With their arresting tangy flavor , calcium hydroxide are most often used for their succus , which tang dish up from key lime pie to margarita to guacamole . Like all citrus trees , limes are heat energy - loving plant that only grow alfresco in USDA plant hardiness zones 9 through 11 . When it come to varieties , you have several options . Iranian burnt lime ( Citrus latifolia ) are the eccentric most often found commercially . They ’re turgid and sweet-scented , with a meek calcium oxide flavor . cardinal limes ( Citrus aurantiifolia ) are small , with intense lime flavor and a thin peel . Kaffir lime ( Citrus hystrix ) have a sharp-worded , acidic flavor and a bumpy rind .
hydrated lime tree have the same ethnical requirements as all citrous fruit trees , and most disease problems can be prevent or minimize by good care . Plant them in full sun in light , well - draining soil . The trees do n’t tolerate arduous clay soils or those gamy in salt . Plant them in other spring so they have meter to become established before the oestrus of summer arrives . Plant them so the top of the rootball sits 1 in above the soil . This planting scheme can aid prevent some fungous disease , such as gummosis .
hydrated lime trees , and in special , immature lime trees , can suffer from sunburn or sunscald , which causes disrobe , damaged bark . Paint the Tree with a variety of one part clean flat rubber-base paint paint and one part piddle or use a commercial tree diagram wrapping .
urine lime trees once or twice a week during the growing time of year so the stain last out moist to a deepness of 6 inches beneath the aerofoil . It ’s good to irrigate profoundly less ofttimes . Signs of overwatering admit cupped , drooping leaves . If this occurs , lease the grime dry out before watering again .
In bitchiness of the above precautions , lime trees now and then suffer disease and dirt ball pest . Below are the most common job you ’re likely to see and scheme for discourse .
Black Sooty Mold
Black coal-black cast is a fungous growth that is do by aphid infestation . The aphid eliminate a glutinous substance called honeydew as they fee on the leaf and stems of the lime Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree . The aphids alone usually cause only small-scale damage . The black sooty mold feed on the honeydew . It forms a black , powdery meaning over the leaves and stems , which is not only unattractive , but can be destructive . In serious caseful , it can stunt growth and kill the leaves . The mold sometimes grows on the yield , as well . To insure black-market sooty mold , you must control the aphid . Spray the tree with a punishing stream of water to reposition the aphids and remove the mold . Or spray the tree with insecticidal soap or oil . Use a merchandise label for citrus tree Tree , and apply it on clouded days .
Fruit Diseases
Brown fruit rot make tan or brownish spots to make grow on fruit . The disease can circularize after harvest when diseased limes are stored with healthy ones . Spray the trees with a copper - based fungicide before the rainy season . memory affected fruits separately and use them immediately .
Stylar end rot induce brown place to grow on the blossom remainder of the fruit . Decay enter these muscae volitantes , destroy the total fruit . To avoid stylar end rot , break up unslaked lime in the afternoon in ironical weather . Handle them gently .
Foliage Diseases
Citrus pestilence is a bacterial contagion that causes brown or yellow spots on leaves , which can also disseminate to the yield . To prevent the disease , spray trees with a copper - based fungicide in the leaping . Space quicklime trees so they get equal breeze circulation . Use waterspout hoses , instead of overhead sprinklers because wet leaf can overspread the disease .
Citrus greening is a serious disease spread by the Asiatic citrus psyllid . It causes yellowed leaf veins . The leaves and stems may fail back and the yield turns bitter . There is no cure for this disease . murder and destroy infected tree diagram .
Trunk and Root Diseases
The most common problems you ’ll encounter are those triggered by the Phytophthora fungus . This pathogen causes root rots and body canker sore . You might discover stunted growth , break up bark or liquid oozing from the trunk . If cankers girdle the tree diagram , it will decease . To prevent solution hogwash and cankers , plant tree diagram in well - draining soil and avoid planting them too deeply . Avoid overwatering because soggy soils can lead to the disease . rationalize out infected branches and disinfect your tools between cut of meat with a solution of one part Cl bleach to ten parts water .
For more info , visit the following link :
Citrus for the Home Gardenfrom the University of California Extension
Citrus Diseases and Disordersfrom the University of California .
Julie Christensen learned about garden on her grandfather ’s farm and mother ’s vegetable garden in southern Idaho . Today , she lives and garden on the high plains of Colorado . When she ’s not digging in the dirt , Julie write about nutrient , pedagogy , parenting and gardening .
