Lemon Growing Guide

Lemon Quick Start Checklist

1. Choose a lemon variety that suits your cooking and garden needs.
2. Plant in the right spot.  Lemons love warm, sunny spots and being sheltered from frost and cold winds.
3. Prepare the soil with good organic matter like Tui Compost and Tui Organic Sheep Pellets. Well-drained soil is essential so plant into a citrus-friendly potting mix like Tui Citrus & Fruit Mix.
4. Feed regularly in spring and summer using a fertiliser option that best suits how you want to garden. For quick visible results try Tui Citrus & Fruit Liquid Superfood. 
5. Mulch and water: keep roots cool and moist with Tui Mulch & Feed and regular watering especially during warm months.

Choose your perfect Lemon

The most popular lemon varieties in New Zealand are:

• Meyer - a cold tolerant variety with a milder flavour, thin, smooth skin and juicy flesh. Ideal for desserts.
• Eureka - a rough, thick-skinned lemon with a bitter flavour and high juice and acid content. Popular in baking, and most common for drinks.
• Ben Yen - a compact growing tree, great for pots and containers. A popular choice for cooking, preserving and juicing. It has a high juice content, thin skin, and strong lemon flavour.

Prepare the soil

• A lemon tree will happily grow in the sunniest spots and are ideal beside decks or in containers on balconies. They thrive when given plenty of sunlight, shelter from cold winds and consistent moisture.
• Well drained soil is essential as citrus do not like ‘wet feet’. If planting into clay soil consider using raised garden beds to improve drainage.
• Prepare existing garden beds by mixing in Tui Sheep Pellets and Tui Compost to enrich the soil with nutrients and improve it’s structure.

Get Planting

• It’s best to plant in the early morning or late afternoon, when the sun isn’t too intense.
• If you’re planting in the garden add a layer of Tui Citrus & Fruit Mix to the soil. If you’re planting in pots and containers, fill with Tui Citrus & Fruit Mix.
• Soak the lemon tree in Tui Organic Seaweed Plant Tonic and allow it to drain.
• Dig a hole twice the width and depth of the plant’s root ball.
• Loosen the root ball, remove dead roots, and place into the hole.
• Fill with Tui Citrus & Fruit Mix, gently firming around the base.  For planting in containers, centre the tree in the pot and fill with mix up to 3cm below the rim.
• Stake the tree to support it - citrus don’t like their roots being disturbed. 
• Water in thoroughly and maintain regular watering.

Feed and Nourish

• Feeding your lemon trees encourages healthy flowering and fruit growth. Well-fed and watered trees are stronger and better able to resist pests and diseases.
• Lemons are frost‑tender, so in frost‑prone regions it’s best to feed them in early spring and again in late summer or early autumn. Feeding encourages soft new growth, which needs time to harden off and can be damaged by frost. In frost‑free areas, you can feed citrus more regularly through spring, summer, and autumn.
• Choose from four different Tui fertiliser options for your lemon tree:  
  • Tui Citrus & Fruit Liquid Superfood is perfect for quick results as plants are able to absorb the nutrients immediately. For best results feed weekly.
  • Tui Citrus Food is a granular option formulated specifically for citrus planted in gardens. Rich in potassium and magnesium, it can be applied every four weeks.
  • Tui Performance Organics Citrus & Fruit Fertiliser is an organic option feeds plants and the soil and can be used both in the garden and for potted lemons.
  • Tui Enrich Fruit, Citrus, Tree & Shrub Controlled Release Fertiliser lasts up to six months, making it perfect for gardeners who prefer a ‘feed and forget’ option. It’s also suitable for pots and containers.
• To retain moisture, add a layer of Tui Mulch & Feed and water consistently, especially during dry periods. Apply it in early spring and again in late summer, and you can also use it around citrus grown in pots or containers to help conserve soil moisture.
• Lemon trees have shallow, fibrous roots and lots of surface‑feeding roots, so they don’t cope well with competition from weeds or grass. Keep the area around the base weed‑free to ensure the tree gets the water and nutrients it needs to grow well and fruit reliably.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long will my lemon tree take to fruit?

• It’s best to remove any fruit that sets on newly planted lemon trees to help them establish a good root system.
• A grafted lemon tree will usually start producing fruit within 3-4 years. 
• Growing citrus from seed will give you an unknown variety, and it can take up to seven years before the tree fruits. Seed grown plants are usually used as rootstock for grafting rather than for producing fruit.

Should I harvest lemons if they appear in the first year?

• It’s best to remove any fruit that appears in the first year. This helps your lemon tree focus on growing strong roots and producing more fruit in the following seasons.

When is the best time to plant lemon trees?

• Lemons can be planted in spring, autumn and winter, as long as they’re planted in a frost-free position or in a pot that can be moved in winter. 
• The best time of the day to plant is early morning or late afternoon to avoid intense sun exposure. Always water well before and after planting.
• Once established, lemon trees develop good frost tolerance, especially hardy varieties like Meyer.

How often should I water my lemon tree?

• For newly planted lemon trees, water every 2–3 days depending on the weather. 
• Established lemon trees only need watering once a week during the growing season, and as needed through winter. 
• Around 5 litres per watering is usually enough for established trees.

Why are my lemon tree leaves turning yellow? 

• If you don’t see any signs of sap‑sucking insects, yellowing leaves are often caused by a nutrient deficiency. Common sap‑suckers include aphids, scale insects, mealybugs, and whitefly.
• Use a balanced fertiliser that includes trace elements, such as Tui Citrus & Fruit Liquid Superfood, to support overall plant health. 
• Yellow leaves could be a sign of magnesium deficiency.  To fix this, apply Tui Epsom Salts around the tree’s drip line to boost your lemon tree’s health.

How and when should I prune my lemon tree? 

• Lemon trees produce fruit on new season’s growth.
• Trim when the risk of frost has passed so new growth has had time to harden off.
• Prune lightly to shape the tree, improve airflow, or remove diseased branches.
• Avoid heavy pruning until the tree is mature. 
• Do not prune in September or October to reduce the risk of lemon tree borer  infestations, as the adult borers fly in these months.

Discover more advice and inspiration for growing your own citrus at the Citrus Hub >