How to Grow Lemon
Lemon At a Glance
Difficulty
Moderate
Category
Citrus
Sun Exposure
Full Sun
Frost Tolerance
Frost Tender
Cold Hardiness
Survives to -3°C
Plant Family
Rutaceae
Growing Season
Warm Season
Plant Lifecycle
Perennial
How to Start It
★ Recommended for beginners
Buy a grafted lemon tree in a pot, which can fruit within about 2 years and stays true to its variety. One tree is enough, since it pollinates itself. Keep it in a large pot with drainage holes, so you can move it outside after your last frost and back inside before your first fall frost.
A lemon tree flowers and fruits off and on all year, so it often carries flowers, green lemons and ripe lemons at the same time. It dies below about -3°C, so in Canada it lives in a pot: outside in summer, and inside by a bright, cool window in winter. A seed from a store lemon sprouts easily into a pretty leafy plant, but it can take many years to fruit.
When To Start
Lemon needs warmth. Wait until your last frost has passed and the soil has warmed before sowing.
We do not have exact sowing dates for this one yet.
When should you plant Lemon?
Your planting dates depend on your local climate. Sign up and add your location to unlock personalized dates.
Your Lemon Planting Window
Start planting
May 15, 2026
Last chance
Sep 10, 2026
Your Lemon Calendar
Set your location to turn these into exact dates and reminders.
Move your potted lemon tree outside into full sun
2 weeks after your last frost
Lightly trim your lemon tree to keep a nice shape
30 days after your last frost· every year· optional
Bring your lemon tree in to a bright, cool window
3 weeks before your first frost· every year
Taste a lemon: ripe ones give a little when squeezed
270 days after your last frost· every year
Water your new lemon plants well while they settle in. Deep and slow is best.
About 1 days after you plant it
How is your lemon tree settling in? Water when the top few centimetres of soil feel dry, then let the pot drain.
About 30 days after you plant it
Your lemon tree has had time to settle. Give it your sunniest spot, it loves bright light.
About 90 days after you plant it
The Journey Ahead
Lemon's Lifecycle
Seedling
Mature Plant
Seed Production
Step 1
Prepare Your Space
300 cm
Plant Spacing
400 cm
Row Spacing
Vertical Growing
No.
Succession Planting
No.
Good Companions
Bad Companions
Step 2
Planting & Sprouting
Growing Tips
- 1Give your lemon tree full sun, at least 8 hours a day outside in summer and the sunniest window you have in winter.
- 2Grow it in a fast-draining potting mix with some compost, in a pot with drainage holes.
- 3Water deeply when the top few centimetres of the mix are dry, and never leave the pot sitting in water.
- 4Citrus is hungry, so feed every 2 to 3 weeks in spring and summer with compost tea or a top layer of worm castings.
- 5When it flowers indoors, brush pollen from flower to flower with a small paintbrush to help it set fruit.
- 6Indoors, look under the leaves for scale insects (small brown bumps) and spider mites, wipe them off with a damp cloth, and give the leaves a shower now and then.
Seedling Phase
Step 3
Growth & Maturity
300 cm
Mature Height
250 cm
Mature Width
Pests to Watch For
Diseases to Watch For
Mature Plant
Step 4
Harvesting
Harvest Window
60 days
When to Pick
Pick when fully coloured and slightly soft; fruit can hang on the tree for weeks
How to Harvest
- 1Lemons are ready when they are fully yellow, smell fragrant and give a little when squeezed.
- 2Lemons do not ripen any more once picked, so taste one before picking the rest.
- 3Cut the fruit off with pruners, or twist it gently so you do not tear the skin.
- 4Ripe lemons hold well on the tree for weeks, so pick them as you need them.
- 5Keep picked lemons in the fridge, where they last about a month.
Step 5
Saving Seeds
Seed Production
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