Indoor Citrus Trees

I have done the avocado sprouting before. I grew a really tall stalk. It was like Jack and the bean stalk. It kept going up. I ended up trashing it because I figured it wasn't going to produce.

 

How long did you keep it before tossing it out?

 

The only problem you might have with indoors apple trees, is size. The trees generally get pretty big!

So far as fruiting goes, I know that with apple trees, you generally allow the first year's fruits alone (let them drop). The second year, pick them once they're ripe. They'll be small (probably the size of a rubber handball, if you're lucky), and may not even be too sweet, but by picking them, you're telling the tree that its fruit will be harvested, and the next year, the fruits will be larger in size. Eventually, they should be full sized for that variety of apple, so long as the tree gets sufficient light and water.

My folk's house also had an old, defunct (abandoned) apple orchard across the street. No one picked the apples from those trees, so they got smaller and smaller every year, to the point where they finally only grew a little bigger than a golf ball! They were pretty good for us kids to use for apple wars, though!!

As far as growing from seeds, consider this.....there's plenty of places in the world where fruit trees are planted naturally, by the fruit bats that inhabit that area. When I lived on Guam, that's how many of the island's trees had been planted. The fruit bats eat the fruit, including the seeds, which pass, undigested, through the bat, and exit it mixed in the with guano.....which helps to fertilize the seed, so it can grow a new tree! Now who but a supreme being could come up with a foolproof plan like that one??

 

LOL, yeah, I guess I should have pointed out that the apple trees will go outside this fall. (Assuming they grow at all, of course.) One tree growing in the living room is enough, and I'm still not sure what I'm going to do with it when it gets bigger!

 

About a year. I know that was probably not long enough, I was young & impatient.

 

I found a local place that has kumquat and lemon trees. I am going to check them out because some I have seen look kind of sickly. I had been hoping Santa would bring me a tree for Christmas. I left my Christmas "tree" list, with a coupon on the counter, Santa brought me sexy boots instead. I guess Santa and I aren't on the same page. So I will go get a couple of citrus trees and wear my boots when tending them.

 

Oh, I don't know about that.....I think those boots will help make something grow....who knows? it might help your trees too!

 

Men....

 

You can espalier your apple trees to any size you want, even a single column trimmed to a certain height.

 

I just purchased a variegated pink lemon tree. It only has 5 leaves at the moment but it was marked down to $15 (normally $46). It has buds all over it. I love bringing things back to life. I am still looking for a nice Meyer lemon but this was a deal I couldn't pass up.

 

Did you buy your apple trees or did they come with your home?

 

I bought them from Arbor Day. The first ones they sent were junk and died almost out of the gate. The replacements were much better. I don't have pics but am training them to 2 horizontal bars, like this

 

I have never seen such a thing. That is so cool. It's natural fencing.

 

Thread bump. Time to try again. I love gardening and growing but have had issues in the past. Time to try again. I have been shopping for a citrus tree that hopefully will produce in years to come. Anyone currently growing indoor citrus? I have been thinking about sprouting an avocado also. I am in different housing and have different lighting.

 

Nice Tree @Brokor I did not know you had a green thumb!

I will second grow lights on a timer, without both you just dont get consistent results. I've been experimenting with low inputindoor gardening, lots of fails till I got grow lights on a timer and you need at least 50% humidity.for citrus and some kind of air circulation. I have a fan I let blow for 30 2x a day on mine, the wind helps them develop stronger roots and stems. And as Brokor said trim them early. THe truth is citrus doesn't do well indoors. Figs, are ok. but I haven't been able to get it to produce fruit unless I put it outside

 

In my home have two lemon trees. I put my effort during my free time; So, I am waiting for lemon fruit from two trees.

 

Here in SC I have 2 Satsuma orange trees in the ground and they produce a lot of oranges hardy to 19 degrees for brief periods, have a Meyers lemon and a Persian lime in pots --winter I move them into the green house (have heaters if needed). Had a key lime in a pot for years and did real well produced a ton of limes then for some reason it up and died. Try to find dwarf varieties for pots

 

I think it's amazing that you are growing citrus trees indoors. I keep reading that meyer lemons are the easiest to grow indoors. Citrus likes a lot of sunlight so make sure that you put your plant in a place with a lot of light.
If leaves or branches start to fall off or wilt, it could be sign of overwatering. I hope your indoor garden is thriving!