Why do the flowers of the lemon tree fall

If you have a lemon tree, surely you have ever faced a problem related to its development. Why does it stop and not bear fruit? Why do you wrinkle the sheets? Why do the flowers of the lemon tree fall? Do these questions ring a bell?

We want to focus on that last question, the the reason why the lemon tree flowers fall. Do you want to know what is happening to your citrus? Well, here we tell you what can happen to it and how to solve the problem.

The reasons why the lemon tree flowers fall

A lemon tree is one of the most beautiful trees that you can have in the garden or on a terrace balcony. It is perennial and once adapted to the environment it is capable of bearing fruit throughout the year, which means that you have "free" lemons.

However, there are times when you may have trouble with it. In this case, we are going to talk to you about why the lemon tree flowers fall, a fairly common topic among the situations that you may encounter.

The main causes of this problem are:

Tree immaturity

The first reason why a lemon tree can throw its flowers is because it is still too young. Normally, it takes about five years for the tree to start bearing fruit. Before, it will flower, but these do not have to develop fully.

We could say that it is a mechanism that the tree has to not wear out. Little by little you will see that, if at first he threw the flowers very early, with the passage of time the time in which he does not throw them increases, until they finally manage to reach a good port (and you have lemons).

There are some who, to alleviate this problem, what they do is graft it. Others, on the other hand, prefer to wait for the natural course of the tree. Yes, it is a long time, but afterwards the tree appreciates it with a large production if you have given it the necessary care.

Lacks water

The lemon tree is a tree that appreciates abundant and followed waterings, it is one of the lemon tree care more important. In fact, that is the reason why some lemons come out juicier than others, because they have been watered more or less.

It is not that you always have to flood it, but it does need demanding watering, especially in its flowering season. If you don't give it to him, it is very common for him to throw the flowers away. It is a mechanism to save the water you have and not waste energy (or water) in raising all the lemons you may have.

The solution to this problem is through increase the watering of the tree. Depending on the area where you live, and where you have it, more abundant waterings may be necessary, or more times throughout the day. For example, if it is in a pot, it is better to water less but twice a day when it touches.

There has been no pollination

Pollination is usually carried out by bees, wasps and other pollinating insects. But if you have it in an area where the flowers cannot be fertilized, no matter how much you want, this is not going to take place and, in the end, after a few days with the flowers, you are they end up falling without any fruit developing.

If we take into account that there are fewer and fewer of these insects, pollination becomes a serious problem. But not impossible to solve.

In case there is no possibility of pollination, then you will have to carry it out yourself, by hand. It consists of mixing the flowers. Many times it is to take a flower and rub it with the others that are on the tree, in such a way that you are already pollinating it.

Suffer from a disease or plague

Pests and diseases of the lemon tree there are many. All of them affect the tree in multiple ways, one of them being the reason why the lemon tree leaves fall. That is why being attentive to the symptoms or signals that it emits is so important.

Among the most common that directly affect flowers or the flowering period are the aphids and the sadness virus; but in reality many more problems could affect you: psoriasis, exocortis, red spider, mealybug, lemon tree miner ...

The solution to this problem is to treat the plague or disease you have. Here it will depend on the type to find one solution or another.

It has no nutrients in the soil

Another problem of why the lemon tree leaves fall has to do with its nutrients. A common failure of gardening beginners is to think that once you plant something, you no longer have to worry about the soil or soil. And yet the soil is wasting nutrients until, in the end, the plant has nothing else to feed on.

Since he cannot move from where he is, needs you to be the one to renew those nutrients (Hence the change of pot with new soil, or adding compost or new soil every x time).

If your lemon tree throws the flowers at you, think about when you planted it and if the soil is not already worn or depleted of nutrients. If so, better renew it.

The climate, one of the causes of why the lemon tree flowers fall

Finally, another cause of why lemon tree flowers fall has to do with the weather. Lemon trees are trees that need a warm (or at least temperate) climate to live properly. So, if winter is very cold, or even spring, it will cause the tree to drop the flowers because it does not have enough energy to be able to form the fruits of those flowers.

The solution here will depend on where you have the tree. If it's in a pot, you might consider putting it indoors when the temperature isn't right for the plant. If it is outdoors (planted in the ground), you could think of putting plastic over it or creating a shelter, like a greenhouse, to protect it from low temperatures.

As you can see, there are many reasons that can cause the lemon tree flowers to fall. Have you ever encountered this problem? How have you solved it?