Plant Doctor Archive

 MY question is about a well-established lemon tree. The fruits, even when they are green, get a whitish mark all over them. The tree produces tonnes of fruit but it is useless for making lemon curd. What can I do to fix this? It has happened for about four years. Is there a safe spray to use on fruit?

  YOUR tree is suffering from citrus verrucossis. It is a common problem when the weather is cool and wet. This fungal disease infects the fruit when it is young. It is safe to spray with a copper-based fungicide as the fruit begins to develop in the late summer and autumn.

Weekend Gardener, Issue 98, 2002, Page 20

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