4 Quick Tips Before Starting to Grow a Lemon Tree from Seed
Article written by Darren Sheriff, a.k.a The Citrus Guy
Growing your own lemons from seed can be very educational and rewarding. If you have bought a lemon from the market, it is a fantastic piece of fruit, and if you find some seeds in it, by all means, plant them. You will get fruit from it! This is Mother Nature at work and it truly is mesmerizing to watch.
Here are my 4 quick tips to know before starting to grow a lemon tree from seed:
Do not let the seed(s) dry out. You should plant them as soon as you can. The germination rate decreases rapidly the longer it is out of the fruit. You can peel the outer layer of the seed coat off before planting, but this is not an absolute necessity. If you can not plant them immediately, rinse them off, place them between some damp paper towels and put them in a plastic bag in your refrigerator crisper. There is always the chance that they will sprout in the bag. Periodically check it so that they can be planted in soil.
When it comes to planting them in soil, plant the seed(s) at least as deep as it is wide. Once planted in soil it should never be allowed to dry out. Keep it about the consistency of a wrung-out dish sponge, and warm. Place it in a spot that will receive 7 to 8 hours of sunlight. You can give it some half strength solution of fertilizer once it has gotten its first set of true leaves.
Any container or potting soil will work to start your lemon tree in. As long as there are holes in the container, so water does not sit in it. The soil needs to be free draining, able to retain some moisture, and sturdy enough to support the plant. Examples of bad soil choices would be, straight peat moss (does not drain well enough), sand (does not retain any moisture), and perlite (would not be able to support the plant nutrient-wise). Any combination of all three of these would be fine.
Have Patience! Your seed(s) will germinate within a few weeks, but then it really takes some time. You should not expect to see any fruit for at least four or five years. Even with the best of horticultural practices, ample sunlight, fertilizer, etc., you will only get a few pieces of fruit in that time frame. It will increase exponentially as the tree increases in size.
Bonus Tip: Always label your seed pots and beds, even if you only plant one thing, you will forget what it is that was planted. It never hurts to put the date it was planted also. Should the seed(s) not germinate, you will realize there is something wrong if there are no signs of life six months down the road.
“Check out YouHadMeAtGardening’s complete guide on how to grow a lemon tree from seed for the step-by-step tutorial!”
In Conclusion
No matter what is said online, if you provide the right amount of sunlight during growth, you will get some kind of fruit from your lemon tree grown from seed. It might be a bit different from the original fruit, but it will still be completely edible.
Occasionally, you will get multiple embryos from one seed, this is bonus! One will be true to the mother, the other could be a hybrid of some kind. Keep them both and see what happens. The Meyer Lemon could be the exception to this, very seldom will it come true to type, but the fruit will still be edible.