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If you live in a Mediterranean climate and you have a garden - or even just a small courtyard or terrace why not grow your own orange or lemon tree? Just think how good it will feel to pick a fresh lemon from your own tree to add to your gin and tonic. Even better, when friends and family come to stay for a while, you can treat them to the novelty of freshly-squeezed orange juice from your own tree every morning. Juice straight from the tree is so much nicer than anything you can get from the chiller cabinet in your local supermarket.

You can buy a citrus tree from any good garden centre, and they're not as expensive as you think. Here in Spain, a nice tree is between 8 and 15 euros. Ask how old your tree is: if it's at least four years old and you buy it in March or April, you should get fruit by the end of the year. Even if you don't, you'll be rewarded with the wonderful smell of orange or lemon blossom in your garden or courtyard, and the following year should provide your first harvest. Don't plant your tree where it may be buffeted by winds. Choose a sheltered area of your garden where the tree will get lots of sun. If you don't have a garden, your tree will thrive in a large pot.

Citrus trees don't need a lot of gardening expertise to thrive, just plenty of water and sunshine should do it. However, they don't like to stand in water, so if your tree is in a pot, make sure it is raised above ground level by standing the pot on bricks, or perhaps a wrought iron plant stand to allow for effective drainage. We didn't know any better, and thought that standing our potted tree in a tray would ensure our tree didn't dry out in the Costa Blanca heat. Most of the tiny oranges we were so excited to discover fell off the tree over several days, quickly followed by the leaves. We were left with just the thin trunk of the tree, and that soon died off.

How much water should you give your tree? The leaves will give you a clue, as they react a little like your skin does in the sun. If the leaves are smooth, shiny and plump, the moisture levels are just about right. However, dry, leathery leaves indicate too much exposure to heat and not enough hydration. For more information on looking after citrus trees, visit the Total Gardening website, where you can find an excellent article on citrus trees by Marc Vijverberg. The site also covers all aspects of gardening in a Mediterranean type climate.

http://www.total-gardening.com /

Learn more about this author, Sandra Piddock.
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