Lemon seeds...

secuono

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Fiance bought lemons to make some weird detox drink and I saved the seeds. I have 6 in three containers.
Will they sprout, anything special I need to do for them?
 

897tgigvib

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Howdy Sec,
I actually don't know, but I googled it. One site had this that I copy pasted here:

I've read that lemons (Eureka, Lisbon) do grow true from seed -- but it doesn't really matter that much if they do or don't if you grow them as a houseplant. Seed-grown lemons have a long juvenile periond -- maybe up to 8 years or more -- before they can bloom and bear. And they must be quite tall before they will bloom. So I would not expect you would ever get fruit, unless you can grow it tall in a conservatory.
Lemon trees from seed will probably be very thorny. What I do is when there is a new flush of growth, I break off the thorns while they're still small and soft.

If you want a citrus that will bear fruit for you, you could order a Meyer lemon, Ponderosa, or other type, from a reputable mail-order source. Most of these are either grafted or grown from cuttings of mature (capable of fruiting) growth and can bloom and bear when quite small (like a gallon or two-gallon pot).

In any case, they're fun to grow from seed and will produce a handsome plant with aromatic leaves.

Let me find more sites...
Here's a youtube video...it has a long wood machinery ad that mesmerized me, but i finally clicked skip ad, and it went to this kid showing the process. Looks pretty good.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B13GUBuqWjc
 

Chickie'sMomaInNH

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make sure to wash the seeds shortly after removing them from the fruit. don't let them dry out or they won't be useable for sprouting. keep them moist between paper towels in a baggie. put the baggie in a warm location and keep checking it for a few weeks to make sure it doesn't dry out or get moldy. they should sprout after a few weeks if conditions are good. i have some meyer lemons started this way and so far only 1 sprouted. you can check online for instructions but this is a quick starting method i found when i read up on it.

nearly forgot, once they sprout and show some pseudo leaves you can plant them in soil.
 

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Chickie'sMomaInNH said:
make sure to wash the seeds shortly after removing them from the fruit.
Whoops...I just stuck them in some soil and watered them...
I've got more seeds, but I let them dry on the counter...
But I also have more lemons to cut open, so I'll wash the next ones.
 

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marshallsmyth said:
I hope you watched that little youtube video
You've got to hull them first. That's weird. In the natural wild where ever they may grow, does an animal eat them and when expelled, then they grow? That's my only thought as to why it might need to be hulled.
 

897tgigvib

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looks like hulling them helps.

probably orangutans eat them :)

peoples can get gastrointestinal problems sometimes if we do that

diverti cu lo something like that
 

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I hulled two seeds and potted them. We'll see if they sprout before the whole seeds. :D
 

897tgigvib

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That's the way, a bunch of different methods. and you could try some in a baggy with a moist paper towel

did you get the thing about the brown spot?
 

Chickie'sMomaInNH

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marshallsmyth said:
looks like hulling them helps.

probably orangutans eat them :)

peoples can get gastrointestinal problems sometimes if we do that

diverti cu lo something like that
diverticulitis, when seeds or certain foods get stuck in the folds or create pouches in the colon and cause it to get inflamed. not a fun feeling. :sick

i didn't see anything that mentioned hulling them. i guess i'll have to check out that link! it would make sense if they are eaten by an animal and that helps them germinate quicker. the reason i read for washing them was there is something about the flesh from the citrus that keeps it from germinating if it doesn't get washed off. if you don't keep them moist they will dry out and not be viable. so keep an eye on that soil to be sure it stays moist till those start sprouting.
 
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