Meyer Lemon tree, excellent home fruit tree

   Citrus "Meyer" lemons are one of the most, if not the most, popular citrus tree for home gardens.    They are also one of the most purchased lemons for use in cooking.   You can grow Meyer citrus lemons yourself at home.   Due to the fact that the Meyer Lemon is a hardy, small tree and produces heaps of fruit, makes it one of the best Lemons for the home garden.   Generally speaking the Meyer lemon tree grows to around 4m (13ft) tall, which makes it one of the smaller lemon trees.   As a result it can also be grown in espalier form (up against a wall) or in large pots.   Many gardeners choose to grow them in large pots, tubs or containers, like half wine barrels.    There are also many new dwarf varieties which grow around 1.5 to 2 m.   These are designed for small areas or pots, or the gardener with limited space.   The majority of these dwarf Meyer citrus trees are good producers, and you would be hard pressed to tell the difference from the larger Meyer fruit.    Meyer lemon fruit is smooth and thin skinned, the fruit are not as large as Eureka or Lisbon, but are a more attractive looking fruit, possibly the reason they are more popular at the supermarket.  

Citrus Meyer lemon, climate for growing

   Like most citrus, Meyer lemons prefer Temperate, Warm temperate, Mediterranean (and where allows, cool temperate, with less production) climates.   Meyer lemons prefer mild winters and warm summers and avoid areas with heavy frosts (as it burns the new growth).    They are actually a very hardy tree and can withstand dry periods,  however, during very dry times trees will stress and drop fruit, so maintain moisture during dry spells.    So, if your tree suddenly drops fruit, check soil moisture.   We find that using a moisture soil probe is the best way to find out if the soil is dry deeper down (if you would like to buy one we sell them for $18- just email us).   If you are planting a Meyer lemon at home, find the sunniest spot in the garden as citrus grow best in full sun. 

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Soils, how to fertilise citrus Meyer lemon

 The best soil for citrus lemon Meyer is a sandy loam (sandy soil with small amount of clay) and a good amount of organic matter.     This type of soil allows for good drainage, adequate moisture retention and the organic matter assists with the holding and movement of nutrients.    Although not all of us have this type of soil, you can do your best to improve the soil you have to get the best from your Meyer lemon.    If you have a clay soil you can dig through gypsum (slow acting clay breaker).   If you have sandy soil, you can bring in soil improver, compost etc and dig this in, if your tree is already established use it as a soil top dress.   Generally speaking the one thing you can do to improve your soil for citrus is to add manures.   We find that cow and sheep manure are the best to use when improving the soil.     These manures help break up heavy soils, hold moisture and gently fertilise.   Many people use chicken manure, however the draw back to this is that it turns the soil alkaline over time, it is a good fertiliser, but only use this now and then during the growing season. 

When it comes to fertilising your Meyer lemons you can use specialised granular citrus fertilisers, available from most nurseries.   These fertilisers are designed to provide a balanced amount of NPK and trace elements to make a healthy tree and good fruit.   You can also get specialised organic fertilisers designed for citrus, these are also very good.   It is best to fertilise before flowering time (in each area it is a little different, but generally spring and autumn).   Meyer lemons tend to have a growth spurt in early autumn and in spring (so these are good times to fertilise).

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Pest, growth problems citrus Meyer lemons

Generally speaking Meyer lemons have less pest problems then other lemon varieties if they are kept healthy.   However, there are a few pest and growth issues. You may not have these in your region, (you are lucky). 

Leaf miner pest, these make the leaves curl up and deform new growth. Generally Leaf miner are active in the cooler months and tend to leave a silver trail under the leaf.   They are one of the worst pests on citrus generally.   Regards treatment,  you can use white oil and water, which is a type of oil that blocks the breathing holes of the insects, it is considered to be passive control and regular spraying is required for it to work.   However, be aware there are other mixtures of white oil and certain chemicals available, before you go ahead and use these consult your local nurseryman. 

Scale insects, there are many types of these pests and they all do different damage.   Some are on the leaves (and also make leaves curl) and some other varieties will be on the stems, some are hard and brown, some are soft and white and some are waxy and black.   They all do the same thing, they suck the nutrients out of the plant and reduce the vigour of the plant.   Control is the same as above, use white oil over a long period, a number of treatments are required, please consult your nurseryman on this. 

Sap sucking insects, during the growing season (warm part of year) sap sucking bugs like the Bronze Orange Beetle (also know as stink bugs) and aphids attack Meyer Citrus.   Both can do damage to the new growth. There are many other types of bugs that also do similar damage.     There are chemical insecticides that can control these pests systemically and last a number of weeks. However, Pyrethrum and white oil and garlic sprays do a very good job as a knock down control (and have very little residual affect).   You can purchase these from nurseries, they are considered to be more natural ways to control these pests (you will have to treat the trees a number of times when using these type of sprays).

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