Among the citrus plants, the bergamot is rather less known. We reveal how to plant and care for the bergamot tree and how to use its flowering fruits.
The bergamot is closely related to the lemon. Despite their identical descent, however, they are not nearly as well known and widespread as their relatives.
Bergamot: origin and properties
The bergamot (Citrus bergamia) belongs to the genus of citrus plants (Citrus). Like the lemon, it was created as a hybrid of citron (Citrus medica) and bitter orange (Citrus x aurantium). Their geographical origin has not yet been clearly clarified. It has been cultivated in Italy since the mid-17th century. It was also described for the first time at this time and initially given the name Citrus bergamia. Even today, bergamots are grown almost exclusively in Italy, more precisely on a narrow strip of about 100 kilometers along the coast of Calabria. Due to its special climate, this area is ideal for the cultivation of bergamot trees. Bergamots are also cultivated in some African and South American countries.
The evergreen bergamot trees reach heights of up to 2.5 meters depending on the variety. They are usually offered commercially as a refined half-stem. The oblong bergamot leaves are dark green, smooth and shiny. In spring, the pure white bergamot blossoms appear and exude a pleasant fragrance. The individual bergamot flowers are made up of four to five elongated petals. Finally, in winter, the bergamot fruits, which weigh around 100 to 200 grams, ripen. The round, somewhat pear-shaped bergamot has a slightly roughened, shiny and often slightly ribbed skin. Their color changes from rich green to lemon yellow during the ripening process. There is a small protuberance at the end of the fruit.
Planting bergamot: all about growing in pots
The bergamot does not tolerate frost and isnot hardy in Germany. Thus, like other citrus plants, it is not suitable for growing in the garden. Bergamot trees planted in a bucket, on the other hand, can easily be placed on the balcony or terrace in summer and brought back to a frost-free winter quarters in autumn. Depending on the region, the bergamot can remain outdoors from April/May to October/November. The citrus plant needs a sunny, sheltered and warm location on the balcony or terrace. She needs to be brought back indoors before temperatures drop into the single digits. You should overwinter the citrus plant in a bright place at around 15 °C.
For the bergamot, choose a large enough pot with a drainage hole so that excess water can drain off when watering. For optimal development of the bergamot tree, the plant needs a slightly acidic, nutrient-rich substrate with good water permeability. Special citrus soils are commercially available for this purpose. Alternatively, you can easily mix a suitable substrate yourself. Choose a peat-free potting soil, for example our Plantura organic universal soil, and mix it with some sand. Then place the root ball in the planter and fill it with substrate.
How to care for the bergamot
The bergamot is adapted to the Mediterranean climate. If it is well established, it can survive even longer periods of drought. However, since the soil in a planter dries out faster than a grown soil, young bergamot trees in particular should be watered regularly. Water sparingly and make sure the leaves and flowers stay dry.
Bergamot trees have a high nutrient requirement and should be fertilized regularly during the growing season from March to October. A liquid fertilizer such as our Plantura Organic Citrus & Mediterranean Fertilizer is ideal for this. It optimally supplies your bergamot with all the necessary nutrients so that it can develop many flowers, powerful fruits and strong roots. Fertilize the bergamot over the irrigation water every one to two weeks. The dosage is three to five milliliters of fertilizer per liter of water.
The bergamot grows very slowly and therefore rarely needs to be repotted. When the soil in the pot is completely rooted, the plant should be moved to a slightly larger onemove planter. The right time for this is before the new budding in March or April. There must be a drainage hole so that excess water can drain off and no waterlogging occurs.
To obtain a compact and branched crown, the bergamot should be pruned regularly. You can shorten the shoots that grow out of shape at any time. Larger pruning measures should be carried out in late winter after the fruit has been harvested and before new growth begins. During this time it is also important to remove dead and stunted shoots.
Tip: To protect the bergamot tree from pathogens, large cuts should be sprinkled with charcoal ash and sealed.
Bergamot: How to harvest the fruits
The fruits of the bergamot ripen in the winter months and are ready for harvest between November and March. Then their peel has a lemon-yellow color. You can pick the bergamot carefully.
How to use bergamot
The bergamot peel contains valuable essential oils. The bergamot oil obtained from this is used in the cosmetics industry and to flavor teas (e.g. Earl Gray) and sweets because of its pleasant scent.
The most common uses of bergamot are:
- Bergamot oil (various uses, including flavoring teas, fragrance oil)
- Bergamot juice for flavoring food, pastries, drinks
- Bergamot jam
The bergamot is not the only rather unknown citrus fruit. For more curious varieties and species, see this overview of special citrus fruits.