Avoid disturbing shallow roots when you feed. Feed container lemon trees every three to four months. Like other citrus trees, lemon trees require plentiful nitrogen as well as other essential nutrients, including magnesium and iron.1 This is especially important for indoor lemon trees, which are restricted to containers.Ī premium citrus fertilizer such as Pennington UltraGreen Citrus and Avocado Plant Food 10-5-5 provides indoor lemon trees with an ideal blend of primary nutrients and micronutrients at planting time, then it keeps feeding for up to four months.Īs your tree grows older its needs will change, so follow label instructions for your indoor lemon tree's age and pot size. To grow tasty fruit and beautiful foliage, your indoor lemon tree needs proper food. Watch for warning signs such as yellow leaves, which signal soggy roots or nutrient problems. Timing varies depending on your indoor temperatures, your container and your tree size. During winter, water only as needed to keep soil moist. Test soil with a moisture meter (available online and in garden centers) or use your index finger instead.ĭuring active growth, especially if they're outdoors during summer, container lemon trees may need daily watering. Keep the soil moist, not overly wet, but never let it dry out completely. Then water thoroughly until it runs through the pot's drainage holes. To keep your lemon tree healthy, allow the soil to dry out about 3 inches deep before you water. Abrupt changes in light and temperature can make fruit drop. Before fall frost comes, move it back inside. The extra sunlight will do it good - and reward you with fruit. Once all danger of spring frost passes, gradually acclimate it to the outdoors. Lemon trees won't tolerate hot or cold drafts, so place them away from all air conditioning and heating ducts.ĭuring warm summer months, consider giving your indoor lemon tree an outdoor vacation.
The more light it gets, the better your results will be. Light: For peak performance - from blooms to fruit - your indoor lemon tree needs close to eight hours of sunlight each day.
These two factors are critical to a successful indoor lemon tree: Once your lemon tree is in its new container, it's ready for its new environment. Either way, your new tree won't have the small size and disease resistance of grafted dwarf trees, and you won't see fruit for many years. Starting a lemon tree from a cutting will yield the same tree - from the ground up - but the process is challenging. If you plan to grow a lemon tree from a seed, understand that the new tree won't be the same as the one the seed came from. Other indoor varieties can grow to 6 feet or more.
Container size helps limit a tree's eventual height, but most indoor dwarf Meyer lemon trees grow to at least 3 to 4 feet tall. Most dwarf lemon trees sold by nurseries are two to three years old - old enough to start bearing fruit, but still immature. Dwarf Variegated Pink Lemonade – The green-and-yellow variegated fruit on this true lemon tree has pink flesh (but clear juice).Dwarf Ponderosa – Another popular indoor choice, this lemon and citron cross bears large lemony fruit.Dwarf Improved Meyer – The easiest indoor lemon tree, this cross between lemon and mandarin orange offers sweet, tangy lemons.The best dwarf indoor lemon tree varieties include: Some of the easiest, most popular indoor lemon trees are actually crosses with other fruits, but some are true lemon trees that do well in pots. Growers graft indoor lemon tree varieties onto special dwarfing roots that speed up fruit-bearing ability and keep trees small. When grown outdoors in warm climates, regular lemon trees grow 20 feet tall and take up to six years to bear fruit.1 For indoor lemons, you need a tree that stays small and delivers lemons sooner.