Overwinter citrus trees indoors in pots to protect them from cold weather until you may move them back outside .
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It ’s loose to grow potted citrus Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree on your patio when the weather is warm and sunny . However , when immobilise temperature are forecast for your field , it ’s sentence tomove your citrus plant indoorsbefore the moth-eaten snap hits . Citrus trees can not live outside yr - unit of ammunition in frost - prostrate place . Use these simple tip to successfully overwinter yourpotted lemonsand other type of citrus fruit trees indoors .
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1. Pot Up Your Citrus Trees
If you have n’t already pot your dwarf citrus tree diagram , choose potsto grow them in . A container that is 15 inches wide and 15 inches deep is a skillful size for a young citrus tree . Fill the pots with a well - draining potting mix and establish the Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree in the container to become established and hard before wintertime . The top of the grime surface should be 2 to 4 in below the container rim to make lachrymation easier .
2. Acclimate Trees to Indoor Lighting
provide enough light is a challenge when growing citrous fruit trees indoors . In the gloaming , acclimate your tree to lower light degree by progressively impress them to shadier spots for about three weeks before taking them indoors .
3. Inspect Trees for Insects
Before bringing your citrus tree tree indoors for the wintertime , check them for leaf miners , aphids , andscale louse . To get rid of these pests , spray the trees with organic horticultural vegetable oil or a strong stream of piss from the garden hosepipe .
4. Bring Trees Indoors Before Freezing Temperatures Arrive
Mostcitrus treesare vulnerable to inhuman weather when temperatures descend to 29 ° F for 30 hour or longer . To forefend yield and leafage passing , bring your potted citrus trees indoors when nighttime temperature get below 45 ° farad .
Citrus tree diagram , such as lemons , key birdlime , calamondin oranges , and kumquats , thrive in summer climates where casual temperatures are 70 ° F in the daytime and 50 ° F at night .
5. Find the Sunniest Spot in Your House
Place your Tree near a south - facing windowpane or in a shining sunporch so they can receive as much light as potential . Avoid temperature extremes by not placing your Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree near a heating vent , radiator , or outside room access that could let in cold air . If a tree start to flower , ensure the elbow room is at least 57 ° F so it can produce fruit .
6. Don’t Overwater
Citrus Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree do n’t like have “ wet feet , ” so it ’s important not to overwater them . Water your citrus tree trees when the top column inch or two of filth is ironic to the touch . ensure to exhaustively moisten the stain — just like you do when youwater your houseplant — and allow supererogatory piddle to drain away . Empty out dish antenna so the land does n’t get too soggy . Keeping your citrus Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree in a remains terra - cotta throne , which is somewhat aviation - permeable , can abbreviate excessively fuddled status too .
7. Provide Supplemental Humidity
Indoor heating lowers humidness levels and causes ironical gentle wind . In the wintertime , using a coolheaded - mist humidifier near your citrus tree can help keep leaves and efflorescence from dropping off too soon . Or if your central heating unit has an connected humidifier , make indisputable to rick it on in winter toboost indoor humidity levels .
8. Pollinate Blooms by Hand
If a tree blooms while indoors , you ’ll involve to pollinate it by hand if you require fruit to develop . To do this , lightly move a small creative person ’s brushing over the yellow pollen - report stamen until the brushing is coat with pollen . Then adjoin the thicket to the flower ’s primal pistil .
9. Thin the Fruits
Citrus trees in container are experience for produce more yield than they should . To ensure your tree produces quality fruit , thin to only four to six fruits per Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree in the first year . you could per annum increase the number of yield left on the tree by one or two after the first thinning .
10. Monitor the Trees’ Leaves
blue green leaves on a citrus tree show a tidy tree withadequate aliment . If your trees ’ leaves are off - vividness , fertilize them with a balanced , piss - soluble mathematical product . respectable tree diagram can be observe with a slow - releasegranular fertilizerevery two months .
11. Harvest Maturing Fruit
Many citrus fruits mature in nine months to one yr , but you should research when your specific variety of citrus fruit matures because harvesting times vary . Tasting the yield is a sure way to determine a yield ’s maturity . Relying on the yield ’s people of color to specify maturity is unmanageable since many fruits have fully colorise rinds months before they can be eaten . Lemons and limes can be harvested when they reach a desired size and juice mental object .
