Urban Lychee Gardening: A Step-By-Step Guide To Grow Juicy Lychees in Your Balcony

As summer stretches across Indian cities, cravings for refreshing fruits like lychees grow stronger. Popular for their delicate, fragrant sweetness and juicy texture, lychees are a tropical delight. While traditionally grown in specific regions of India, the good news is that they can also be grown at home in cities with the right care and attention. Whether you live in a flat or have a garden, you can indulge in homegrown lychees. 

Can we grow lychees at home in Indian cities?

Lychee trees, though native to subtropical regions, are highly adaptable to varying climates. Indian cities, especially those in the northern and eastern parts of the country, present suitable conditions for growing lychees. Urban environments often offer warm temperatures, ample sunlight, and a variety of microclimates where lychees can survive. With the right container, care, and cultivation methods, you can successfully grow lychees in cities like Delhi, Kolkata, Bengaluru, and even some coastal areas with moderate temperatures.

Step-by-step guide to growing lychee at home

1. Choose the right variety

Not every lychee variety will thrive in all climates, so it is important to pick the right one. In India, some of the best options to cultivate are ‘Bengal’, ‘China’, and ‘No Mai Tze’. These varieties are resilient and have high fruit quality. Just make sure to choose one that suits your local weather conditions.

2. Find a sunny spot

Lychee trees love basking in the sun! Six to eight hours is ideal for these sun lovers. — ideally six to eight hours a day. In an urban garden or balcony, check that the tree gets adequate light without being exposed to harsh winds. For indoor gardening, a spot with natural light would do. The soil should be well-drained and slightly acidic (pH 5.0–6.5) so that the roots do not rot away. 

3. Prepare the soil

Good soil promises healthy lychee fruits. A loamy and well-drained, moist mix would work wonders. Be extra careful with waterlogging. To improve your soil’s health, add the goodness of organic matter like compost or well-rotted manure. A big no to clay-heavy soil, as it can impede water drainage, which can damage the roots.

4. Plant it right

And it’s planting time! Once you have the right sapling ( find it at your local nurseries or online), dig up a hole that is about twice the size of the root ball. Place the tiny sapling gently into the hole, making sure the root crown is in level with the soil surface. Give the sapling a quick water shower to settle the soil. Remember to keep the root area moist.  

5. Water with care

Lychee trees can be a bit picky when it comes to watering. They do not like having “wet feet,” but they also need steady moisture, especially in the summer. Try to keep the soil evenly moist without letting it get soggy. And when things heat up or it is especially dry out, be sure to give your tree a bit of extra water to keep it hydrated.

6. Add mulch

Give your tiny sapling some natural covering with mulch! Covering the topsoil with plant material such as leaves, grass, twigs, crop residues, and straw around the base of the tree helps retain soil moisture and regulate temperature fluctuations. This also prevents weed growth and reduces competition for nutrients.

7. Fertilise smartly

Everyone loves some nourishment. So does your lychee sapling! Fertilise your lychee tree with a balanced fertiliser which rich in phosphorus and potassium. This encourages flowering and fruiting. Do not over-fertilise with nitrogen-rich fertilisers, as this can promote excessive leafy growth at the expense of fruit production.

8. Prune regularly

Just as we like to groom ourselves, pruning is an important step for a healthy lychee tree. Regularly trimming dead or diseased branches and shedding away overcrowded growth improves airflow around the tree. Thus, reducing the risk of fungal diseases and encouraging more productive growth. Additionally, it also keeps the tree at a manageable size if you are growing it in a container or a small garden.

9. Natural pollination

Lychees are generally self-pollinating. They do not require another plant to produce fruit. However, our natural pollinators like bees aid in better fruit yield. If you are growing lychees indoors, check that the area is well-ventilated to allow for natural pollination.

10. Harvest when ripe

Patience and harvesting lychees go hand-in-hand. And when the fruits wear the bright red hat, you know it’s time to enjoy what you sowed! However, be careful not to pick the unripe fruits. Unripe lychees might make your palate sour. Harvesting typically occurs between 90 to 120 days after flowering, depending on the variety and climate.

Tips for urban gardeners

Container gardening: This is perfect for small spaces like balconies and rooftops in the urban landscape. Think of earthen pots or old containers where you can not only plant your tree but also beautify the pots with your creative hand.

Air layering: Air layering is a vegetative propagation technique that allows the creation of a new lychee tree from a mature branch of an existing one, while the branch remains attached to the parent plant. This method is particularly advantageous when sourcing saplings is challenging or when a specific cultivar with desirable fruit characteristics is preferred.

Edited by Saumya Singh

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