How much light does indoor citrus need in winter? My is staying near glass door facing south-east. It is about 2 feet tall, in my experience with veggie starters, if they reach that size, lights become very inefficient due only reaching the top of the plant with good intensity. Do you think it makes sense to provide artificial light from top or wrapped around the tree in addition to the window light?
it definitely can’t hurt. i set up a indoor grow room in our spare bedroom and i grow all kinds of stuff under a 900w viparspectra led. its the kind cannabis growers use and it works great. covers a 4’ by 4’ area with light. only thing is its hard on the eyes and your supposed to use sunglasses when working under it. the new cobb leds are better/ safer but much more expensive . talk to The Derek on here. he makes his own and maybe could make one for you.
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My son is making one for me, I was just in debate if I should start the light show with what I have - fluorescent lights. Already set it up yesterday.
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The fluorescent lights have to be very close to the plants,if they are the regular ones.Even the T5’s,which I’m trying out,need to be within 12 inches of the canopy.
I also bought a cheap emergency Mylar blanket,which is attached to cardboard to reflect light from one side.bb
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More than my Meyer Lemon gets…
Honestly your best bet is a HID light. Wife won’t approve that, she doesn’t want a power-sucking huge light in our sunroom.
Mine always loses 80% of its foliage.
Side note - is there a such thing as a floor lamp type stand for a MH light? If I could get one of those in a 250 or 400w I might be able to pull it off. She just doesn’t want an “ugly pot growing lamp” in the room.
My citrus (a Australian finger lime and up until last winter a Meyer lemon) limped by on a couple of CFL and a couple LED bulbs packed in with other tropicals.
Most years I don’t even lose many leaves and flowering continues for much of the winter.
My bigger issue is maintaining proper watering given limited space to access the jungle.
Scott
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Finished the citrus/tropicals light “stand,” so I can stop moving them inside/outside. We removed the gangly legs idea and hung the frame from the wall. The lights are a bit wonky because they’re not plugged in yet. Each one is 6500k. Overkill? Too little? A good first try? There are 6 plants plus 2 seedlings under there for this winter. Next year, I’ll have up potted the 3g plants, so I will only have 4 under this area with the rest in a different location where lights can be hung from the ceiling.
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At our previous home I used this single light for my two potted meyer lemons and persian lime. I had it clipped to a stand and the trees were otherwise getting light from a west-facing window. They did pretty well, blossomed and/or ripened fruit, nice growth. I moved them in pretty early to prevent leaf loss. The biggest annoyance with indoor citrus for me has always been spider mites.
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Our citrus two citrus trees aren’t particularly happy being indoor for the winter, but being in front of a big east-facing window at least keeps them alive until they can go out again for the summer. Need to build a greenhouse onto the south side of the house!
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I stopped bringing plants indoors for the winter 2 years ago. It just becomes fungus gnat haven and not worth it. So I just put a heater in my little greenhouse which cuts on at around 35-37 depending what mood I’m in. I generally taper it down and then taper it back up on its thermostat in the season. The plants seemed so much happier in there than inside, but I was just using some cheap led amazon grow lights. But again my main problem was the fungus gnats. @Eme that looks like a nice set up though! Good luck keeping the gnats away.
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I wish I had a greenhouse option, but I don’t and can’t on this property. Fungus gnats are at the top of my list of concerns. With the crazy wet spring we had, I had some outdoor container plants that were so infested. Beneficials nematodes worked like a charm. I’ve been considering buying them preemptively versus waiting for the problem to set in. I use the sticky traps with my seeding trays, but I consider that a bandaid approach. I know there’s mixed feelings on caffeinated rinds…I put some black tea in a few containers to see what happens.
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I tried everything and nothing had what I would call a major impact. Felt like playing whack-a-mole. But one thing I did not try is beneficial nematodes before bringing them inside, so that could work as a preemptive approach.
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Well, I ordered them, but it might be a waste of money if they have nothing to eat. I’ll push it as long as possible (2 wks?) for their fridge life before applying and reapply if I see things ticking up. My house is also very dry, so I’m putting kids on daily misting duty. I’m fully expecting a lot of leaf drop and miserable looking plants (the kishu is already expressing misery), but we’ll see how it goes!
Edit: checking moisture of the soil with my finger this morning I found larva 
so, guess I ordered them just in time.
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I like the AC Infinity supplemental light bars to throw light into the canopy. They have magnets to hold them to poles or whatever. Dimmable lights with 1 to 10 steps and include the option to simulate “sunrise and sunset” when coming on or going off. I fruited a couple of fig trees over the winter in my spare bedroom with the winter sun helping as well on sunny days. Supplemental Grow Lights | AC Infinity
Top dress the pots with neem meal. It will never have a fungus gnat problem again. It does not stink like the neem oil. It breaks down as a nitrogen feed.
Or once a week water in with Monterey BT. Works great for fungus gnats too.
I have tried the nematodes with varying success in pots. They seem harder to keep alive than the plants. They also die back when the gnats are gone. I am glad they have worked for you.
The neem meal is my favorite. The bt is to knock down an infestation. They can be used together no problem.
Nothing worse than when you get a new bag of soil, cut it open, and are greeted with a swarm of fungus gnats. lol
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Interesting. I didn’t know about neem meal. I wonder what that does to overall soil health in terms of microbial balance? I’ll certainly keep that as a backup if things get gross this winter.
not saying it doesnt but i havent seen any of the bt products claim to kill fungus gnats. i havent tried mosquito bits(not sure if bti is same as bt 
)or nematodes but gnatrol works. can get it in small quantities on figbid here: FigBid - Online Auctions of Fig Trees, Fig Cuttings & Growing Supplies - Gnatrol WDG Biological Larvicide by Valent - 2 oz package - 100% Organic
BT is the same thing as the mosquito bits/dunks. Only it’s corn cob and clay mixed with a small amount of BT. The liquid concentrate is the way to go VS the dunks and bits. Uncut is how I describe the difference. The BTi refers to the Israeli version of the bacteria, where it was geographically discovered. That variety of BT is supposedly better for mosquitos. Most concentrates use BTk kurstaki strain. Both strains of BT shred the fungus gnat larve. Like a nuke. The adults are not affected at all, but quickly die off with no subsequent generations to follow.
I learned both methods growing cannabis. The go to for fungus gnats in canna circles is the BT with every watering till they are gone, or h202 drench. Fast growing cannabis can take the root drench from h202. I don’t know if I would try that on my citrus.
I learned about the neem meal from an old organic hippy grower in upstate New York. We traded seeds and clones for years. He said his secret for bugs was neem meal. It promotes the microbes in organic living soil and is considered a nitrogen building amendment. All he did was make his own living soul soil. It’s how I grow in pots now too. Much better results and nary a bug. But it’s more a preventative than a knock down. The BT is the knock down once you have them entrenched in all your soil islands indoors.
Here’s what AI summary says:
Benefits of neem meal
- Pest and disease control: It helps protect plant roots from soil-borne pests such as nematodes, grubs, and root aphids. It can also deter some insect pests when used as a foliar spray.
- Natural fertilizer: It acts as a source of slow-release nitrogen, potassium, and other micronutrients, providing a steady supply of nutrition to plants.
- Soil health: It stimulates the growth of beneficial soil microbes, which can help improve overall soil activity and health.
- Nitrification inhibition: It slows the conversion of nitrogen in the soil, making nitrogen available to plants for a longer period and enhancing the efficiency of other fertilizers.
- Organic and safe: It is an all-natural product that is safe for organic gardening and does not contain heavy metals.
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Gnatrol contains BTi. So it’s a different cereal made from the same grain. lol
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