Like many plants familiar to us, exotic ones can also be grown on your windowsill. And not just admire the leaves, but also get fresh fruits. Like any plant, the “foreigner” loves care and will respond with love in full. Let's take, for example, an exotic useful evergreen bush - psidium. He will give his caring owners healthy and tasty fruits - guava
Which variety of guava is best to grow at home?
Those wishing to receive fresh fruit at home, it is better to take care of a guava variety that will quickly take root, be able to bear fruit in a given climate, and is not very picky about soil and watering. Botanical specialists consider Psidium Littorale or coastal psidium a suitable “candidate”: it generously responds to warmth and care, does not get sick in room conditions, he is not afraid of worms, aphids, fungal diseases and scale insects.
The photo shows a strawberry guava tree (the fruits of the fruit are small and have a red “raspberry” color).
The advantages of the “coastal” guava variety include beautiful flowers: relatively large, snow-white, eight-petaled, with many stamens and extremely fragrant. Psidium has the usual dense green leaves. Its fruit ripens up to four centimeters, is spherical in shape, the color of the peel is light yellow, aromatic, it will have the same qualities as those growing in nature.
Planting and propagating guava at home
Psidium does not reproduce well from cuttings. They take root poorly and require a certain high temperature and humidity. It's better to just collect the seeds from the guava you've just eaten. Fresh and planted shallow in the soil, they sprout well. And after three years the first fruits will begin to bear.
Guava pollinates itself. But, there is a small trick to increase the number of ovaries: use a brush to transfer pollen from a flower that has just bloomed to a flower that is already losing its snow-white petals.
Caring for Homemade Guava
Preparing the soil for the pot:to form a drain for removal excess moisture when watering, expanded clay is poured onto the bottom, then cow manure is laid (a little), and a mixture of garden soil, sand, peat (2:1:1) or earth, sand, humus (1:1:1).
Temperature:In order for guava seeds to germinate, heat of 22 to 28 degrees is required. Generally guava heat-loving plant and also loves light. Therefore, as soon as the warm rays of spring appear, the guava can be gradually transferred to the balcony. To provide enough moisture, guava can not only be watered into the soil, but also “rinsed in the shower” in hot weather along with leaves and branches.
IN winter period The temperature in the room should be kept from +16 to +20 °C.
Young plants are sensitive to cold. At all minimum temperature, allowing guava to develop only +15 degrees. When frosts (-2 °C) foliage is damaged, at -3 °C the psidium leaves its hosts irrevocably.
Watering and fertilizing:When the shoots have appeared, the earthen clod should not be allowed to dry out. Because of this, young shoots dry out and leaves curl. The root system of guava is superficial. In the summer, the psidium is watered abundantly, and in the winter months as needed. Guava is fed at home from autumn until the first sunny days with infused mullein.
Transplantation:When the psidium sprout has grown to 5 cm, it can be transplanted. Suitable for transplantation tall trees up to 75 cm in height. It is recommended to replant the plant several times: first into a small container, then into larger ones, etc. This can be done in the spring (March-April), but not during flowering and fruit appearance.
- When forming the crown of a guava tree, you need to take into account that the fruits appear on young shoots. If possible, it is better to avoid cutting the crown altogether; the path forms on its own. Or cut off only long branches.
- Delete root shoots, so as not to end up with dense bush thickets.
- You should not change the position of the guava suddenly. It may shed its leaves (partially).
- To get a bush and not a stem tree, you need to pinch the growing point. Sometimes you have to do this several times.
Caring guava owners who planted a seed, cared for the bush, and followed all the recommendations will be pleased with the result. First, a little (3─4) fresh healthy fruits, and then the evergreen handsome psidium will give you a few kilograms. You can make wonderful puddings, jams, fruit salads, etc. from them, eat them and maintain your health.
Tradition of growing orange trees artificial conditions appeared shortly after Portuguese sailors first brought this fruit to Europe. Growing oranges at home has acquired such proportions that they began to build special structures for this, which were called greenhouses, from French word“orange” (as this fruit was called in these parts). In this article we will look at how to grow an orange from a seed at home, using the experience accumulated over centuries.
How an orange grows
In nature, the orange tree grows exclusively in tropical and subtropical climates, but for it you can create suitable conditions in a home environment, such as an apartment. Moreover, with proper care, you will grow oranges on a tree and enjoy pleasant taste this citrus fruit. To start growing oranges in your apartment, you don’t need to carry out complex botanical operations; you just need to purchase a fruit with seeds inside. But further actions will require a lot of effort and attention from you, since this plant is quite whimsical and requires special care.
Growing from seed
Getting a homemade orange from a seed is the easiest way to grow this orange. citrus tree, but you should be careful when choosing suitable seeds. Only fresh seeds without visible defects, with a hard skin and elastic to the touch are used. There are special varieties of homemade orange, but in practice a simple fruit bought at the nearest store will do; pay attention to appearance fetus
Planting seeds
The selected orange seeds must be thoroughly washed under running water, and then soak for eight to ten hours in warm water. Plant the seeds in pre-prepared soil, which you can purchase at the store or prepare yourself. Best soil will do two quarters consisting of sand and peat and two quarters of turf soil and humus. You can plant the seed either separately or in groups, but you should maintain an interval of five centimeters between them. Best suited for planting clay pot which absorbs well excess moisture, you can use any other pot with a capacity of 100 ml. with holes for water drainage.
After you plant the seeds to a depth of one to two centimeters, the soil must be watered, cover the pot with film and place in a dark place. It is recommended to remove the film at night to prevent the plant from suffocating. When the seeds sprouted and root system strengthened, and this will happen in a month or a month and a half, depending on the variety and conditions, the tree can be transplanted into another pot and transferred to the light.
Terms
Homemade orange, like all citrus fruits, is a light-loving plant, so it is recommended to plant it in early spring, when the length of sunny days begins to increase. Orange leaves love a lot of light, but to avoid burns, it is advisable to shade the plant.
In addition, in the room where homemade orange grows, a certain temperature regime must be maintained. In summer, the optimal temperature for of this plant averages +25 °C, and in winter +15 °C.
The domestic orange tree loves a humid climate; its usual humidity level is about 40%, so the plant can be sprayed periodically. It is also necessary to ensure that the soil in the pot does not dry out.
Crown formation
One of the most important factors growing oranges at home lies in the correct development of the tree crown. The first fruits will appear only on branches of the fifth order, and their formation may take at least five years. On average, it takes up to ten years for the first fruits to appear on a home orange tree grown indoors.
The crown should be formed when the height of your tree reaches 25 centimeters. In the early stages, it is also recommended to pinch the plant to speed up the growth of branches. Of the side shoots, only 3-4 of the strongest ones should be left, and the rest should be cut off. It is recommended to do the same with second-order branches, side shoots increase only from the third season.
When indoor orange begins to bloom, it is necessary to remove the buds so that the first harvest is no more than three fruits, this will help the plant not to spend too much energy on their ripening. Starting next season, you can increase the number of buds to five, and a year later – to ten.
The moment the first fruits appear on the tree can be accelerated if you keep your homemade orange in colder conditions in winter, limiting watering and fertilizing. With the onset of spring and rising indoor temperatures, accelerated growth flowers and side shoots.
Reproduction
In addition to growing a homemade orange tree from seeds, it can also be propagated by cuttings or grafting. To do this, you must already have a tree at least three years old. We will look at two ways to plant oranges without using seeds.
- How to grow an orange tree by cuttings. In order to get a new tree, you need to cut a branch at least ten centimeters long with a very sharp knife. Then plant this branch in specially prepared soil or peat and wait about thirty days for the cutting to strengthen. During this period, it is recommended to make a kind of mini greenhouse for the cuttings, make sure that the soil is moist and keep it in a bright place, but without direct hit sun rays.
- How to graft an orange. In order to get homemade oranges by grafting, you will need a cutting of an exclusively fruit-bearing specimen, but this time it will need to be “planted” on another tree. A young orange or lemon is best suited as an acceptor tree, the crown of which is cut off at a height of at least ten centimeters and the trunk is split. Then a cutting is inserted into the crevice in the trunk, and the grafting site is tightly wrapped with film. It is recommended to cover the tree with film and place it in a well-lit place. If after three weeks the cuttings have not turned black, it means that the grafting was successful and you are more short terms you can get a fruiting orange.
How to care for an orange
Throughout the growth of your homemade orange, you must adhere to certain conditions, as at the time of its landing. In the room where the orange will germinate, it is necessary to maintain a certain temperature regime, humidity level and lighting. Also don't forget about the right soil, watering and fertilizers. Caring for a home orange tree is quite labor-intensive and painstaking work, but the result is worth it.
Lighting
Unlike young seedlings, a mature home orange tree is more resistant to direct sunlight. Moreover, the plant needs a sufficient amount of light, so you can place it in a well-lit place, closer to the window. Flaw sunlight may negatively affect fruit ripening and quality. During the period of the year when the sunny day is too short, homemade oranges can be illuminated with special devices; a place with diffused lighting is also suitable.
Temperature
Orange is a heat-loving plant, so the temperature in the room where it grows should be quite high. In summer, the optimal temperature for homemade orange is 25-28 °C, and in winter the temperature is 15-18 °C, respectively. Some experts recommend lower temperature conditions, in order to avoid infection by pests and diseases, although they note that when low temperatures plant growth slows down.
Humidity
IN natural conditions an orange grows in an environment with high humidity(at least 40%), so the room in which the orange tree grows must be sprayed regularly or a large container of water must be placed. Do not allow drafts in the room under any circumstances, otherwise this may negatively affect the condition of the plant. But don’t forget about ventilation, the air in the room must be renewed.
Fertilizers
IN warm time year (summer and spring), it is recommended to “feed” homemade oranges with special fertilizers for citrus fruits at least once a week. But in the fall, feeding the soil must be completely stopped, since the plant goes into hibernation.
Watering
Water house plant in summer it is necessary at least once a week. In winter, the intensity of watering must be reduced by half, since the temperature in the room will be lower. The main thing is to prevent dry crusts from appearing on the surface of the soil.
orange tree- citrus evergreen perennial of the Rutaceae family, grown in subtropical climates and does not tolerate negative temperatures. The growth of the orange tree in warm climates continues constantly; the plant is medium-sized and can grow up to 7 m in height at open cultivation. Meet and low-growing varieties up to 3 m. Thermophilia and low demands on conditions allow you to successfully grow oranges at home. Orange tree at home at good care will be able to bear fruit and reach a decent size.
Many domesticated, specially bred varieties of orange can bear fruit all year and have minimum size crowns These varieties (for example: Washington Navel, Korolek, Gamlin) allow you to regularly obtain a small harvest of oranges at home. And three or four plants can create the feeling of a citrus garden in a room.
Planting an orange at home.
Orange trees are propagated in two ways: cuttings and seeds. Both methods have their pros and cons. Firstly planting material need to find it somewhere. With seeds, everything is simple - go to the store and choose the first fruit you like. As with growing avocados at home, the orange fruit must be ripe and uniform orange. Almost all orange fruits contain seeds suitable for germination. You need to get cuttings somewhere: ask a friend who already owns a homemade orange, you can buy a ready-grown seedling in a store, or, for example, bring a cutting from a vacation in the subtropics, cutting off a twig of an orange growing in open ground.
Orange planted at home from seed, more strong plant. It will grow better and adapt to new conditions, be more unpretentious to diseases, the tree will acquire a beautiful crown, which cannot be said about plants planted from cuttings. However, you need to keep in mind that an orange grown from a seed will have slightly different biological characteristics than its parent. Planting by cuttings ensures 100% transfer of the genetic material of the parent tree. And the last thing that may influence the choice of how to plant oranges at home is the beginning of fruiting. A tree from a seed will begin to bloom and bear fruit with sufficient care at the age of 8-10 years; the cutting method of propagation reduces this period by half.
Growing an orange tree from seed.
Take the formed seeds from the orange fruit correct form. Use several pieces from each to guarantee different fruits, so as not to sow only unpollinated or immature seeds. Plant immediately after removing the seeds, in small pots or long boxes at intervals of 5 cm from each other and 3 cm from the walls. For soil, use a mixture of peat and flower earth in a 1:1 ratio, with good drainage.
Deepen the seeds by 1 cm and maintain constant soil moisture, avoiding overwatering. Optimal temperature for germination 18-22 degrees. Orange sprouts at home will appear in about 2 weeks. From the hatched oranges, select the strongest, most powerful, with the right leaves. Carry out growing under a small glass jar- to create a microclimate. Place the pots in a bright place, but out of direct sunlight. Once a day, remove the jar for half an hour to refresh the atmosphere around the orange.
After two true leaves appear, transplant healthy specimens into separate pots with a diameter of 10 cm and provide good drainage. When replanting, try to keep the roots and the peat mixture around them intact. For soil, use a substrate of humus and flower soil. In this pot, the orange should grow to 15-20 cm, then the next transplant will be needed.
Propagation of orange tree by cuttings.
For cuttings, choose stems with a diameter of 4-5 mm and a length of about 10 cm. The cut should be made under the bud from below, and above the bud from above. On the cutting you need to leave 3-4 live buds and 2-3 leaves. For greater effect, the cuttings should be treated with a root growth stimulator and placed 1/2 of the length in water for 3 days. To root homemade orange cuttings, plant them in boxes or pots with soil consisting of a mixture of humus, coarse sand and flower soil in equal parts. Plant the cuttings in a compacted substrate to a depth of 3-4 cm. Initially, the branch has no roots, this does not allow the plant to receive enough moisture from the soil, so the orange tree requires daily spraying of the leaves with water. The soil should be well moistened, but do not allow it to become sour. The optimal temperature for rooting is 20-25 degrees. Final rooting occurs after 30-45 days. Then the home orange tree can be transplanted into a separate small pot.
Growing conditions and care for homemade orange.
To grow an orange tree at home, soil endowed with a good supply of nutrients. For these purposes, a flower mixture, which can be purchased in stores, or soil from yours is suitable. summer cottage processed with boiling water and enriched with humus. Be sure to place drainage made of expanded clay or charcoal. When watering, do not allow water to stagnate and soil to rot. In this case, you need to ensure that the entire earthen lump, otherwise the tree will begin to lose roots and get sick. Watering is required approximately twice a week. The soil must be allowed to become completely saturated with moisture, and then it must dry out. When the soil becomes sour, it needs to be replaced. The recommended container for growing orange is a clay pot. It is quite moisture permeable and this property helps regulate soil moisture; clay absorbs and evaporates excess water through the outer surface.
Orange loves light, so a grown tree requires straight sun rays but no more than 2 hours a day. Orange at home does not like to be moved to a new place, so you need to find it from the very beginning permanent place For home tree in the south bright room. To form beautiful crown you can turn the pot of orange, but every day small angle so that the plant has time to turn around. Every year, as the home orange grows in size, it needs to be transplanted into bigger pot. New dishes should be slightly larger than the previous one by 3-4 cm in diameter. When replanting, the earthen ball with roots should be removed with minimal damage and moved to a larger pot, and the difference should be filled with fresh soil. A pot of 8-10 liters in volume can be left as a permanent one, and transplants can be replaced with fertilizing, and you need to update it at least twice a year top layer soil.
Comfortable temperature for growing oranges: 17-28 degrees. Orange like any other indoor plants does not tolerate drafts. Homemade orange needs to be sprayed with water several times a week to maintain optimal humidity. IN heating season daily spraying is required.
To give an aesthetic appearance orange at home it is necessary to take an active part in the formation of the crown. In the first year of life, the tree produces a single shoot up to 30 cm high. In the second year, before active growth- in the spring, you need to cut off the top of the shoot with pruners or scissors, leaving only about 20 cm. This will force the tree to release lateral buds. Next, remove the lower buds, leaving only the 3 upper ones. These should form the skeletal main branches of the crown of a homemade orange. On next year perform similar manipulations with second-order lateral branches, stimulating branching. Often, pruning the central shoot of an orange does not give the desired result; the tree produces a single new sprout from the top, then you need to cut the shoot again along with the top bud, and if the length allows, then the second one. An orange tree acquires a nice appearance when its branches develop to level 5-6. In the future, it will be enough to trim individual fast-growing shoots or remove them altogether.
At compassionate care in a few years, an orange grown at home will bloom. To form ovaries, use a cotton swab to move pollen from the anther to the sticky stamen. If quite a lot of fruits are produced, some will need to be removed, otherwise the tree may die from exhaustion. For normal growth, one fruit should correspond to 10-15 leaves. Try to grow your homemade decorative Pink Banana from seeds and get it to bear fruit.
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An orange tree will please its owner not only attractive looking, but also sweet citrus fruits. This " green pet"is somewhat capricious, but if you study this material, you can create for it necessary conditions. Let's look at how to grow an orange tree at home so that it gives you real natural fruits.
General description and popular types of orange tree
The domestic orange tree has dense, bright green leaves that form a compact, dense crown. The branches are covered with light-colored bark. The height of the plant varies from 1 m to 2.5 m. This representative of the flora blooms with soft white flowers and begins to bear fruit at 7-8 years of age. An orange grown at home tastes virtually no different from a store-bought one.
In total, about 600 varieties of oranges are known. Here are the most popular ones suitable for indoor culture:
- "Gamlin" - reaches a height of 1.5 m. Fruits ripening late autumn, have a pleasant sweet and sour taste;
- "Pavlovsky" - low-growing variety(grows up to 1 m). Different good fruiting, but oranges ripen for quite a long time - about 9 months;
- "Washington Navel" is the most popular among amateurs indoor flora. Can reach 2 m in height. During the flowering process, each flower of an orange tree of this variety exudes a pleasant sweetish aroma. Quite different large fruits weighing about 300 grams.
Reproduction of indoor orange
An orange tree can be propagated at home in three ways: seeds, cuttings and grafting. The simplest method is propagation from seeds. Specimens grown in this way require much less maintenance. But young fruits will differ significantly from the original ones.
How to grow an orange tree from a seed:
- We buy special soil for citrus fruits or make a mixture ourselves from turf soil, peat and sand in a ratio of 2:1:1, respectively;
- First, extract the seeds from the orange high degree ripeness. They must be of the correct shape, not damaged, not dry or empty;
- We clean them of any remaining pulp, rinse them thoroughly and soak in water for 10-12 hours;
- We plant the seeds to a depth of 1 cm in a small container (about 100 ml), keeping a gap of 5 cm between seeds. You can also plant in one box;
- Lightly water the soil, cover the container with film and put the mini-greenhouse in a dark place until the first shoots appear. After they reach 1.5-2 cm and 2 leaves “hatch” on them, we transplant them into small separate pots with a diameter of about 8 cm.
It is better not to choose large containers, since soil in which there are no roots will for a long time remains moist and is subject to souring. An indoor orange tree can be additionally illuminated with special phyto-lamps, as if increasing the length of daylight hours.
Homemade orange can also be propagated by cuttings. This allows you to preserve all parental characteristics.
- To obtain a cutting, cut a 10-centimeter branch with bark with a sharpened knife;
- We plant it in sandy soil and create a mini-greenhouse by covering the container with film;
- We install the container in a bright place where direct sunlight does not reach. The soil should always be slightly moist;
- After about a month, the cuttings take root and can be planted in separate containers.
Another way to propagate an orange tree is by grafting. This is the most best option for a quick harvest. It is best to take the scion from an already fruit-bearing plant, carefully cutting off the cutting with a sharp knife. It is recommended to vaccinate a specimen that has reached the age of three years. The scion must contain 3 buds.
Step by step process:
- We cut the crown of the tree at a height of 10 cm from the soil, split the trunk and place the cutting in it;
- We combine two branches and wrap the grafting site with film;
- To preserve moisture, cover the plant with film and leave it in a bright place.
After 3 weeks, you need to look at the condition of the cutting. If it does not turn black, then the grafting procedure was successful.
Conditions for growing oranges at home
So that the plant has a healthy appearance, does not suffer from pests and gives bountiful harvest, you need to know how to care for an orange tree correctly.
Lighting and temperature for indoor orange
- This plant is light-loving, therefore best place for its location there will be windows on the south and southeast sides. So that the leaves do not suffer from sunburn, it is necessary to create light shading for them, but the brightness of the lighting should not change.
- The citrus tree loves warmth very much. The optimal summer temperature for its growth is +21-25 degrees. If the specified values are exceeded, the “green pet” will begin to actively grow, but will not bear fruit. The suitable winter temperature for the tree is +10-15 degrees.
- It also does not withstand drafts.
Watering and spraying citrus
- The plant needs to be watered regularly with warm, settled water when the top layer of soil crusts over and dries out. But there should also not be excessive moisture, otherwise it can lead to rotting of the roots. In winter, watering should be reduced to 2-3 times a week.
- Don't forget about spraying. In hot weather it must be produced daily, as the plant loves humid air around. In cool weather, the frequency of procedures is reduced to 1-2 times a week. If the air in your home is very dry, then you need to spray it daily.
Transplanting and feeding plants
It is better to transplant citrus fruits in the spring, before flowering and fruiting begin. This procedure must be done once every 2-3 years.
- An orange tree in a pot should feel free, so you need to select the container slightly larger size compared to the previous one;
- Transplantation is done using the transshipment method to eliminate the risk of damage to the roots;
- The soil mixture should consist of turf and leaf soil, sand and humus in a ratio of 2:1:1:1, and the bottom of the container should have good drainage.
Every 2 weeks from the beginning of spring to mid-autumn it is recommended to feed the plant with special complex fertilizer, intended for citrus fruits. You can buy it at the store or make it yourself. To do this, you need to dilute 15 g of potassium salt, 25 g of phosphorus and 20 g of water in 10 liters of water. nitrogen fertilizers. This mixture can be supplemented once a season with a small amount of potassium permanganate or copper sulfate.
Formation of the crown of an orange tree
In order for the “green pet” to bear fruit, you need to carefully monitor the condition of its crown. If this is not done, then fruiting will begin no earlier than in 10 years. Fruits appear on branches no lower than the fifth order.
- Correct formation of the crown consists of pinching the branches when they reach 10-15 cm. This should be done above the bud so that it remains outside;
- It is also necessary to remove weakened, inward growing and elongated shoots. This pruning helps to get many short young shoots.
Pests of homemade orange
It is necessary to regularly inspect the tree for the presence of pests. Usually the following settle on citrus fruits:
- Whitefly;
- Spider mite;
- Shield.
To combat them, drugs such as Biotlin and Fitoverm are used. Can also be used folk remedies, for example, a solution based laundry soap, an infusion of garlic or hot pepper.
Video: How to grow an orange tree from a seed