Lemon Tree, Very . . . Weird

This very strange looking lemon came from a large, otherwise healthy tree with lots of normal fruit on it.

The deformity is caused by the citrus bud mite, a tiny, worm-like mite (about 0.17 mm long and 0.05 mm wide).The mite feeds on either developing leaf or flower buds. Affected leaves are disfigured and some affected flower buds can continue to develop, producing some very weird shapes in the surviving fruit. In heavy infestations, the fruit fails to develop and drops from the tree at an immature stage. Mite infestations are most common in lemon trees and navel orange trees and in coastal areas.

If the tree is otherwise healthy and distorted leaves and fruit are few, no treatment of backyard trees is necessary. If the infestation is severe, or for commercial growers, treatment can be by either sulphur spray or white oil spray. Home-growers can spray white oil when flower buds are developing or when the tree is showing a flush of new growth. Alternatively, cut off the stems bearing affected leaves and fruit and put them in the rubbish bin. The mites' life cycle is continuous throughout the year, but their numbers seem to be reduced during hot, dry weather.