What is the latest price of four-season lemon saplings? A detailed guide to growing techniques

The biggest difference between the four-season lemon and the common lemon is the appearance color: the latter's fruit turns golden yellow when ripe, while the former's remains green, and its price is relatively higher. So what is the price of four-season lemon saplings now? What are its growing techniques?

1. What is the current price of four-season lemon saplings

The price of four-season lemon saplings in Lingshan County, Qinzhou City, Guangxi is 8 yuan/plant, in Liangqing District, Nanning City it is 7 yuan/plant, and in Xingning District, Nanning City it is 3 yuan/plant.

The price of four-season lemon saplings in Pingyi County, Linyi City, Shandong is 7-8.05 yuan/plant.

The price of four-season lemon saplings in Zhangping City, Longyan City, Fujian is 8 yuan/plant.

2. Growing techniques for the four-season lemon tree

1. Orchard selection and field planting

The four-season lemon prefers a subtropical climate with warm winters and cool summers. It can be planted in areas with an annual average temperature above 18°C, an annual active accumulated temperature of ≥10°C of around 5,500°C, an extreme low temperature >-2.5°C, annual rainfall >1000mm, and annual sunshine hours >1000h. It has wide cultivation adaptability and can be grown on flat land, mountainous land, and hilly land, with no special soil or terrain requirements. However, the best is soil with sufficient water sources, convenient transportation, relatively deep soil layers, loose texture, strong moisture and fertilizer retention, and slight acidity. It can be planted all year round, mainly in spring and autumn, with an average of 60 plants per 667 sq m being suitable.

2. Fertilizer and water management

The four-season lemon sprouts, blooms, and fruits multiple times a year, requiring sufficient fertilizer and water supply. In fertilization techniques, the principle should be organic fertilizer as the main component and compound fertilizer as a supplement. Organic fertilizer is suitable as a base fertilizer after harvesting, while compound fertilizer is applied as a top dressing in several applications, using the method of thin fertilizer applied frequently. For non-fruiting trees, nitrogen fertilizer is the main component, with phosphorus and potassium fertilizers as supplements, mainly applying shoot-promoting fertilizer, once each 7-10d before the spring, summer, and autumn shoots sprout, to promote canopy formation and vigorous tree growth. Fruiting trees are generally fertilized 3-4 times a year, with the amount depending on the fruit load and soil fertility, mainly using farmyard manure, combined with top dressing of urea and phosphorus-potassium fertilizers according to growth conditions. Apply spring fertilizer early, apply heavy fruit-swelling fertilizer, and apply supplementary post-harvest fertilizer. Lemon is very sensitive to water, so water management must be appropriate: drainage should be noted during the rainy season, and timely irrigation during dry seasons. Young four-season lemon trees have few root groups, so irrigation should be little and frequent. For mature trees, the main focus is on sufficient water supply during the spring shoot sprouting period, young fruit period, and fruit expansion period. The annual fertilizer and water supply is low at both ends of spring and autumn, and high in the middle of summer.

3. Reasonable pruning

Young four-season lemon trees grow vigorously, so pruning should be light rather than heavy, focusing on cultivating a round-headed canopy to create a high-yielding tree shape. As the tree age increases and yield rises, the amount of pruning should also increase year by year, improving the canopy's ventilation and light conditions and maintaining a high-yielding tree shape. Lemon pruning can be done in all four seasons. Newly fruiting trees should be pruned lightly, mainly in winter and spring, supplemented by summer pinching and heading back, with light thinning and long releasing. Full-bearing trees are mainly pruned in summer, with bud removal, pinching, combined with short thinning. Weak trees are heavily pruned in winter and lightly pruned in summer to promote branch rejuvenation so they continue to bear fruit.

4. Flower and fruit retention

The four-season lemon has vigorous growth characteristics, with flowers and fruits continuously throughout the year, a large flower volume, and heavy flower and fruit drop. Among the multiple flower and fruit cycles, spring flowers and spring fruits are of the best quality. Before the first crop sets fruit, the management of flowers should be strengthened to ensure a sufficient number of flowers and improve fruit set. When there are too many spring flowers and fruits, fruit thinning can be carried out after the physiological fruit drop; if spring flowers and fruits are insufficient, summer flowers and fruits can be used to supplement, ensuring reasonable year-round fruiting, high and stable yield, and good quality.

5. Fruit bagging

After the fruit has set steadily, special lemon fruit bags can be selected to reduce pest and disease damage, lower pesticide residues, and improve fruit quality. Before bagging, the canopy should be sprayed with high-efficiency, low-toxicity, low-residue insecticides and fungicides. Bagging can be done after the chemicals dry, and the bag opening should be tied tightly. Usually, after fruit bagging, the rate of first-grade fruit can reach over 70%, the fruit appearance is beautiful, and the selling price is high.

6. Harvesting and storage

The four-season lemon blooms continuously throughout the year and can be harvested in multiple stages. Use the “one fruit, two cuts” method for harvesting. When the fruit color changes from dark green to light green and the fruit is glossy, it can be harvested. The fruit should be picked and handled gently, and the harvested fruit should be graded, avoiding exposure to direct sunlight. Perfume lemon is relatively resistant to storage; generally, under natural conditions, healthy fruit free from pest damage and injury can be stored for 1-2 months.

The market demand for four-season lemon is very large, and the economic benefits are considerable, but farmer friends had best conduct an on-site inspection before deciding to plant, so as to avoid losing money.