Question
I have a dwarf lemon and a lime tree.  They are about twenty years old and produce well each year. I live in the Northeast, so they winter indoors.  If I start new plants from the seeds, will they produce fruit upon maturity?

Thanks,


Answer
Hi Bob,

That is hard to say without knowing the pedigree of the plants.  Generally, you can grow plants from seed quite easily.  The problem is that most of the species used for fruit production are cuttings from a particularly good fruit producing plant or strain often the result of hybridizations.  So, it is never really clear what quality of fruit you would get from these plants.

Aside from the quality of fruit, there are some hybrids (especially those of inter-species such as grapefruit/tangerine, etc.)which produce non-viable seeds due to genetic incompatibility.

I have grown tangerine seed to mature plants, and they have produced fruit, though the quality varies widely from plant to plant.

In either case, it was fun to watch the seeds germinate, grow, and produce fruit again.  The side benefit is the terrifically aromatic flowers that are produced.

Good Luck!