil mixture is selected according to several parameters:

the structure of the soil must be loose (the citrus root system has its own characteristics, to obtain nutrients from the ground, she needs to have easy access to useful elements);
acidity indicators should not exceed the boundaries of 5.2 and 7 PH;
the soil must have a homogeneous structure (the presence of lumps interferes with the root system, reduces the rate of the process of obtaining nutrients).

Types of indoor citrus fruits have distinctive features that are taken into account when choosing a soil:

Black soil is not suitable for any varieties of lemon. It provokes root rot due to the creation of a greenhouse effect.
The roots of tangerines are distinguished by their ability to quickly absorb minerals from the soil, therefore experts recommend more often feeding them with mineral fertilizers.

Buy or do it yourself

Compositions for planting and growing citrus fruits are sold in specialized sections of theme stores, the second way to get the necessary mixture is to prepare it yourself.

Citrus growers note that commercial soils are often not suitable for lemons. This is due to the peculiarity of packaging: sealed bags contribute to the creation of a greenhouse effect, which provokes the decomposition of the fibers contained in the mixture. Such mechanisms are harmful for any type of lemon; it is difficult for plants to gain growth and develop correctly.

Ideal potting soil for citrus fruits at home

An important prerequisite for the proper growth and development of citrus varieties at home is the regulation of the acidity level of the soil. Plants do not tolerate low acidity and die in an environment with high acidity.

For experienced gardeners checking the acidity level of the soil is not difficult. To do this, you need to evaluate the result that appeared on litmus paper after immersion in a liquid that remains on the soil surface:

red color - certificate of RN level 5;
orange indicator - medium acidity;
yellow indicator - the level is increased;
green color is an indicator of an alkaline environment.

Information! Watering with hard water is a common cause of acidity changes.

Several components are used to create the required soil mixture.

Garden land

Peculiarities:

lightness of structure;
the acidity index is neutral.

Leaf land

The peculiarity of this mixture is natural level acidity. This type of soil is formed after rotting leaves that fall from trees. Natural mechanisms make the soil useful for growing all types of crops.

Peculiarities:

porous structure;
increased nutrient content.

Turf preparation has specific steps. The layer should not exceed 15 centimeters in thickness and 35 centimeters in width. Sod layers are layered on top of each other until reaching 1 meter in height. The middle of the upper part of the structure is pierced, a deepening is created so that moisture is retained there. In summer, such a structure is turned over, spilled, compacted with manure.

Sod land is prepared for 2 years. Before using the turf for indoor plants the layers are sieved.

Sand

Peculiarities:

lightness of structure;
looseness;
the structure helps to prevent the development of fungus.

Peat land

Peat has a number of useful characteristics:

contains nutrients;
regulates the level of soil acidity;
gives the necessary structure.

Peat is added to the mixture for indoor citrus plants in minimal volumes so as not to oversaturate the soil and not provoke fiber decomposition.

Compost

Compost is an organic type of fertilizer that is formed as a result of the decomposition of plant and animal waste.

Compost is obtained by composting. For this, a depression is created in the ground, where plant or animal waste is placed. The optimal compost readiness period is 2 years after the first filling.

When adding compost to the soil mixture, you should make sure that it is completely ready, as the unripe structure can adversely affect the growth of the citrus plant.

Fertilizers for seedlings

Citrus plants need proper feeding. For cultivation, it is necessary to adhere to special schemes developed by specialists.

Information! For feeding, the simultaneous use of mineral and organic fertilizers is not practiced. This approach contributes to the burning of the root system, so the types of complexes alternate.

Plants need different types fertilizers, it depends on the period of development:

Nitrogen complexes are required from January to August. For lemons and tangerines, an infusion of horse manure with a concentration of manure and water in a proportion of 100 grams to 1 liter of water is recommended. This mixture is insisted for 2 weeks.
A large amount of nitrogen is contained in urea, it is dissolved according to the formula: 1.5 grams per 1 liter of water.
For fertilizing citrus fruits, during flowering or a set of colors, fertilizers with a high content of phosphorus and potassium are used. They are brought in until lemons and tangerines form fruits with a minimum diameter of 15 millimeters.
Preparation for the sleep phase, which occurs in plants in August or September, requires replenishment of potassium sulfates. For this, granular fertilizers of an inorganic type are used.

The need for a transplant

Citrus plants need regular replanting:

to replenish nutrient reserves;
to change the acidity of the soil;
to expand the space of the pot due to the fact that the root system has grown.

Signs that a citrus plant needs a transplant:

the plant stops growing;
develops slowly;
some of the branches remain underdeveloped;
the tips of the roots are visible from the drainage hole, which indicates a strong entanglement with the root system of an earthen coma.

For transplantation, periods of budding, flowering or fruiting are excluded. The process is recommended to be approached very carefully. Before transplanting, the plants are carefully shed for several days. A culture with a clod of earth is taken out of the pot, trying not to disturb the roots.

After examining the root system, dried or decayed parts are carefully removed. The lump that is taken out of the pot is by no means destroyed. Plants are transplanted into a new container with it. This explains the second name of the method for transplanting citrus fruits - transshipment.

With regular transplants, the rule of increasing the size of the pot should be taken into account: each time it is increased by 2-4 centimeters.

Regular transshipments contribute to the formation of a strong tree, therefore, frequent procedures are recommended for indoor citrus plants (2-3 times a year).

After transshipment, the citrus pots are watered abundantly and covered from direct sun rays, do not place in a draft or near heating appliances. The quarantine period provides for resting for 1-2 weeks in order for the plants to adapt to the new capacity and new growth conditions.

Nutritious air and permeable soils are suitable for citrus plants. A mixture made up of equal parts of sod, leafy soil, manure humus with the addition of coarse river sand 1: 1: 1: 0.5 is best suited. The older the plant, the higher the percentage of sod land in the mixture increases. The land is prepared in advance: the sod is removed from the meadows and placed in piles for decay, deciduous humus is taken from under the lindens and birches, river sand must be well washed. The acidity of the soil should be between 5.5 and 7.0 pH, if the acidity is lower, you can add deciduous tree ash to the mixture. Soil acidity can be measured with an acidity indicator or with a litmus test. The finished mixture must be sieved through a mesh. Ready-made mixtures can be frozen, the number of pests and weeds in this case is reduced. Steaming in a water bath gives a good result of soil disinfection. Pour water into a pot with a larger capacity and place a pot with a smaller capacity with earth. "Bath" is installed on the stove and heats up, when the water boils, keep the mixture for about 0.5 hour, shake out the earth and fill in a new portion. The sand can be calcined in the oven before use.

Citrus crown formation

For citrus fruits to have beautiful crown, began to bear fruit faster at home, the formation of a tree is needed. First of all, a stem must be formed on a tree that has grown from a seed, grafted or grafted. Before pruning and pinching the plant, mentally create the shape of the future tree. What will it be? You can give it a rounded shape (most suitable for low-growing citruses), you can form it with a palmette (suitable for large spreading trees), you can use a bush, etc.

I will dwell on the classic form - a tree with a rounded crown. The stem is cut or pinched at a height of 20-25 cm from the soil level. Then lateral shoots should appear on the trunk - future branches of the first order. But citrus fruits are very stubborn, instead of side branches, an upper shoot may appear repeatedly - an extension of the trunk. How sorry it would be, just delete it, get it - you need skeletal branches. Pinch the branches of the first order at a length of 20-25 cm, make sure that they are evenly located on the trunk in different directions, there should be at least 3-4 of them. Pinch branches of II and more orders of branching at a length of 15-20 cm. Remember, citrus fruits are formed on branches of 4-5 orders.

While the plants are young, pay attention to the illumination of the crown. For even growth, citrus fruits should be rotated 10 degrees every 10 days. Make sure that young shoots do not go inside the crown, bend them to the sides or remove.
Until the crown is formed, do not allow fruiting - branches with fruits do not give growth.

Citrus transplant

It is necessary to transplant citrus fruits when the roots are completely entwined with an earthen ball, you can find out about the transplant by looking at the bottom of the pot. If roots appear from the drainage hole, a transplant is necessary. Prepare a new pot, it should be 2-3 cm larger in diameter in size, pour drainage (expanded clay or charcoal) on the bottom, fill it with sand and top your soil. Take the plant, turn it over and remove the old pot, if the pot does not come out, then you can knock on the walls with a wooden stick. Having taken out an earthen lump, immediately place it in the prepared pot in the center, fill it with earthen mixture along the edges and tamp it well. Tamping can be done by lightly tapping the pot on the floor. When transplanting, try not to disturb, especially to injure the roots of citrus fruits. Water well. Protect plants from direct sunlight in the first days after transplanting.

When transplanting, do not deepen the root collar. With poor compaction of fresh soil, air voids may remain between the pot and the plant, this can lead to citrus disease and the discoloration of the leaf apparatus. Young plants (1st year of life) are transplanted 2-3 times a year, from 2-4 years annually (preferably before the start of growth at the end of February), older than 1 time in 2-3 years, while the topsoil often changes ... Plants should not be fed in the first 2 months after transplanting. Any dish for citrus fruits is suitable, best of all, clay and wood, large plants grow well in tubs or large plastic pots (they are much lighter in weight).

Watering citrus

Citrus fruits are watered with heated (5 degrees higher than the temperature in the room), settled for at least a day with water. If there is an opportunity for irrigation, use snow, rain or water taken from ponds. When using tap water, it must be poured into a container with a wide mouth in advance and placed in the sun to evaporate chlorine. Plumbing hard water- to soften it, use citric acid 1 gram per 5 liters of water, nitric or acetic acid 4-5 drops per 1 liter of water.

Water from a watering can with a strainer, do not erode the topsoil. Proper watering important for citrus fruits - water the plants abundantly, try to completely moisten the entire earthen lump. The end of watering is the water that comes out onto the pallet, drain it after half an hour. The need for watering can be determined in the following ways: the topsoil is dry to the touch; lightly tap with a wooden stick on the pot (if it is earthenware) - the sound will be sonorous; the color of moist soil is darker than dry soil. When overdrying an earthen clod, the pot must be placed in a container of water for 2-3 hours to fully saturate, otherwise the water will flow down the walls onto the pallet when watering.

Do not forget to shower the plants at least once a month, protecting the soil in the pot from water ingress with plastic wrap. A strong warm stream from under the shower washes away not only dust, but also many pests from the leaves and twigs. During the fall / winter months, spray the plants with a spray bottle with warm water in the morning and evening hours.

Citrus fertilizing

Citrus fruits, growing at home, have a nutritional area 30-40 times less than in open ground and therefore it is necessary to pay great attention to plant nutrition. Immediately it is necessary to warn that citrus fruits planted in large pots do not grow better, and the soil in the pots will turn sour. It is necessary to ensure that the earthen ball is fully utilized by the root system and the fertilizers applied are easily absorbed by the roots. Excessive fertilization also leads to soil acidification and without replanting can cause death.

You can do without additional fertilizing if the top layer of soil in the pot is changed monthly during the growing season. To do this, carefully remove the top layer to the roots with a wooden stick (try not to damage the roots) and pour in a new mixture.

For fertilizing watering, use a mixture of the main macro- and microelements. Fertilizers "For citrus", "Effect" and others with nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium in a ratio of 5: 5: 5 with the addition of magnesium, iron, manganese, copper, zinc, molybdenum, sulfur, etc. are best suited. Top dressing in the spring-summer period should be done 2 times a month, in the winter period 1 time in 2 months. It is useful to alternate fertilizing with organic fertilizers. Citrus fruits respond positively to feeding with potassium permanganate (pink solution) and iron sulfate (2 g per 1 liter of water), it can be produced every month.

For top dressing I use only liquid fertilizers, I don’t specifically look for them, you go into the store, take a bottle and see that the ratio of the main microelements is approximately equal.

Mineral fertilizers

Spring effect N-P-К 10-5-5, macronutrients S, B, Cu, Mo, Zn

Autumn effect N-P-K 2-7-7, trace elements S, B, Cu, Mo, Zn

I use the spring effect for dressing in early spring (spring for citrus fruits comes in February) to awaken the plants and build up the vegetative mass.
The effect is autumn from October to spring, once a month to complete the growth and ripening of shoots, to preserve the leaf apparatus on short winter days.
Dose: 1 cap per liter of water.
From April to October, once a month I use a mixture of these fertilizers: 1 cap per 2 liters of water, while N-P-K ratio becomes approximately 6-6-6.

Organomineral fertilizers

Planet of flowers for citrus N-P-K 0.2% -0.1% -0.5% trace elements B, Cu, Mn, Mo, Zn.
Dose: 1 teaspoon in 2 liters of water for root feeding,
1 teaspoon to 4 liters of foliar water (spray once a week)

Ripen-KA S-04 or Ripen-KA No. 2 N-P-K 0.3% -0.2% -0.5%
trace elements B, Cu, Mn, Mo, Zn.
Dose: 1 teaspoon in 2 liters of water for root feeding.

Organic fertilizers

Garden of Wonders - Lemon N-P-K 6-3-6 g / l

Garden of Wonders - Rainbow N-P-K 10-10-10 g / l
Dose: 2 caps for 2 liters of water.
I use it once a month from February to November.

GUMI-20 natural growth regulator 5 drops per liter of water when watering between dressings.

Approximate feeding schedule:
In order not to get confused, I feed the plants on the 10th, 20th, 30th of every month. 10th - organic, 20th - mineral, 30th - organic. From November to February, fertilizing once a month with mineral fertilizers. Organic fertilizers I try to use natural ones - infusion of mullein 1:10, bird droppings 1:20, for lack of food I feed from bottles.

Citrus Acclimatization

Plants are living organisms, getting to your home, they break away from their usual habitat. To grow citrus fruits at home and get fruits from them, you need to pay maximum attention to them. Especially immediately after purchase - any plant should be immediately examined for pests and diseases. Plants usually come to us from greenhouses (and not only from them) infected with coccids (scale insects and false scales), spider mite, whitefly, aphids.

It is necessary to remove all visible pests, treat with drugs that act destructively on these pests, repeat the treatment 2-3 times in the interval specified in the instructions. Cover with a plastic bag and place on a windowsill out of the sun. When installing the plant, watch the leaf blades, it is desirable that they are directed flat towards the glass.

After a few days, start moving the plant to its designated place (10 cm each in 2-3 days). Two weeks later, cut the top of the bag, after another week, cut off the top, and after another week, cut the bag in half, and then remove it altogether. Do not forget to spray the plant in the morning and in the evening, make sure that the sun does not fall on the water droplets - there will be burns. After a month and a half, feed the plant with organic or mineral fertilizers. I am sure that with this kind of care the plant will develop normally and will not shed leaves and shoots.

Lemons are widely cultivated in warm countries with mild tropical or subtropical climates. In our country, these exotic trees are grown only in greenhouses, greenhouses, or in a house on a windowsill, since they cannot grow in a garden - the climate is not suitable, and the soil is not the same. What kind of soil is needed for a lemon? - this question inevitably arises for everyone who plans to grow lemons in a greenhouse or at home, and with whom we will try to figure it out in this article.

Lemon is a capricious plant and will not grow in any soil. If you just bring land from a garden or vegetable garden and plant a tree in it, it will not take root and will soon die. The type of soil itself for lemon is not so fundamental - it can be loose (not very fat) chernozem or fertile loamy soil. The main thing is that it is not heavy, since moisture is poorly distributed in such soil and moisture evaporates, which can cause lemon roots to die from drying out or rot from excessive moisture.

To grow lemon at home, you can use special potting mixes for citrus plants or universal mixes enriched with organic matter, preferably without peat. If the soil is prepared on its own, then you need to remember that at different stages of growth lemon needs different composition substrate. A mixture of turf and deciduous land in equal proportions with the addition of a small part of the sand. As the tree grows, the amount of sod land increases - with each transplant, it should be taken 1 part more.

The land for planting lemon must be freshly prepared - you cannot use the land after growing other plants, for example, indoor flowers. This is due to the fact that each plant has its own diseases and pests, so you should not endanger the delicate plant. It is also important to know that lemon develops better in soil with neutral acidity (pH 5.5-7).

Every 2-3 years, the lemon tree is transplanted into a larger pot with a fresh substrate (from the previous one you can leave only a lump of soil on the roots). Homemade lemon care includes periodic loosening of the topsoil after irrigation and deeper loosening every 2-3 months - these measures enrich the soil with oxygen and improve its access to thin lemon roots.

Essential minerals

Lemon is one of those plants for which an excess of nutrients is more harmful than a lack of them, so you should not be especially zealous with fertilizing the soil before planting. If humus was added to the substrate, then there is no more need for nitrogen fertilization, and this element becomes more necessary only in spring. As for the ready-made potting mixes marked "For citrus fruits", their composition is completely balanced and meets all the needs of a young plant, so you should not add anything else when planting.

Self-prepared substrate can be enriched with wood ash (1-2 tablespoons per pot). This wood combustion product contains almost the entire chemical table - up to 30 trace elements, potassium, phosphorus, as well as calcium and magnesium. Equally useful is the addition of crushed charcoal to the substrate, which will give all the minerals it contains to the soil. If these components are not there, then you can ennoble the soil for lemon with fertilizers containing a complex of minerals and trace elements: Rainbow, Ideal, Lemon.

How to determine the quality of soil and what to look for

As mentioned above, the "correct" potting mix for lemon should be loose enough, free of impurities and have a neutral reaction. How to determine what it is exactly like this, if the substrate was bought in a store or as cooked with your own hands, there is no certainty.

First of all, you need to take a handful of earth and squeeze it in your hand. The correct substrate from squeezing should not turn into a lump or crumble through your fingers. The soil is considered good, the grains of which stick to each other, but then slowly crumble. As for the determination of acidity, there are several ways for this, the simplest of which is a special indicator - a litmus strip.

The procedure for checking acidity with a litmus indicator is as follows:

the soil must be well moistened with distilled (rain or melt) water;
then firmly attach a test strip to it and get the result: the acquisition of red and all shades of pink by the paper indicates an acidic reaction of the soil, greenish-yellow and greenish-gray indicates that the pH is close to neutral, all shades of blue and blue mean that the soil is alkaline.

It also doesn't hurt to check the soil for oily impurities, as they can cause serious harm to the lemon. This can be done as follows: pour a handful of earth with water, wait until it settles to the bottom, and then inspect the surface of the liquid. Absence of water on the surface greasy stains indicates that there are no oil products in the substrate.

Selection of substrate

When choosing a ready-made potting mix, you need to pay attention to its composition. Usually, for citrus crops in stores, a substrate is offered, to which all the necessary fertilizers, minerals and trace elements have already been added, which is very convenient.

But it's not so much about the additives as about the components of the mixture itself. As a rule, a certain part of peat is present in any ready-made substrate. This organic material is added to give the mixture a friability, but over time, the peat leads to an increase in the acidity of the soil, which for indoor lemon highly undesirable.

When choosing such a substrate, carefully read its composition, and if it contains no more than 10% peat, then the mixture can be used for transplanting an adult lemon tree... It is not worth purchasing such a soil for a small lemon, and even more so for a seedling. In this case, it is better to prepare the potting mix yourself from the following components:

Growing lemon in a greenhouse will require a lot of potting soil. Ideally, if the greenhouse for your lemon is located in an area with good fertile soil. Then the soil will need to be well dug to a depth of 25–30 cm, and leafy soil (you can use well-rotted manure) and sand should be added in the required amount. If the greenhouse is located in the wrong place, then the task becomes more complicated, since the top layer of the earth will have to be removed by 20–25 cm, and this space should be filled with the “correct” substrate.

Kira Stoletova

Citrus trees are often grown at home. These are capricious plants that require special care. It begins with the question of how to choose and prepare the right soil for citrus fruits.

Soil characteristics

Caring for citrus fruits begins with selecting the ideal soil for them. It should be as close as possible to the composition of the soil on which these plants grow in natural conditions... To do this, use light, loose, water and air permeable soil. Heavy soils with clayey constituents prevent water and air from reaching the root system and are therefore not suitable for such purposes. Excessively light peatlands also do not have the necessary characteristics for growing plants, in contrast to loams and sandstones.

In a substrate suitable for growing citrus, set low level acidity. Lemons and other members of the species prefer neutral soils or close to neutral ones, with a pH of 6-7 units. High acidity or alkalinity of the earth leads to the rapid aging of the plant.

In the soil, using litmus paper, the level of hydrogen ions is determined: they regulate acidity.

An improvised way is to check with currant leaves. A few leaves of black currant are placed in a jar, poured hot water... After cooling down, a small lump of earth is thrown into the infusion. A change in the color of the water to reddish is evidence of a high acidity index.

The filled pot should help the crops grow. Drainage is initially placed on its bottom. The density of the substrate should allow the development of the root system. If the root bends around the entire clod of earth and makes its way through the hole at the bottom of the container, it is time to replant the tree, having worked well on the looseness of the soil and its mineral storage.

Substrate constituents

It is impossible to find suitable land for growing citrus fruits in our latitudes. It is preferable to make special soil mixtures yourself. Often for this purpose, purchased soil is used, designated for lemons, but it uses its potential after 1-1.5 years, then it is changed. Such frequent transplants are not recommended for plants.

The key ingredients for mixing a comfortable substrate for these trees are:

Garden soil, preferably old, which is formed under fruit trees and bushes. It has a special nutritional value at a distance of half a meter from the trunk of a tree, namely a layer 7 cm thick. The soil from molehills is even more appreciated: it is neutral in acidity, free from the remnants of roots and insects, light, crumbly. Such land is prepared in summer by sifting through a sieve.
Sod is a soil layer that is located under perennial forbs: chamomile, clover, timothy, bluegrass, etc. - in meadows and pastures. Grasses growing there choose neutral or slightly acidic soil. Sod on a sandy basis is suitable for growing, it is lighter, with exposure under a dark film for at least 2 years. To use, sod is sifted through a sieve, removing excess roots and stems. The acidity is reduced by adding lime or wood ash.
Leafy soil is a layer of humus of fallen leaves of maple, oak, birch, linden and other trees growing away from cities and highways. It is possible to prepare such a soil on your own, raking leaves in a heap, pouring liquid manure and water and waiting 2 years. More often, the thickness of the earth is removed in a deciduous forest directly under a layer of last year's green mass. To lower the acidity, lime is added at the rate of 500 g per 1 m³.
Peat land results from the mixing of decomposed peat from raised bogs and humus. Such soil reaches full readiness in 3 years. Its acidity level is slightly higher, therefore lime is used for neutralization - 3 kg / m³ or wood ash - 9 kg / m³. Peat soil is designed to improve the structure of the substrate, increase the function of absorbing and retaining moisture.
Compost is the result of natural decomposition of organic waste, mainly of plant origin. It is prepared in a special pit using the means intended for this for 2 years. Before use, the compost is sieved and steamed to disinfect and get rid of weed seeds.
Manure humus is formed after complete decomposition of manure waste. Its quality depends on the source material. Horse humus is considered the best for citrus fruits. In the substrate, this component is used to saturate it with useful elements and enrich it.
River or lake sand is added to the substrate as a component capable of imparting lightness, friability, and enhancing the air permeability of the soil. It is a prophylactic agent against fungus and rot of the root system, perfectly retains moisture and heat. For this purpose, only coarse, pre-washed sand is suitable.

Preparing the soil for citrus fruits

Before starting planting, it is important to mix all the ingredients correctly in order to obtain a suitable substrate. For this purpose, fertile lands and elements diluting them, as well as fertilizer, are used. A successful citrus planting depends on the gardener's meticulousness when mixing the ingredients.

There are several recipes for this. Leafy earth, turf and humus in equal parts are mixed with river sand, which is taken in an amount of not more than 10% of the total mass of the mixture, 200 g of superphosphate is added there. One part of the peat soil is added to this composition.

You can increase the nutritional value of the substrate by increasing the part of the leafy land. The composition of the substrate, which includes 2 parts garden soil, one part of peat and sand, are enriched with the addition of manure or humus in the amount of 10th part of the total volume.

The prepared substrates are thoroughly mixed and disinfected. To do this, the soil is calcined in an oven at a temperature of 80 ° C-90 ° C for 60 minutes. or boil in water (take 8 kg of the mixture per 1 liter of liquid) for half an hour. This method removes the soil from pathogenic bacteria, harmful fungal and infectious diseases, insects and worms. Such an action also worsens the general microflora of the earth, therefore, parts of the substrate that can be dangerous are subjected to such preventive methods.

Citrus soil can also contain artificial ingredients. These are rock minerals and rocks that are industrially processed. These include perlite, vermiculite, expanded clay and dolomite. These materials are used to drain the soil, improve air outflow and create porosity in the soil, to maintain moisture, as well as to saturate the elements necessary for plant nutrition.

Mineral enrichment of soil

The fertility and endurance of trees is provided by a substrate rich in mineral components. Some representatives of these plants cease to bear fruit or slow down the ability to actively grow without some of the substances they need. It is important to add top dressing to the composition of the substrate both before planting and during the active growth of citrus fruits.

For these purposes, ground charcoal is suitable, which is able to increase the immunity of plants to fungal and putrefactive formations. They reduce the acidity of the soil and provide the root system with lime and wood ash with active elements. Sulfates and ammonia fertilizers help to improve the palatability of the fruit and increase the ability to grow green mass of trees. Using them in the proportions appropriate for each variety and at the right time will ensure citrus flowering at home.

OWN CITRUS PRIMER

Potting soil, citrus soil

How to prepare citrus soil

Conclusion

The composition of the soil when planting citrus crops plays an important role. At home, they use ready-made mixtures, but soil mixtures are used to increase the efficiency of the work. The substrate should be filled with useful elements as much as possible and prepared for planting citrus fruits.

Transplanting a lemon at home is a simple matter, but the importance of this procedure is difficult to overestimate. The correct transplant will allow your citrus to add to the pace of development, but if you do something wrong, the lemon may even die. Follow all the rules and enjoy the blooming lemon on your windowsill.

Pictured is a lemon tree

After the purchase. Raise the pot - if the roots are sticking out of the drainage holes, then it's time to transplant into a larger pot! If the roots are not visible, and the plant itself looks like an unsightly stem with several leaves (this is how collectors sometimes sell rooted cuttings good varieties), it is better to wait with a transplant .. If in doubt, moisten a lump with water, let it drain well and, tilting the pot to one side, try to gently remove the lump. If roots piercing a lump are visible from all sides, transplant. If the roots are not visible, the lump is trying to fall apart - we leave it in an old pot or transfer it to the same size. If the lump smells like rot, clean the roots and transplant into a smaller or similar pot. If the roots are only at the bottom, they can be transplanted into a deeper pot.

Important! Immediately after the purchase, we send the plant to quarantine - we put it aside from other plants for a week and, ideally, we treat it with Actellik or Fufanon, since at the wholesale centers where your lemon has been for some time, it is likely infected with a spider mite - a pest as subtle as it is unpleasant.

Lemon transplant video

The pot is broken. Raise the plant carefully, trying to keep the ball intact. Before purchasing a new pot of the same or slightly larger size, you can wrap the lump with a damp cloth and put it in a bag, but do not leave the plant in this form for more than a day! When transplanting, carefully trim the broken horses and twigs, sprinkle the roots with crushed coal or Kornevin. If a ceramic pot is broken, the shards are great for drainage.

For a long-growing lemon, the roots became visible near the trunk or on the surface - sprinkle a little on top (just cover the roots) with soil and do not water with a strong stream under the root. If the lemon has not been transplanted for a year, but it is growing, you can first transplant, then add.

The plant withers, it smells of rot from the pot, earthen fleas can start up - urgently replant, carefully removing and replacing part of the soil, cut off rotten roots to healthy tissue and sprinkle with crushed coal or Kornevin. Take a new pot or disinfect the old one. When transplanting, fresh drainage should be put in. Cut off some of the branches so that it is easier for the weakened root system to provide the crown with nutrients. If it does not smell of rot yet, but you have doubts, you can stick a wooden stick into the ground between waterings: if the lump does not dry out in the depths, it will damp.

In the photo there is a lemon for transplant

It seems to you that it is time to replant. If your lemon does not actively grow, does not bloom and does not bear fruit, and it is not the darkest months of November-December outside and the plant is healthy, then boldly (but carefully) remove the clod from the pot and determine the need for transplanting yourself. Remember? The lump is entangled in roots - we transplant it into a larger volume, the roots are visible in places - we transfer it into the same.

Any material is suitable - plastic, ceramics, wood. It is only important to ensure good drainage. For adult plants, wooden cone-shaped tubs are desirable.

The size of the pot during transshipment should remain practically the same: we increase the pot by no more than 2-4 cm, the tub - by 4-8 cm in diameter.

A very important quality of a lemon pot is the ability to check if the water is stagnant at the bottom. Therefore, a pot with a flat bottom is definitely preferable to a planter.

In the photo pots

Stylistically, lemons look very appropriate in ceramic pots, white or terracotta, with or without a pattern. However, it is necessary to take into account in which pots the flowers standing next to grow, so that the composition looks harmonious.

Choosing a soil for your lemon

If you like to do everything yourself, you can make the soil for indoor lemon from 3 parts of disinfected soil, 1 part of humus and 1 part of river sand. But you can buy ready-made soil with a neutral reaction, for example, Lemon soil. When buying soil, do not forget about drainage.

After the transplant, the nutrients will be enough for him for six months. Then you can feed with fertilizers - organic or mineral, but not containing chlorine.

The optimal time for transplanting is the second half of February, before the start of active growth or in the summer between two growth waves.

When transplanting lemon at home, put a crock on the drainage hole of the pot so that the water can drain freely, pour the drainage (usually expanded clay, large or medium) about 1/5 of the height of the pot. It would be good to add river sand from above. Then add some soil.

In the photo, a lemon transplant

We take out the lemon from the old pot, examine the root system. If rotten roots are visible (they darken, sometimes lick, the bark easily lags behind the root), they must be carefully removed and the lump dried. In any case, it is not harmful to dust the roots with the root formation stimulant Kornevin.

We make a deepening in the soil poured onto the drainage. We put the ball in a new pot, check that the root collar (the place where the trunk becomes the root, ground level) is almost at the level (slightly below) the edges of the pot. If the lump has risen too low, we fill the ground down, if it is too high, we deepen the hole.

Little by little, layer by layer, add soil along the edges, trying to keep the trunk exactly in the middle of the pot. We seal it with our hands or a stick so that no air bubbles remain.

We pour with settled water, slightly loosen the soil surface ... Voila! You just transplanted your lemon yourself!

Lemon tree transplant video

To make the plant easier to endure the stress associated with transplanting, you can spray it with the stimulant Zircon and cover it with a plastic bag for a week.

But the most important secret is that you need to take care of the lemon with love, and it will not hesitate to please you with a lush crown and abundant flowering.