Growing a Patio Lemon Tree in Winter
How to Grow Lemons Outdoors Year-Round in a Northern Climate
Want to grow fresh lemons on your patio in the winter? With a few simple protective measures lemon trees can adapt to outdoor year-round growing in a cool northern climate.
Video: Growing a Winter Patio Lemon Tree
For me, the best lemons grow in winter: fragrant blossoms and juicy, fresh citrus fruit when most everything else in the garden is cold and dormant.
I brought home my little potted Meyer lemon tree on a whim. The idea of growing citrus outdoors appealed to me. I’d heard that lemon trees are hardy enough to survive our Canadian South Coast British Columbia winters (plant hardiness zone 9).
Citrus trees are subtropicals that typically grow in warm, sunny places like California and Florida. Growing a subtropical lemon tree outdoors in the north takes extra work and care.
When do Lemon Trees Bloom?
A lemon blossom and a ripening lemon.
Lemon trees can blossom at any time of the year. In warm climates, they often bloom in spring and fall. Here in southern BC, my lemon tree blooms reliably in January and in the spring, producing two crops of fruit each year. Some years, the tree also produces more blossoms during the summer months.
Container Lemon Tree – Growing Conditions
As I began to care for my container lemon tree, I learned more about its needs. Like all citrus, lemon trees like warmth and light. Overall, they require at least six hours of sunlight per day. They thrive best in temperatures between 18–24ºC (65–75ºF), but can survive down to freezing.
Lemon trees, especially when grown in containers, also need sufficient nutrients. It’s helpful to fertilize during active growth, however there are some factors to consider. Fertilizers high in nitrogen tend to promote new leaf growth at the expense of blossoms and fruit. Fertilizers with higher phosphorus help blossom and fruit growth. Rather than relying on a lot of fertilizer, I apply an organic fertilizer at key periods, and then use fish-based compost the rest of the time.
Summer Patio Lemon Tree Care
During the summer, I keep my potted lemon tree at the edge of the patio to catch as much sunlight as possible. Because the tree does not like overwatering, I let the soil dry out a little between waterings, and water only when the soil is dry down to 5 cm (2 in). On hot, dry summer days, I also mist the leaves with a spray bottle of water.
Winter Patio Lemon Tree Protection
Inside a layer of protective fabric, 7-watt lights warm the lemon tree in the winter.
When fall comes, I take measures to protect the tree from the cold. In spring, you’ll want to reverse these steps very gradually as the plant reacclimatizes to being out in the elements.
Starting in late October or November, when temperatures get down to about 6º C (43º F), I move the potted tree up close to the house for warmth, in a place well-protected from rain.
As temperatures drop, I wrap the tree with row cover fabric (Reemay) and 7-watt Christmas lights for additional warmth. (It’s important to use 7-watt lights, which provide heat; LEDs do not.)
This protects the tree throughout most of the winter, except in high winds, or when temperatures dip below freezing. Then, wrapping a layer of cardboard around the tree provides extra protection.
Winter Lemons
On a cold, freezing day I open the wrapping and inhale the sweet scent of lemon blossoms. Tiny new green lemons are forming. And there are still one or two yellow lemons ripe for the picking!
More articles:
A Low-Carbon Citrus Greenhouse in Canada
Grow a Climate Change Resilient Garden
10 Tips for Year-Round Vegetable Gardens
We are growing a meyer in victoria and she has finally grown too big to keep going in and out. Ive just read your article and watched your cute video. It answered a lot for me except – is your spot against the house receiving any sun? I know we don’t see much here in the winter but does it need any? Also – do you water or fertalize at all during winter months?
Thank you!
The lemon tree in the video is on a north-facing patio. In summer, on the edge of the patio, it receives the minimum amount of sunlight — only about 6 hours of sun a day. More heat and direct sunlight would be optimal. It struggles in the spring when the days are not yet warm enough and the amount of sunlight is low.
In the winter, I move the tree in against the house under our covered patio, where it receives almost no direct sunlight, yet a fair amount of ambient light (more than it would receive in the house). The 7-watt Christmas lights appear to supply enough light for it to flourish in the winter. In fact, our best blooms and crops come in the winter.
You will want to continue to water the tree throughout the winter (even when it is covered with remay and cardboard). Water only when the soil is dry. Feel down into the soil about two inches. If it is dry, it’s time to water.
I continue to add sea soil compost at about 6–8 week intervals throughout the winter. Once I’ve harvested most of my lemons and the new buds are forming, around January, I sometimes also add a little liquid organic fertilizer.
Hello,
When you say 7 watt bulbs, do you mean C7 bulbs? C7 and C9 are all I can find. The old Christmas lights are impossible to find and when I did I can’t get replacement bulbs.
I’ve know Lulu since she was a seed and I can’t bear the thought of her dying. She is in a pot but it’s getting too big to bring inside and this will be her first winter outside. She will be under shelter , next to my front door and I have lots of white remay and cardboard if necessary. I just need to provide some heat for her
Thank you so much for this info. 🙏
PS. For the person that is looking for citrus farms: Fruit Trees and More, North Saanich, Vancouver Island.
C9 bulbs are 7 watts.
Hello!
Just read your article about growing lemon trees in BC.
Could you recommend a couple of places that sells them please? I don’t want to order one through Amazon, if I can help it….
Many thanks,
Pernilla
Try searching the Vancouver Island Farms & Food Map for farms & nurseries that sell citrus trees. On the pull-down categories, choose “Plants & Flowers” and then “Trees & Shrubs.” You’ll get a list of sellers, and can click on each one and read their description to find citrus growers.
I was thrilled to receive a Meyer lemon plant for Christmas but it doesn’t seem to be thriving. My house is 20.5 degrees in the day and down to 17 at night. I would appreciate suggestions.
I grew up surrounded by citrus groves, first grapefruit and orange, and later lemons. The smell!!
So great to read your article, you almost have me tempted.
Laura