Good drainage, protection from wind and consistent watering are the keys to healthy citrus, writes gardening columnist JACKIE WARBURTON.
Citrus trees can be a little fussy to grow in our climate. Through winter their foliage can turn yellow under stress, but it will usually green up again in the warmer months of the year.
The most important factors in successfully growing citrus are good drainage, protection from the wind and consistent watering.
Citrus can be grown in pots, but they need a little more care than trees planted in the ground. Use a good-quality citrus potting mix with as much organic compost as you can.
All citrus will benefit from an addition of manure in the next month or so. Once the soil warms, the nutrients will become available and spring growth will be off to a good start.
While most citrus begin their flowering growth early in spring, now is the time to spray for summer pests such as stink bugs, aphids and citrus bud mites.
Citrus stink bugs are small and orange when young, turning black as they mature through summer. If disturbed, they spray a caustic chemical that can kill young fruit and new tip growth. It can also burn skin if it comes into contact with it.
Black citrus aphids can cause shoot tips to wilt and leaves to curl. Small infestations are easily controlled by squashing the insects by hand. If the infestation is too great, an organic insecticide can be used.
An issue I have seen more recently is citrus bud mite. This mite is difficult to see with the naked eye, but the damage is clearly visible through severe distortion of flowers and fruit.
The mites are small, cream in colour and feed on flower buds early in spring. If the buds survive, the resulting fruit is often badly deformed.
Citrus bud mites can multiply rapidly in a single season, causing unusual fruit growth and deformity. Fortunately, the fruit is still edible, but the skins should be disposed of in the green bin rather than the home composting system. If there is deformed fruit on the tree, remove it to help prevent mites infecting new flowers and fruit.
All of these problems can be controlled by applying eco oil to the bark, leaves and stems of citrus trees every few weeks until the flowers open.
FLOWERING now in the garden are the wattles and grevilleas. With careful planning they can provide a brilliant display while attracting bees early in spring, when fruit trees need pollinating.
Wattles produce brilliant yellow flowers in time for Wattle Day on the first day of spring (September 1). They contrast beautifully with grevilleas such as Lady “O”, with its vibrant fire-engine red, spider-like flowers. Given enough protection and the right position, this medium-sized shrub will flower for many months of the year.
This shrub grows to about 1.5 metres tall and, once established, is easy to care for. While it is a cross between G. victoriae and G. rhyolitica, it is now one of the best-recognised grevilleas for growing in our region.
Like all grevilleas, it needs good drainage. Once established it requires very little care. A light clip after flowering will keep it in shape. Avoid hard pruning; a little, done often, is the key to keeping it compact and flowering well.
Yellowing leaves on grevilleas can indicate an iron deficiency. This can be corrected by applying iron chelate or a native fertiliser such as Bush Tucker for Native Plants, sprinkled lightly around the base of the shrub and watered in.
Jottings
- Add lime to asparagus before they emerge in spring.
- Continue to pick leafy greens in the vegetable patch.
- Sow seeds of zucchini, pumpkins and cucumbers.
- Remove sticky weed before it sets flower.
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