I have a lemon tree that I started from a store bought seed. The tree is now about 5 foot tall and has large thorns but after 5 or so years, still no sign of it bearing any fruit. This tree was very slow growing and stopped at about 3 feet tall for about 2 years, I purchased a mexican lemon tree when we lived in Texas which was about 4 foot at the time, when I put them both side by side the tree from seed shot up to the same height as the mexican lemon and then they both grew to where they are now. Don't know if trees need friends but it sure helped mine. I have not been able to find out any info on the mexican lemon, but that is what the tag says, so if anyone has any tips on what to expect please let me know. Susan

i think i read somewhere that 'sunkist' is a brand, not the actual name of the lemon type. someone more experienced will probably be able to shed some light on its real name. if they are meyer lemons, i dont think they grow true from seed. but yes, you can grow them from seed. they need to be planted when harvested - if they dry out they will die. i keep mine in water overnight then rinse any residual lemon flesh off them (the glucose attracts fungal infections) and put them in a free draining potting mix. i currently have four seeds from a shop-bought lemon, four harvested from my own meyer lemon, 2 grapefruit and 4 mandarin. still waiting for them to germinate, but i have hope :) keep them moist while germinating, but certainly not wet, and dont let fungus settle on the soil if you can help it. they need lots of light when young, but introduce them to it gradually. what you will get is a nice young plant, probably with a lot of thorns. they will flower and fruit (if they are not sterile seeds, always a risk) but seedlings have an extended juvenile period - about 5-6 years for a lemon i think, but dont quote me on that! i think a lot of citrus are true from seed, meaning they taste the same as the parent i think....a bit shaky on that issue! but meyers dont. might end up with a nicer fruit, or an awful one! in terms of pests and disease...well, trees we buy are usually grafted on rootstock that are strong against pest and disease, so it might be slightly more vulnerable - in terms of disease try to be careful of fungus in the early stages. pests being pests may be a problem at some point, regardless of if it is a seedling or grafted stock. growing from seed is a very rewarding thing to do. i dont expect perfect plants from my seeds - i row them for the love of growing. if the juvenile period of a lemon is too long, try a mandarin, theyre about 4 years to flowering i think, or a key lime which i believe may be 1-2 years before getting flowers. would love a key lime seedling, but cant find any key limes or seeds here in england!

Hello Guys, racor 2006....I got my tree from www.riversendnursery.com . If you go to that site you won't find it listed in thier tree list. I was talking to them by phone and she just had one avaiable. Its name "TREC" comes from the fact it was developed at "Tropical Research Extension Cooperative" I believe that is the correct name. I think it is associated with the University of Florida. I have searched since for the tree and cant find another for sale. It may be I havn't looked far enough. Ohiojay...My greenhouse is made of western red cedar with poly carb and plexiglass glazing. It is a 10X20 model except I had 2 feet added to the plans to allow for more head room. It is a lean-to model and I had it built on the south side of my house where I also have a 12X20 sun porch attached. It is attached to the porch and I took down the south wall of the sun porch and made it one big room that is about 440 sq. feet and maybe 2/3 of that space has plenty of light for growing. The other 1/3 of the space is for supplies, for working on my trees. I find that during winter, this set up is perfect and can mantain 55 degrees as long as outside temps are 40 degrees with no heat. This works because of the attachment to the house. All houses slowly loose heat and in this case it leaks into the greenhouse and keeps it 10 to 15 degrees warmer than outside. I have a large electric heater that is designed to connect to duct work, but I have custom made vents on top of it, to blow heat out the sides. I keep the thermostat at 55 on it. I also have a back up vent free gas heater in case the electricity goes out. I went to a saw mill and got the cypress wood because they grow here locally. My friend helped me build them and really they are very simple to make. I have seen them online at prices that shocked me! I lined them in plastic to keep soil from touching the wood and made them were they could be taken apart. They will grow trees so large that I will not be able to root prune, any other way than taking off the sides and then take a saw and cut off part of the roots, when they become root bound. This idea was taken from the Versallies planter they had in France and England centuries ago, when world explorers came back with exotic fruit trees, and kings and queens had Orangeries built, to keep them alive during winter time. One last thing,the elctric heater is on casters so I keep it to the side, out of the way. When it gets real cold I roll it into the middle of the room to better distribute the heat. Some day I will get some pics of it. If you have more questions please let me know. Lyndle

JimShy compiled the following information and accompanying list dealing with houseplants that are fragrant. Posted by: JimShy z7 Brooklyn, NY (My Page) on Thu, Jun 10, 04 at 12:26 Fragrant Houseplants: First, the FAQ inside the FAQ! 1. Fragrance is not a science what smells fantastic to one person smells awful to another, or has no smell at all. This is partly genetic, partly personal, and wholly olfactory (sorry, couldnt resist the Batman-style rhyme!), so there is simply no substitute for smelling the plant yourself. Dont take our word for it, or anyone elses, go with your own nose! 2. A lot of other factors go into the scent of a plant: whether its getting enough sun/fertilizer/water, the time of day, the age of the plant, etc. The exact same species can smell different from one individual plant to another. Some folks also think that moon phases, astrological alignments, sunspots, El Nino, Superthrive, eggshells, their grandmothers tea, and the interest rate on 30 year Treasury bonds also play a role. The point is, if something seems to work for you, keep at it! 3. This list is not exhaustive, and will be added to from time to time. 4. There are plenty of scented plants that are not normally considered houseplants, which obsessed, er, dedicated growers are nevertheless trying to grow indoors. This list is mainly those plants that are known to be fairly good growers in the home. I also left out most, if not all, flowering bulbs that are usually purchased in bloom and thrown out when done. Fragrant bulb FAQ, anyone? 5. Plants smell their best when they are grown their best; take the time to learn the right care for your plant, and how it grows best in your home. Ok, enough already, on to the list! Plants are listed by scientific name, followed by common name in parentheses. Key: es = evening scented (after dark) ns = night scented (only late at night) Acacia baileyana, dealbata, farnesina, longifolia Aglaia odorata (Chinese perfume plant) Allamanda cathartica, schotii (neriifolia) are mostly es Alpinia: many of these have ginger-scented leaves and rhizomes Araujia sericofera (Cruel plant) Aristolochia (Dutchmans Pipe): gigantea some other aristolochias are scented, but not in a good way! Begonias: some hybrids are lightly fragrant Honeysuckle, Jim Wyrtzen, Lenore Olivier, Tea Rose, at least two species, solananthera and venosa, are more strongly scented Bouvardia longflora (Fragrant bouvardia) Brugmansias (Angels trumpets): most are fragrant (es), except for sanguinea and some of its hybrids Brunfelsias: americana, jamaicensis and isola are es, others are day-scented Buddleja: most are scented, b. asiatica blooms in winter indoors Bursera: fagaroides, macrophylla, simaruba all have scented leaves and wood Callistemon citrinus (Bottlebrush): scented leaves Carissa macrocarpa Cassia didimobotrya: leaves smell like buttered popcorn! Cedronella canariensis (false Balm of Gilead) Cestrum: aurantiacum, nocturnum (night blooming jasmine), parqui (all es), and diurnum, which is day-scented Camellia: some sasanqua cultivars, sinensis, some hybrids very difficult indoors Citrus: all have scented flowers, often the leaves smell nice too try some in a Thai curry! Clerodendrum: bungeii, phillipinum, trichotomum (all get very big) Coffea arabica (coffee) Coleonema pulchra (Breath of Heaven): scented leaves Coronilla valentina Cryptocereus anthonyanus (rick-rack cactus) Datura (Angels trumpets): most species are fragrant (es) Dombeya: wallichii, hybrids Dracena fragrans (Corn Plant) Duranta erecta: some cultivars are fragrant Echinopsis: oxypetallum, other species and some hybrids (ns) Epiphyllum (Orchid cactus): anguliger (es), crenatum, oxypetallum (ns), a few hybrids Eucharis amazonica (Amazon lily) Gardenias: see the gardenia mini-FAQ Gelsemium sempervirens (Carolina jessamine) Genista canariensis (Scented Broom) Hedychium coronarium, gardnerii, some hybrids Heliotropum arborescens (heliotrope): cherry pie fragrance Herbs: many herbs are scented, of course, and many can be grown indoors see the Herb Forum for suggestions Hermannia verticillata (Honey Bells) Hibiscus arnottianus Hoyas: acuta, archiboldiana, australis, bella, carnosa, fungii, lacunosa, nummularioides (pubera), obovata, obscura, odorata, paziae, pubicalyx, serpens, shepherdii, tsangii, verticillata, and many more Illicium floridanum (Florida Anise Tree): scented leaves Ipomea alba (moonflower) Ixora barbata, fragrans Jasmines: almost all species are fragrant, except for mesnyi, nudiflorum, and rex. Lantana camara: scented leaves Magnolia coco: es Malpighia glabra and punicifolia (Barbados Cherry) Mandevilla laxa (Chilean jasmine) Michelia figo fuscata, skinneri (Banana shrub), yunnanensis Mitrostigmara auxillare (African gardenia) Murraya: exotica, paniculata both called (orange jasmine), koenigii (curry) Neomarcia gracilis (Walking iris) Nerium oleander Nyctanthes arbor-tristes: (es) Ochna serrulata Orchids: many, many orchids are fragrant; here are just a few that are particularly good houseplants: brassavola nodosa, some mini-cattleyas, cymbidium "Golden Elf, " dendrobium kingianum, Neostylis "Lou Sneery," oncidium "Sharry Baby" (smells like chocolate!) See the Orchid Forum for more suggestions Osmanthus fragrans (Sweet olive) Pachypodium lamerei, saundersii Pandanus odoratissimus (Screw Pine) Pandorea pandoreana Passiflora: many are fragrant, including alata, caerulea, helleri, phoenicia, trifasciata, and many hybrids. Pelargoniums (scented geraniums): all scented-leaf geraniums have guess what? scented leaves Pereskia aculeata (lemon vine): climbing, leaved cactus with lemon-scented flowers Pittosporum: eugenioides, tobirum (mock orange) Plectranthus: many species have scented leaves; some are very strongly scented (think kitchen cleaners) Plumeria: most varieties are scented Pogostemon hyeanus (patchouli): scented leaves Polianthes tuberosa (tuberose) Primula (Primrose): some modern hybrids are lightly scented Prostanthera Psidium (guava): most varieties have scented flowers and lightly scented leaves. Quisqualis indica (Rangoon creeper) Reseda odorata (mignonette): scented flowers Rhododendron: vireya species and hybrids; many are scented and can be grown indoors. Some smaller Maddeni-type cultivars might also fit indoors. Rondeletia leucophyllum (es), splendens (ns) Sanseveria: though not often seen, most snake plants have small, scented flowers Senecio: confusus (mexican flame vine), pendularis, Sinningia tubiflora Stapellia: flavopurpurea is the only species in this genus with a pleasant scent! Stephanotis floribunda (Madagascar jasmine) Strophanthus gratus Tabernaemontana: divericata, holstii (Butterfly gardenia) Tecoma stans Telosma cordata Tillandsia: yes, some air plants have scented flowers: crocata, duratii, straminea and some others see the Bromeliad Forum Trachelospermum: asiaticum, jasminoides (Confederate jasmine) Verbena: some cultivars are scented Vigna caracalla (Snail Vine) Viola odorata (Scented violet) Wrightia religiosa Zingiber: culinary ginger (zingiber officianale) and some other species have scented leaves and rhizomes