Hello, This is my first post on this forum. I'm fairly new to gardening and my garden is limited to several much loved pots on a small balcony. The most precious of my plants is a lovely Meyer Lemon tree which has been attacked by sooty mould and scale. I've just finished washing each leaf individually and am surprised at the result. Most of the damage just washed away! I've spayed it with white oil, but I'm wondering how often I need to do this, and whether it's okay for the fruit. It's not a poison is it? I just love the look of the bright yellow lemons against the blue sky... and they're so versatile too. Any hints on how to maintain the health of the tree would be welcome. Lemon Lover
Hello DRichard12, Thank you for your reply, it's much appreciated. I live in Sydney Australia and since reading your reply I've been trying to hunt down SaferSoap on the Australian pages of the internet. So far I've come up blank, but I figure I'll just continue with the warm soapy water that I used to get rid of the sooty mould. Many thanks for taking the time to respond to my request. Regards Lemon Lover
Lemon Lover, for the control of scale, aphids, and mealy bug, you can use either a soap type spray, or white oil spray. World wide the number one spray by far used by the citrus industry for the control of citrus insects are oils. Absolutely, NO commercial grower any where, in any citrus district of the world, would use soap sprays. White Oil is completely 100 percent non-toxic, extremely safe, and highly effective. Scale, aphid and mealy bug is normally controlled with just one white oil application . Another beneficial use of oil sprays is that they also retard leaf miners and white fly from laying eggs on the leaves. Soap sprays are used by some home citrus growers, and soap sprays do work with repeated applications. However, when using soap you need to make at least two or three sprays at one week intervals, in order to get control. The main problem with soaps is the soap film left behind on the leaf surface. Because of the residue left by soap, Purdue University advises not to make repeated applications to citrus over a short period of time. The reason that the sooty mold came off so easy, is that white oils emulsifies the mold, there by making it easy to either wash, or merely flush off the leaves. The sooty mold develops on the sticky excreations of scale, mealy bug and aphids. Control these insects, and your tree will never be bothered by sooty mold. When ever spraying a citrus tree, always spray very early in the morning, or late in the evening. Never spray a citrus tree in the heat of the day. You, can use either type of spray. I always use oil, it works much, much better. Take care and enjoy your tree. - Millet
Many thanks Millet for your informative post. I'm hopeful that all will be well with my lemon tree. Now to finding some great lemon recipes! No shortage of those on the net. With thanks Lemon lover
As for hints on maintaining a healthy tree, how are you fertilizing? Does the fertilizer have trace minerals?
Hi Skeeterbug, Thanks for your reply. I've used 'Osmocote Plus'. It says it's specially developed for lemon trees. The 'plus' refers to trace elements... so I'm guessing that's a good thing. The tree looks pretty good now, I just wish I hadn't panicked and cut away a sizeable portion of it. It's ruined the balance of it... its aesthetic appeal. I think I read in another posting (after the event of course!) that pruning lemon trees isn't such a good idea. What d'you reckon? Lemon lover.
That should be a good fertilizer for your tree. Trace minerals are essential for container citrus--and sometimes for inground trees in mineral poor soil (like mine). Yes, the pruning will set back the fruit production, but citrus have a good habit of returning to their natural shape.
