Howdy, I am a new user and this is my first post! After dumping a glass of water with lemon in his yard my uncle noticed sprouts. Knowing how I love plants and trees he gave me some of the sprouts in a pot to see if I could grow them. Well, here in Northern Illinois I don't think it will make it outside. I am trying to keep it short and bushy so I can have it in a pot to bring in and out of the house with the seasons. So, far I have been giving it Miracle Grow and lots of sun. I also tried clipping the top to see if I can get it to branch out – that worked but then the branch started to grow straight up. Does anybody have advice for me? How can I make it grow short and bushy? What is the coldest temperature a small citrus tree can handle? Is it even possible to grow a lemon tree in pot in the Midwest????? I would appreciate any feedback on the subject. Thanks!
Hi CourtneyJean, You can grow your lemon in a pot and bring it indoors for the winter. Don't expect the same exact fruit as the one the seed came from as fruits rarely come true from seed. It could take as long as 10 years before you see flowers and/or fruit. http://www.hgtv.com/hgtv/gl_trees_shrubs_fruit/article/0,1785,HGTV_3647_3367487,00.html http://hgic.clemson.edu/factsheets/HGIC1454.htm From this site: http://members.aol.com/citrusweb/pdf/propagation.pdf Newt
Actually, lemon is one of the citrus varieties that does usually grow true from seed. It will take 7-10 years to produce fruit unless grafted with mature wood. One way you can tell if citrus will grow true ( like the parent) is if the seed is polyembryonic --(multiple embryos inside one seed coat). Tangerines and clementines tend to zygotic (not the same as the parent), but grapefruit, lemon and key limes are usually clones of the mother plant.
A store lemon is likely to be of the Eureka or Lisbon variety. Their seeds exhibit a low degree of polyembryony and so there's a chance a seedling will be true to type. Lemons also have a relatively short juvenility period. Under good growing conditions and left unpruned(*) a seedling can begin fruiting in 2-3 years. As for making the tree more bushy I can offer this. Last year I had two lemons, Eureka and Lisbon varieties, growing as six foot tall, single stemmed trees. They had strong, healthy growth with many large sized leaves. The Lisbon succumbed to some sort of ailment this past spring. The Eureka was topped and has since grown into a dense bush. Along the way I had to prune back part of the growth from each new flush. Time will tell whether this technique will be effective in the long run. I've had less success with trees having smaller trunk diameters. Also note as alluded to above, you may not want to prune a seedling tree as it will impact the time required for the tree to reach maturity. * Search the Citrus forum using "node count" for an explanation.
Your lemon will produce a tree and fruit the same as the mother plant that produced the seed. Almost all sweet oranges, true grapefruit, lemons, limes, pure mandarins (other than King & clementine) most tangelos, hybrid tangerines and tangors (except temple) grow true from seed. Most pummelos do not produce fruit true to the mother plant when started from seed. Note that if you keep pruning your tree back it will almost certainly never produce fruit, because it will not ever reach the required node count. As Junglekeeper, suggested above, use the search function on this forum to learn about why the node count is important if you ever wish your tree to produce fruit. - Millet
Millet, could you clarify the nucellar nature of lemon seed? I noted the following (seemingly contradictory) quotes from The Citrus Industry. Has the industry moved to use nucellar selections of lemon varieties in recent times (which I think is what the second quote is saying)?
Hey All, Thanks for the good information. I guess I need to decide if I would rather have a fruit producing tree or an attractive house plant. If I don't prune it and just let it grow tall. How tall is it likely to get? I am wondering if it would still be manageable enough to bring in and out with the seasons. -CourtneyJean
Junglekeeper, corresponding with Dr. Malcolm Manners about the length of time from seed to fruit for a lemon here is what he wrote: ..........My guess (and that's all it is) would be less time than an orange but more than a lime, so maybe 5-7 years. Just guessing............ Although Dr. Manners is "just guessing" his guessing is better that anyone's guessing that I know. - Millet
Millet, that's not the answer I was looking for but thanks nevertheless for your effort in asking Dr. Manners. However I am surprised by the answer of 5-7 years - thought it was much less than that. I was wondering whether current day selections of lemon cultivars produce nucellar seed to a high degree. This appears not to be the case at one time. Do you know?
Junglekeeper, yes lemons grow true from seed due to their ability to produce nucellar seedlings. The original Eureka was grown from seed that came from Italy. BTW what varieties of citrus are you currently growing?- Millet
The existence of nucellar embryos in lemon seed is not in question but rather their numbers compared to their zygotic siblings. I have Eureka, Variegated Pink, Meyer, and Ponderosa lemons and plan on getting a replacement Lisbon when it becomes available again.
