source_buygrapefruits
Do you have a lunero lemon tree in the garden and you know it’s time to cut it down to keep it growing and producing more lemons? Do you know when to prune a lunero lemon tree? If you have not yet faced this care, and you want to do it in the best possible way, here we tell you what you should take into account.
Find out when is the best time, how to do it, what mistakes you should not make and, of course, the benefits you will get from pruning a lunero lemon tree. Shall we get to work?
When is the best time to prune a lunero lemon tree?
Fuente_limonero.me
Giving you a specific date or months to prune a lunero lemon tree is not easy. And not because each year it will depend on certain dates or conditions, but it will very much depend on the state in which this fruit tree is.
When the lunero lemon tree is young, you can prune it at any time of the year except when there are forecast frosts. If this happens, it is best to avoid them. Also, being young, you won’t have to prune it a lot, just remove the branches that form badly, that come out of the formation you want it to have…
Now, if the lemon tree is already large, bearing fruit and flowers during the year, the ideal time to prune it is when it stops producing lemons.
Although one of the characteristics of the lunero lemon tree is that it bears fruit all year round, this is not the case. When cold temperatures arrive, it is normal for it to stop, and the same can happen in summer, with excessive heat.
For this reason, there are two periods when one can venture into pruning: January or February, when the cold season begins to end; or June or July will be when I stop adding lemons for a few months (the strongest of summer) to continue later.
Tips for properly pruning a lunero lemon tree
Photo source when to prune a lemon tree lunero_environment
Now that you know when to prune a lunero lemon tree, it can be even more difficult, especially if you’ve never done it before. In general, unless you do something crazy, he will resist anything you throw at him. But it doesn’t hurt to follow a few tips that will help you.
Have all the tools at hand
When pruning, you should keep in mind that you will need several tools. Two of them, indispensable, are the anvil shears and the serrated shears, to cut thin and thick branches respectively.
In addition, you need a ladder if the fruit tree is too high, as well as gloves and protective glasses. It even looks like some long-sleeved clothes and a little thick because the branches of lemon trees usually have a few “needles” that can easily scratch you.
You should keep in mind that these tools should be sterilized and sharp. And you shouldn’t use them for multiple lemon trees. Each time you finish with one, you will need to disinfect them before cutting the next one so that diseases or pests do not spread between them.
steps to prune
With the tools ready to go, the next thing you need is to follow a series of steps to prune the lunero lemon tree. And in this case you will start with the dry branches. These no longer serve the fruit tree and yet they steal some of its energy, so get rid of them.
Once you’re done, start removing the lower branches, any that stick out of the lower trunk, or touch the ground. If you leave them, it will steal energy for the larger ones, in addition to the fact that, if they bear fruit, the lemons will fall in weight to the ground and then rot.
Like low ones, tall ones that grow vertically completely straight are also not good, as they do not benefit the tree. They will therefore be the next to be removed. Here you can see that there are many more, so if you see that there are too many, you can cut just a few and at another time the following ones.
The important thing is that you choose three main branches that support the full weight of the lemon tree, and through these you will create the secondary branches for it to bear fruit and develop properly.. Of course, it is inconvenient that they are too long, it is better if they remain short (about 20-30 centimeters).
Keep in mind that it should not be pruned by more than 30%, as this will only harm the health of the lemon tree.
The benefits of pruning the lunero lemon tree
As you know, pruning is one of the main cares for plants. Almost all of them. But this not only serves to leave it aesthetically good, so as not to lose training, but this has several advantages to take into account:
Disinfect it. Because we clean it of dead, diseased branches or those that can cause present or future problems in the tree.
ventilate Do you remember those branches we told you about that can cause problems? When the lemon tree generates too many branches that intertwine with each other, what they cause is that hardly any air passes through, and therefore there are parts in which the tree is always at shade or do not feed. And in the end he dies. Well, with the pruning this is avoided as it allows air to filter through its interior.
Increase in the production of lemons. Because by eliminating the branches that absorbed nutrients and energy (even if they did not use it), we give more strength to those that can harvest. Which implies that it will flower more profusely and bear more fruit.
You avoid pests and diseases. Especially since you know the fruit tree and can tell if it has a problem. If so, you will be able to act faster than if you were not paying attention.
Common mistakes when pruning a lunero lemon tree and how to avoid them
source_environment
Finally, we want to leave you with some of the common mistakes that occur when pruning a lunero lemon tree.
Cut too much As we have already told you, you should not prune more than 30% of the tree. If you prune too much, you risk the fruit tree becoming diseased or stressed, which will prevent it from producing flowers and fruit. So try not to prune too much, even when you need to. It is best to do this several times.
Cut and do not treat. Sometimes quite thick branches are pruned. The problem is that you can leave the wounds open and serve as pests and fungus to make your fruit tree sick. To avoid this, seal larger cuts and even add ground cinnamon to avoid these issues.
Cut off any branches that shouldn’t be. Here, there aren’t many ways to fix this error, other than waiting for the branches to grow back and shape it into the shape you wanted.
Do you now know how to prune a lunero lemon tree?