So, what is love and attention?
Feeding. Normally this is done later in July or early August – for Vic that is, which is not too far away and by the time you get prepared it will be time to feed. There is specialist citrus fruit food you can get from your local nursery or otherwise put a good lot of compost around the tree, water in and mulch. Done!
Citrus leaf miner. This pest is normally seen in spring and late autumn, but with the milder winters you can see it now. It loves new growth and lays its eggs on all the young fresh leaves. It leaves (leaves and leaves, leaf and left) a snail like trail and then borrows into the leaf and once there it is very difficult to get to, so if you see those signs cut the infected leaves off to stop the pest from maturing and coming out. However, when you cut the tree, it will be triggered into a growth spurt, creating new growth and attracting more leaf miner. So, the best option is that once infected leaves are removed, treat the tree with a barrier spray like CGWS (Citrus guard white spray) which creates a barrier and can be used across a range of different trees and plants.
Pruning. Never prune too heavily and all at once (as that can turn the tree into a shrub, encouraging lots of new growth before it flowers again, which can take years)! So small prunes regularly are better than a large amount once, really just a small tidy up and pest removal if needed now.
The year is flying and there is no point waiting until spring to look after your citrus trees, winter is the time get the soil healthy and to stay ahead of pests like leaf miner, so preparing now will create a healthier environment for the tree and better fruit for you
Enjoy!
Peter