Mystery yellow lemon

We picked up a pot of what looked like yellow lemon from a local nursery that we have not visited before. The seller was very determined to make the sale. A yellow lemon tree ranked quite high in my bucket list, so it was not too difficult to succumb to the idea. Even though this was a small plant, it was laden with fruits. A good sign of fertility. I assumed.

The idea of tree ripened lemons was just too good to be true. 

At the nursery, I did notice that the leaves looked odd and tired. They were also caked in muddy sediments. I was concerned but was assured that they were watered with reused water and all was fine. I was given clear instructions that there was no need to prune or remove any leaves.

So I happily lugged the pot home and gave it a good rinsing and watering. I placed it alongside our happy limes and stared lovingly - as I do with most of the newbies. As the water on the newly washed out leaves started to dry out, I noticed some of the leaves did not look right. Many young leaves were curled, some were deformed... Even as a novice, it does not look like good news. A quick google, and further examination revealed a severe problem of leafminers! Highly contagious and hard to eradicate. 

Immediately set out to isolate. First thing was to spray neem oil on all the existing plants, especially those that came in direct contact. 

Then started to work on the infected plant. Upon closer inspection of the undersides of the leaves, the infestation distinguished by distinctive maze-like trails was extensive! Practically every leaf visible was affected. Pensively started to trim the leaves. Worse hit branches were entirely pruned off. Possibly only 3% of the leaves were left by the time I was done. Certainly not recommended, but this was a really bad case. The fruits still looked decent, so they were kept intact.

Not knowing if I was doing the right thing, this intensive pruning was a wild shot. Nothing happened for a week. This was how barren the plant remained 3 days after the butchering.

There was a lot of remedy work after this on the other plants as well. I was on high alert. 2 days later, the infestation was spotted on one of the lime plants and a cherry apple, I swooped in mercilessly! The cherry apple came from the same nursery, so I am not too sure if it came with the infestation. But the lime I knew for sure was in the pink of health and was in contact with the lemon for barely a couple of hours. That's how fast and contagious the leafminers are! Inspected and trimmed off every single infected leaf as soon as signs appeared. Infected leaves are placed in plastic bag, tied up and disposed - out of reach of the plants. 

It's been 10 days and I am still paranoid about checking and pinching off any leaf that might even vaguely be spotted with symptoms of leafminers. Plus I am still fastidious with spraying affected plants with neem oil, once every few days. Especially the citrus - both the lemon and lime - because they are the leafminers' favourite. 

As for the lemon tree, I was relieved to notice little green nodes developing 5 days after the shave. On the 7th day, little shoots were finally visible. 

So happy to see the little shoots sprouting throughout the almost bare branches.

Despite the scare, the lemons fruits are still going strong. We've had 2 good lemons that ripened to a deep yellow, on the branches. The fragrance is unparalleled by the store-bought lemons. 

Although the fruits are oblong, the skin when sliced is not too thick. The texture of the citrus skin is also considerably smoother than a lemon, although not as smooth as a lime. It does however ripen to a rich yellow on the tree, is super juicy and only moderately sour. Mildly bitter, but that could be due to poor growing conditions.

Because it displays qualities of both lemon and lime, it could be either or a hybrid. It also does not fall clearly into descriptions of common lemon varieties. The closest I have found is Sweet Lemon, native to South East Asia. But it cannot be pin-pointed. So it's lineage is still a mystery for now. But it looks more like a lemon than a lime, so I'll call it a Mystery Lemon for now. 

The fragrant lemon works perfectly on its own in ice-cold sparkling water, or with a honey drink.

Lessons learnt from this episode:

1. To not introduce newly purchased plants directly to existing plants. Especially if they come from dodgy nurseries! 

2. To be more confident of gut instincts when it comes to spotting troubled plants.

Now fingers crossed that after the leaves sprout, there is no revival of the leafminers. Also hopefully, we can work on getting the plant to flower and fruit! 

Update 9 August 2015:

It's Day 11 since the massive pruning and trimming. New shoots are going strong, averaging 1 to 2cm. Looks promising. 

However, traces of leafminers still found on some of the remaining leaves. So the war still goes on. Infected leaves are immediately removed, placed in bags and disposed far away. Spraying of neem oil happens on alternate nights after sunsets. 

Update 31 Aug 15:

It has been a month since the war against the leafminer moth. I have been cutting off affected leaves and spraying neem oil. But the young shoots seem to encourage more activities.

With so few leaves left on the plant, I started to inspect the plant more closely. I notice a colony of tiny flying insects. A quick Google reveals these are the adult moth that have been producing larvae that are causing all the leaf mining activities. Unfortunately, intensive spraying of neem oil does not deter the adult moths too much. They are very productive and expand the colony quickly. I realised more drastic actions needed to be taken. 

So I had a go at eliminating the moths. Not easy at the beginning, as there are a lot of them and they fly off quickly. I realised that if I spray the neem oil directly at the moths, in quick successions of 3-4 spritz, it sort of petrifies them and then I move in quickly to squash them between my fingers. 

I learnt to spot the adult moths by going on all fours and looking under the leaves and stems. In this picture, you can see three moths. They are about 2-3mm long, black and white (so they look a little grayish) and they usually stick out at an angle from the underside of the leaf/stem. Here you see 1 on the underside and 2 above because they have been disrupted, took off and landed on top of the leaf instead. 

On the first day, I must have cleared out 50-60 adults. It was endless. I continued everyday for what feels like a week of forever. The moth population gradually dwindled. It has been 1 month since the start of the battle and the past couple of days were the first time we did not spot any moths. But the suspicion is still gnawing at my conscience. No wonder seasoned gardeners cringe at the mention of leafminers. 

On a lighter note, I saved a seed from the first lemon we harvested. Removed the shell from the pip and poped it into substrate. 

This is the happy seedling 25 days after sowing. It may or may not fruit, it could also take years to mature. But I am just keeping it as a momento for now.

Update 23 Feb 2016:

This happy lemon plant has been through a lot. Countless rounds of neem oil spraying, extensive pruning, draught, caterpillar feasting...

I leave it isolated on the balcony, with full morning sun. Apart from the occasional leaf miner moth, it has been taking its time recovering. 

The bare branches are the work of caterpillars of the common lime butterfly, which love the leaves. I leave them on the plants until they moult into green instar caterpillars (then I rear them in glass bottles, but that's another story). I used to think the caterpillars are wasteful feeders. But I subsequently realise that the nibbled stalks tend to grow better shoots. So they are nature's pruners. 

Now, 5 months from when we first started trying to exterminate the leafminer moths, we are finally seeing flower buds!!!

It is such a relief to spot an explosion of flower buds. Xo

Update 1 Mar 2016:

Such a glorious day and the lemon flowers are starting to bloom!

Receiving love from the morning sun.

These blooms are so fragrant and has attracted a happy bee. I have been tapping the flowers to hopefully help pollinate.

Fingers crossed for lemons : )