Growing a lemon (lemon tree) from a seed at home

Lemon is an evergreen tree with yellow fruits, the peel of which contains a large number of veins filled with essential oils. This explains the characteristic lemon smell. Lemon belongs to the genus Citrus. This tree is native to India and the Pacific Islands. The shrub is cultivated in countries that are characterized by a subtropical climate. Growing a lemon from a stone at home is quite difficult. In order to get not a decorative, but a fruit-bearing tree, it is necessary to strictly follow the rules of planting and maintenance.

Is it possible to grow a lemon from a stone at home

One of the ways is suitable for growing indoor lemon at home: you can buy seedlings in a specialized store or try to grow a lemon on a window sill from a stone yourself.

Lemon trees are most often found in offices, commercial premises or residential buildings as an ornamental shrub. Growing a lemon tree at home so that it bears full fruit is a complex and lengthy process. Ornamental trees are not able to form ovaries and bear fruit. The leaves of ornamental lemons are usually dark green and have only a hint of the characteristic aroma that is familiar to everyone. Nevertheless, it becomes possible to plant a lemon at home from a stone and wait for the fruits to appear, subject to the necessary agrotechnical rules for care.

Will a lemon grown from a seed bear fruit?

The fruiting of a tree depends on several conditions, failure to comply with one of them can lead to the fact that the bush will remain decorative.

Conditions necessary for possible fruiting:

1. Strict adherence to the temperature regime. This is one of the basic rules for growing a lemon tree. Citrus does not tolerate temperature extremes well, and also cannot exist in an environment where the temperature drops below +10 °
2. Grafting. This method greatly increases the chances of a lemon tree to bear fruit. Grafting is carried out by budding or placing the stock in a split.
3. Ensuring daylight hours lasting at least 12 hours.
4. Regular watering.
5. Carrying out the necessary dressings.

Compliance with all of the above conditions makes it possible to get a crop of lemons for the 3rd – 5th year of the existence of this evergreen tree in an apartment.

Lemon varieties for growing at home

To grow citrus from a stone, it is necessary to choose the right variety and organize care in order to ensure that the plant bears fruit when its natural habitat changes.

The most suitable varieties for home cultivation are recognized:

• Jubilee – leader in growing at home, including on the loggias of apartments;
• Pavlovsky – one of the most popular varieties, up to 2 m high;
• Genoa – specially bred for growing at home, 1,5 m high with fruits that most resemble classic lemons;
• Meyer – a hybrid of lemon and grapefruit, height 1,5 – 2 m, feature – seasonal rest;
• Panderoza – up to 1,5 m with medium-sized tuberous fruits.

How to grow lemon from seed at home

After choosing a lemon variety for cultivation, they begin to select fruits. They should be ripe, even, uniform in color with a peel without damage or dents.

The most suitable time period for placing the stone in the ground is considered the end of spring or the beginning of summer. This time creates a natural atmosphere that is comfortable for the start of germination of lemon seeds:

• the presence of a long daylight hours;
• establishing a stable air temperature;
• the impossibility of drying the air in the apartments due to the end of the heating season.

These are favorable conditions for growing a viable lemon tree. During the first stage, the bone should take root and germinate. Then the stage of caring for the process begins. If you follow the rules, a lemon tree grows from a stone in a year. Several years pass before fruiting and flowering. This period is important for the seedling as a stage of adaptation and development. Lemon in this period of time adapts to room conditions, gets used to changing temperature conditions. On the 4th – 5th year of existence, a tree up to 3 m is formed from a lemon sprout, while dwarf varieties for growing in apartments do not exceed 2 m.

Leaves on shrubs live for about 3 years, as they age, they gradually change. The buds develop for about 5 weeks and then begin to bloom. Citrus flowering is considered protracted, it lasts up to 10 weeks. Under room conditions, the time period from the beginning of the formation of the ovary to the ripening of the fetus can take about 230 days.

To get a crop of lemons, you must carefully ensure that the tree does not shed its leaves during the growing season. The fact is that there is a close relationship between the number of leaves on the branches and the number of fruits formed. For the development of the fruit, the lemon must have 8 – 10 true active leaves. The main task of the grower, who hopes to get a harvest, is the preservation of lemon leaf plates. This culture is characterized by year-round fruiting. Citrus blooms regardless of the time of year. With proper care, observance of the necessary conditions, domestic trees live up to 30 – 40 years.

How to plant a lemon from the seed at home

Planting a lemon from a stone at home includes several stages. Each of them is an important stage of cultivation.

Tank and soil preparation

At the first stage of cultivation, when it is necessary to root a lemon seed and grow a shoot, small plastic containers are chosen, the height of which does not exceed 5-6 cm.

After germination, at the stage of active growth, a transplant is made to a permanent place, which will be a home for the lemon until it has to be transplanted again.

In size, the first pot for a lemon should be several centimeters larger than the container in which the seeds grew. To grow a lemon tree from a stone at home, clay pots are often chosen.

Benefits of clay pots:

• clay material is well suited for growing citrus because of its ability to absorb moisture, the pores of the walls actively absorb it and save the plant from waterlogging;
• the pots are stable due to the weight of the material, which eliminates the possibility of the tree tipping over.

Advantages of plastic lemon pots:

• the root system of the plant does not grow into plastic walls;
• ease of care for containers;
• protection against overheating and hypothermia of the root system due to the inability of plastic to conduct heat.

Advantages of wooden pots:

• suitable for mature trees;
• Strong, durable, stable;
• protect the lemon from excess moisture.

The size is selected based on the following calculations:

• annual citrus seedlings are grown in containers with a diameter of no more than 5 cm;
• when changing the pot, an increase in diameter of 3-5 cm is taken into account.

Characteristics of the soil mixture suitable for growing citrus fruits:

• loose structure;
• acidity level is weak or neutral;
• the presence of nutrients with a high content of phosphorus.

Before planting, the container is prepared as follows:

1. A mandatory layer of drainage is placed at the bottom of the pot. Expanded clay or vermiculite is suitable for this.
2. Then a layer of prepared soil is poured, not reaching 2 cm to the edges of the container.
3. The soil is moistened with a sprayer.
4. Prepare dry soil for falling asleep bones on top with a layer of 1 cm.

Is it possible to plant a lemon in ordinary soil

Ordinary soil for indoor citrus trees is not suitable for many reasons. It is impossible to grow a lemon in it due to the reduced nutrient content. Uneven particles can also be found in the ground, and the root system of lemons is designed in such a way that it is unable to quickly absorb nutrients.

How to prepare lemon seeds for planting

Before planting lemon from seeds, you need to select and prepare them. Whole, even, intact seeds are selected from a fresh cut lemon. Before planting, they are subjected to special treatment. Seeds are immersed in a growth stimulator and left for 12 hours.

The soaking solution is prepared from 250 ml of water and 1 drop of a biostimulant. For this, drugs such as Zircon, Kornevin are suitable. Such a procedure increases germination. Experienced flower growers do not place the seeds in solutions with root stimulants before planting, nor do they soak them in water. They release the seeds from the hard upper shell and immediately bury them in the ground. When removing the hard shell, special care must be taken not to damage the lemon cotyledons. Such a procedure, according to gardeners, should speed up the germination process, and there are no special recommendations for seed stratification.

How to germinate lemon seeds at home

The stone is placed in the ground to a depth of no more than 2 cm. To create a greenhouse effect that will increase germination, containers with planted seeds are covered with plastic wrap or the upper half of plastic bottles.

The temperature for germination should not be lower than +18 °C. The land in which the seeds need to be grown is not watered in the usual way. For irrigation, a spray gun is used to gently moisten the topsoil. After the appearance of sprouts, the soil continues to be moistened in the same mode. Plastic or polyethylene is removed after the appearance of the 4th true leaf.

During the germination period, seedlings need diffused light: direct sunlight is completely excluded. For irrigation, use water that has been settled in the room for several hours.

How to plant lemon seeds at home

To grow a full-fledged tree, seedlings are transplanted to a permanent place of growth after the appearance of the 3rd – 4th leaf. The transplant process can be divided into several stages:

1. The lemon is watered abundantly, then, holding the shoot near the base, the pot is carefully turned over, the plant is pulled out of the container along with the ground.
2. Transshipment is carried out after loosening the earthen lump with a wooden stick to facilitate adaptation to the root system.
3. The roots are powdered with a root stimulator (Kornevin or Zircon).
4. In a new pot equipped with a drainage system, a lemon is placed, then soil is poured around the main trunk.
5. The pot is shaken to settle the soil, then watered abundantly with water at room temperature.
6. After transplanting, the leaves are sprayed from the sprayer and cleaned in a shady place so that the lemon adapts to new conditions faster.

How to grow a lemon tree

Transplanting a lemon seedling to a permanent place of growth is the beginning of a difficult and long process of growing a full-fledged lemon tree in a pot at home. Throughout the growing season, gardeners recommend adhering to the basic rules, which include agricultural practices designed only for citrus crops.

How long do lemon seeds germinate

Time intervals, including germination and transplantation, depend on the temperature regime and the required daylight hours.

It takes from 1 to 3 weeks to adapt the transplanted seedling, after which the plant grown from the seed begins to actively develop, gradually turning into a small tree with a developed crown and a weak lemon aroma. With proper care, the flowering period can occur in 3 to 5 years.

Watering Schedule

Citrus crops react to an excess of moisture with fungal diseases of the root system, so gardeners recommend watering plants, focusing on the condition of the soil. Irrigation water must be settled. To improve the quality, 10 ml of nitric acid is added to 3 liters of liquid, this mixture helps to avoid chlorine from tap water.

When and what to feed

Top dressing of lemon begins a month after transplanting to a permanent place of growth, then they are applied 2 times a month.

For fertilizer under the root, solutions of organic complexes are used. The root system of a lemon needs nitrogen-containing mixtures, as well as phosphorus and potassium during the period of flower stalks and fruit formation.

Trimming

To grow a full-fledged lemon tree, crown formation begins at an early age. Pruning principles:

1. The top is pinched to provide lateral branching.
2. Regularly turn the lemon 10 degrees so that the branches do not develop to one side.
3. Lemon pruning is carried out throughout the year, as needed.

Creating the Right Conditions

To grow, citrus crops need stability in providing vital conditions.

1. Lighting. Avoid direct sunlight to prevent burns of sheet plates. When the lighting is not enough, the lemon is provided with additional illumination with fluorescent lamps.
2. Humidity. Citruses are intolerant of increased air dryness. For normal development, they need air with humidity levels of at least 45 – 50%. To increase humidity, humidifiers are placed next to the pots.
3. Temperature. To grow a lemon, you must observe the temperature regime. For the warm season, it is suitable to maintain the temperature in the range from 18 ° C to +23 ° C; in winter, the temperature for growing lemon should not fall below +10 ° C

Features of growing lemon in an apartment in winter

The most difficult period for flower growers in growing lemon is winter. Plants go into a resting phase. In winter, the irrigation regime is reduced, heated water is used.

At this time, it is necessary to deal with the dryness of the air due to the operation of the heating. Overdrying leads to the fact that the lemon begins to shed its leaves, so gardeners recommend achieving air humidity by any available means. When the lemon is resting, it does not need top dressing. It only needs additional lighting if the light becomes insufficient.

List of possible problems when growing a lemon

Dropping leaves, yellowing of the tips of the plates, wilting, rotting of the roots – this is not a complete list of signs of a citrus tree’s response to care errors or the appearance of pests.

By the state of the leaves, one can judge the lack of nutrients:

• dryness at the ends indicates the need to supplement phosphorus to the roots;
• a lack of potassium or magnesium affects the leaves with the appearance of wrinkles and the fall of a newly appeared ovary;
• yellowness of the leaves appears as a response to waterlogging;
• a stunted and diseased appearance may indicate rotting of the root system.

With regular inspection of a lemon, you can timely notice the appearance and reproduction of parasitic insects. The dangers that threaten indoor lemons lie in the appearance of several varieties that are characteristic of distribution on indoor plants:

1. Mealy bugs. These are parasites that occur as a result of excessive dryness of the air, they can be removed by regularly washing the leaves, cleaning them of dust and moistening with available methods.
2. Shchitovki. Pests multiply on the leaves and stem due to excessive moisture, their appearance can be identified by the formation of shiny sticky drops, in the next stage the lemon begins to shed its leaves. The scale insect is removed by treating parts of the plant with a solution of laundry soap. The treatment is carried out every 2 days, after which the lemon is given a hygienic shower.
3. Spider mite. This is an insect that often appears on indoor plants. It can be detected by the presence of a white thin cobweb on a lemon. The tree is treated with sulfur, the leaf plates are washed with water jets or sprayed with soapy water.

Preventive measures to combat parasites and diseases:

• hygienic hot water shower;
• spraying leaves on both sides;
• treatment with Fitosporin.

Some tips for growing lemons

1. Experienced flower growers are advised to be patient in the first year of lemon flowering and rid the tree of the buds that have appeared. This will help keep the tree of strength for the formation of full-fledged fruits for the next season.
2. According to gardeners, the east side is the most suitable for growing a lemon in an apartment on a windowsill.
3. For the formation of the 1st flower, at least 10 viable leaves are required, therefore, leaf formation must be monitored from the earliest age of the seedling.
4. In winter, containers filled with water are placed next to the pot. This helps to keep the humidity at the right level.
5. Pruning on all branches is carried out after the appearance of the 5th leaf: in this way, the crown of the tree is formed compact and aesthetically attractive.
6. To increase productivity, 5-8 seeds are buried in the ground, then the strongest seedlings are selected.

Conclusion

It is quite possible to grow a lemon from a stone yourself. To do this, you should choose the right variety and take into account that citrus requires constant care. When creating comfortable conditions for a plant, you can not only get a beautiful tree as a spectacular element of your home interior, but also get a full and regular harvest of bright vitamin fruits.