Hell everyone, This is my first post on this site. It look like a bunch a friendly helpful people here so I feel comfortable jumping right in and asking my first question. I am a low carber and one of my favorite Drinks is Lemonade made with Splenda. Time after time I have caught myself throwing away lemon seeds. So I thought to myself why not try and grow my own lemons. I have always wanted to grow something and lemons seem to be the thing for me. 1) The first question I have is where you guy buy your plant supplies from? Are there online stores that offer great deals or should I stick to my local stores? 2) When growing lemons, I have read that they like a more acidic soild mixture. I know nothing about soil as of now and was hoping that someone could point me in the right direction for selecting the right soil for growing Lemons. 3) Pot Size...How large or small of a pot should I purchase. Currently I have the lemon seeds sitting in moist dirt which I grabed from another plany arround the house. I first sterilized the dirt by heating it to 160 degrees for 30 minutes. I read this somewhere in all my hours of searching. 4) Covering with plastic wrap... I know this is intended for keeping the dirt moist. At what stage should I remove the plastic wrap? Is this for the germination stage only? 5) Lighting for Indoor growth... I have read that a 40 watt flourecent bulb above the plant is good. How far above the tree should it be and does color matter? I remember reading a while back that plants respond better to blue light. How many hours of light do the trees need? 6) How fast do the trees grow? 7) Is it possible to start growing lemon trees indoors in September. Thank you all for all your help. I am open for any tips on growing lemons. I live in Maryland which has Cold winter climates and Hot and Humid summer climates.
Hi Squintz, Millet can tell you more about container grown citrus-- I know he likes potting in coconut husk chips (CHC) and peat ---he has a recipie for preparing it-- you can probably find it using search. Orchid mix is a prepared mix I see used by many on these forums. As for lemons from seed -- it will take at least 5 yrs for fruit unless you graft. You can buy a grafted tree on Flying Dragon rootstock and get a little extra cold tolerance as well as a dwarf tree and get fruit in a yr or 2. To sprout seeds you an put them in a baggie in moist --not wet soil-- and place in a warm (85) place. BTW -- My son lives in MD a little west of Baltimore.
