With its intense smell, the lemon eucalyptus spreads a Mediterranean flair in your garden. The fresh lemon note is released when you gently touch the tapered, hairy leaves. But it's not just this advantage that makes lemon eucalyptus a treasure in your garden. Its maintenance is also inexpensive. Read here how to cultivate lemon eucalyptus appropriately.
How do you properly care for a lemon eucalyptus?
Lemon eucalyptus care consists of regular watering with low-lime water, weekly fertilization, occasional cutting, frost-free overwintering, annual repotting and pest prevention through sufficient watering and ventilation at the location.
Location
Like all eucalyptus species, Eucalyptus citriodora feels comfortable in a warm, bright location. Cultivation is possible
- as a potted plant on the terrace
- outdoors
- on the balcony
- as a year-round houseplant
- in the winter garden
Tip
On the terrace, the intense scent of the leaves keeps mosquitoes and other annoying insects away.
Care instructions
Pouring
Keep the substrate moist at all times. But it shouldn't be too wet either, because the lemon eucalyptus reacts to waterlogging by dropping leaves and, in the worst case, dies completely. It is best to use low-lime water for watering.
Fertilize
Fertilize your lemon eucalyptus weekly with a liquid fertilizer (€9.00 on Amazon). In winter, increase the intervals to once a month.
Cutting
Due to the rapid growth, you have to cut back the eucalyptus regularly, depending on the type of cultivation (note the appropriate space capacity). Spring is the best season for a radical cut. But even if your tree becomes increasingly bare, thinning it out in the meantime will help it achieve new, bushy growth.
Wintering
Make sure you have a bright location, even in winter. It's best to bring the lemon eucalyptus into the house before the first frost. According to some tree nurseries, it is frost-resistant down to -15°C, but you are on the safe side if you overwinter indoors. But it shouldn't be too warm here either. Cool temperatures of 5°C are ideal.
Repotting
Once a year you should also transplant your lemon eucalyptus into a larger container. March is ideal. Then the growth of the deciduous tree is in its prime. It thrives even better in fresh substrate.
Pest Prevention
Occasionally, aphids haunt the lemon eucalyptus. Adequate watering and a well-ventilated location prevent infestation. If you still discover symptoms such as deformed leaves, treatments with vinegar or detergent solutions can help. You should not use chemical fungicides.
