How to Grow a Healthy Lemon Tree

Follow care instructions for your lemon tree.

Lemon trees require lots of direct sunlight. When growing lemon trees, you must consider a range of issues including feeding, draining and pest infestation. While the process of caring for a lemon tree is comparable to growing most other trees, you still need to understand and implement the basic requirements for proper growth and sustainable health. Lemon trees are available for purchase at your nursery.

Things You'll Need

• Crushed rock or sand
• Rich compost
• Fertilizer
• Plastic juice or soda bottles
• String
• 6 moth balls

Instructions

1. Purchase a lemon tree that is adaptable to the weather conditions in your area. For example, if you live in a cool to temperate climate where regular frosts occur, select a cool climate variety such as Meyer, which is smaller and adaptable in a variety of weather conditions, according to The Plant Whiz.

2. Ask a sales associate to make sure the tree has been grafted, which means the grower cut a hole in the tree -- close to the root system -- and inserted a portion of a second tree so the cut tree could draw nutrients from the other tree as well as produce the same growth pattern as the other tree. You want a lemon tree capable of producing a high ratio of fruit, so always opt for a grafted tree. If a lemon tree is not grafted, you can graft it yourself, but the grafting process can be challenging if you have never done it before.

3. Look for at least three leading branches extending from the main trunk. The tree must be free of pests so ask the grower to check before making your purchase.

4. Plant the tree in a spot that drains well. Dry periods between waterings permit proper growth of the tree's root system, which will ensure your lemon tree grows healthily and at a proper pace. Combat a muddy area with a makeshift draining system. Dig a deep hole and fill it with 6 inches of crushed rock or sand. Top the hole with rich compost. Plant your lemon tree on top.

5. Fertilize your tree with a nitrogen-rich fertilizer at the start of the fall season and again at the beginning of spring. Manure and organic-based fertilizers designed specifically for lemon trees are available at nurseries.

6. Check for a pest infestation. After some time, look for lumps on your branches. If you see any, your tree may be infested with citrus gall wasps, which burrow within the branches of a lemon tree. Grab about six plastic juice bottles and punch several pen-size holes in each one. Fill the bottles with moth balls and tie a piece of string to the neck of the bottle. Hang the bottles from your tree. The Plant Whiz recommends this trick for any level of gall wasp infestation.

Tips & Warnings

• Don't panic if your tree loses some or all of its leaves. This is common and is not indicative of poor health.

• During low rainfall, water your lemon tree deeply once a week.

• A standard lemon tree can reach 20 feet tall.

• Lemon trees need at least six to eight hours of direct sunlight each day.

References

• The Plant Whiz: How to Grow a Lemon Tree
• Home Orchard: Budding and Grafting Citrus and Avocados in Your Garden
• Washington State University Whatcom County Extension: Meyer Lemon
• Midwest Fruit Explorers: Why Trees are Grafted

Resources

• University of Missouri Extension: How to Graft a Fruit Tree