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Nothing compares to the pleasure of having a lemon tree in your garden. These look stunning and can transform any room into a summer wonderland. They are, however, not immune to pests and diseases.
They’re sensitive to various pests and diseases that, if not managed promptly, might result in no fruit at all by the end of the growing season.
To learn more about all of these problems and how to help fix them, stroll as we have a lot of knowledge to share with you.
Top 7 Lemon Tree Problems You Should Know
The top 7 lemon tree problems to watch out for and the best preventive measures to take are listed below.
1. Sooty Mold Fungus
Sooty mold is a common disease that affects many plants, especially those that are attractive to aphids. Lemon trees aren’t any different. Sooty mold grows on honeydew, the sticky fluid released by aphids.
Though it is not harmful to plants, this mold prevents photosynthesis, which has severe effects. A severe aphid infestation will harm and damage your lemon tree.
So, if you have an aphid and sooty mold problem, you’ll detect it quickly because you will notice that the lemon tree’s foliage and branches will seem ash-dusted and greasy.
Read More: How Much Water Do Lemon Trees Need?
Preventive Measures
A. Eliminating aphids is one of the greatest methods to keep sooty mold from taking over your lemon tree. They are a simple pest to get rid of in your garden. Just take them from the leaves of your lemon tree and place them in a bowl of soapy water.
B. Another useful tip is to spray them off your leaves using a water spray bottle. As an extra aphid-killing strategy, alcohol sprays and horticultural oils can be mixed into the spray container. You may also use them to remove aphids from diseased leaves and branches.
C. You may also spray neem oil pesticide on the lemon tree’s leaves, both the top and bottom. Depending on the extent of the infection, you should repeat the procedure in 10 to 14 days. After that, use liquid copper fungicides to treat mold infestation.
D. Introducing natural aphid predators is another excellent method for eliminating aphids and, as a result, avoiding sooty mold. Ladybugs are excellent aphid eaters that do not harm your plants or other beneficial insects.
2. Citrus Canker
Citrus canker is one of the most damaging lemon tree diseases. Citrus canker develops on the leaves of your lemon tree. On both sides of the leaves, little sores appear.
These cankers or spots resemble water stains and are surrounded by a golden ring. If left untreated, they will spread to the stems and fruits.
Citrus canker infections are not dangerous to people, but they will inflict damage on your lemon tree and other citrus trees. Citrus canker symptoms include defoliation, fruit loss, and shoot dieback when allowed to spread.
This disease spreads fast by plant tool contamination, wind, and rain. Citrus canker can be transmitted through the movement of infected plants and even birds.
Citrus canker bacteria can survive for 10 months on diseased tree leaves, plant debris, and bark, making control difficult.
Preventive Measures
A. Preventive copper bactericides are often used, along with regular garden maintenance. You could even breed resistant cultivars.
B. If you notice a citrus canker infection, you will have no option but to uproot your lemon tree.
3. Botrytis Blight
Botrytis blight is surely nothing new to experienced gardeners.
Botrytis cinerea, the fungus that causes this disease, thrives in high humidity and is most common after heavy rains. It feeds on diseased plant waste and spreads quickly by wind and rain. It only requires a little moisture to germinate once it arrives on your lemon tree.
This fungus attacks lemon tree leaves, tiny branches, blooms, and even lemons, leaving a brown or gray fuzzy mold and dark brown patches in its wake. Flowers wither and fruit somehow doesn’t set. This gray mold infects already-set fruit and causes the branches to die back.
Preventive Measures
A. Botrytis blight may be easily avoided. Lemon trees planted in the sunniest part of the yard and properly spaced reduce some of the conditions that allow botrytis blight to grow. Your lemon tree dries faster in the sun and with adequate air circulation.
B. You should constantly maintain proper garden hygiene, especially if you want to prevent diseases like botrytis blight.
C. To avoid disease, eliminate unwanted leaves and plant debris. Nonetheless, be cautious while handling contaminated material during damp weather.
D. If you notice botrytis blight on the leaves of your lemon tree, remove it immediately. When you’re through, make sure you clean your pruning shears.
4. Anthracnose
Anthracnose is another fungal disease to keep an eye out for. It, like botrytis blight, affects leaves, branches, twigs, and stains lemons.
Anthracnose is simple to identify. It appears as odd-colored lesions on afflicted regions, like leaves and branches, as with most fungal infections. These spots are browned with a black border, resembling a healed bruise. When the fungus spreads, the middles of these lesions eventually become dark, and little black specks develop.
Anthracnose on lemon fruits appears slightly different. The lesions are frequently deep and sickly brown. When it spreads throughout the fruit, the core of the spores becomes pink, causing the fruit to perish. Tiny twigs and infant shoots are also harmed, resulting in dieback and defoliation.
Anthracnose thrives in environments that are chilly, moist, and humid. It spreads swiftly and readily, especially during the wettest months of the year. Water dripping off contaminated plant waste aids the spread of this disease to your lemon tree.
Preventive Measures
A. Anthracnose, as deadly as it is, is easily controllable. Just clean off any plant debris from the base of your lemon tree. After that, you must prune and discard all contaminated wood, twigs, and leaves.
B. Correct watering methods and lemon tree maintenance aid in the prevention of anthracnose.
C. To prevent the fungus from taking root, you should apply copper-based fungicides and neem oil.
D. Nevertheless, pesticides have an impact on beneficial insects, sometimes injuring them and preventing them from settling in your garden, so only use them as a last option.
5. Chlorosis
If you see yellowing on your lemon tree leaves, it might mean that your plant has chlorosis.
The yellowing of leaves can be caused by a variety of factors. It might be due to inadequate drainage or alkaline soil. Chlorosis can also be caused by compacted soil and damaged roots.
But still, you may occasionally observe yellow veins coursing across your lush green foliage. This type of chlorosis, known as yellow vein chlorosis, might indicate a nitrogen shortage in your tree. So do well to raise the nitrogen levels on your next fertilization day, and your tree will take care of itself.
Yellow vein chlorosis can also be caused by stress to your lemon tree. This occurrence might be caused by physical damage by garden equipment, pests, or diseases.
Preventive Measures
A. Always use caution with your gardening tools, keep your garden clean, and properly care for your lemon tree.
B. Make sure you’re also taking care of pests and diseases. Chlorosis, especially if caused by trauma, can result in fruit drop and defoliation.
6. Citrus Leaf Miner
Citrus leaf miners are Asian tiny moths. The larvae of moths are the ones to be concerned about, not the adults. Since they tunnel over citrus leaves, producing silvery tracks running across your lemon tree leaves, these little parasites have earned their unusual moniker. These leaves eventually become twisted, affecting the development of newer leaves.
Mature citrus leaf miners are tiny and easily overlooked. These silver moths have a black mark on the ends of their scaled wings. Larvae are the same size as adults but have a glassy greenish tint.
Female moths commonly deposit their eggs on the undersides of leaves. Pupation takes less than a month and takes place within the leaf border. You’ll observe their trails all over your leaves in as little as a week.
It is important to keep in mind that these pests only damage the foliage and not the fruit itself. Nevertheless, immature lemon trees are especially vulnerable, with the citrus minor infesting the young leaves. The development of your lemon tree will be hindered if left untreated.
Preventive Measures
The suitable technique to deal with citrus leaf minors is to introduce beneficial insects. Not all bugs are dangerous. Some eat the troublesome insects that are ruining your plants.
Parasitic wasps and spiders are excellent insects to introduce into your garden. They may destroy the great majority of larvae and pupae in just a few days.
7. Lemon Scab
Fungal infections appear to be like lemons in the same way that humans do. This fungal infection does not affect the fruit, which can still be eaten. Nevertheless, if you leave your tree fully untreated, its health will decrease, diminishing its ability to grow.
Lemon scabs resemble unsightly brown scabs. They begin as little pustules, but as the disease progresses, they take on a scab-like appearance.
Preventive Measures
A. The first thing you should do is strive to maintain good garden cleanliness and proper watering procedures.
B. Additionally, instead of using toxic fungicides that may harm other plants in your garden, cut down the afflicted tree.
FAQs
1. How Do You Get Rid Of Lemon Tree Disease?
The citrus stubborn disease is most likely to affect lemon trees that are less than six years old. Once a lemon tree is infected, the only thing you can do is remove the infected tree and replace it with a healthy plant.
2. What Are The Diseases Of Lemon?
The most common diseases in these areas are melanosis, lemon scab, brown rot, collar rot, sooty blotch, Phytophthora root rots, and Armillaria. In these regions, lemon trees require regular application of protectant copper sprays to keep fruit clean.
3. How Do You Treat Lemon Tree Nutrient Deficiency?
When dealing with Nitrogen Deficiency in Citrus, you will see nitrogen deficiencies, particularly in early spring and winter because of the tree’s low nitrogen reserves and cooler soil temperatures.
The application of a nitrogen-rich fertilizer like pelletized chicken manure will help correct the problem.
4. How Do You Treat Yellow Leaves On A Lemon Tree?
Treat yellow leaves by fertilizing your lemon tree with an ample dose of nitrogen or micronutrients such as zinc, iron, and manganese, which are likely the most probable causes of discoloring the leaves.
5. What Is The Best Fungicide For Citrus Trees?
Amistar® Top fungicide offers citrus growers reliable, sustainable, and robust disease control for many important fungal diseases of citrus.
It is a combination of the strobilurin fungicide (Group 11), azoxystrobin, and the triazole fungicide (Group 3), difenoconazole.
6. Why Is My Lemon Tree Losing All Its Leaves?
Leaf drops can be caused by soggy soil and water that stagnates in the tray. So make sure to dump it out after a good, long soak.
You’ll know it is time to water when the soil is dry a couple of inches down into the pot.
7. Can A Lemon Tree Recover?
It is not uncommon for certain trees to go dormant for a season as they recuperate from particularly extensive frost damage.
However, most lemon trees fully recover from frost damage and go on to bear fruit normally if you provide them with the right care.
Conclusion
Lemon trees make really good complements to any garden that has room for them. Though they might appear to have numerous problems, don’t let that discourage you from growing them.
They are very simple to maintain and produce rapidly. And hence, whether the problem is a fungal disease, a shortage, or a pest, there is usually a treatment that we have taken enlightened you about.
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