Citrus Indoors

Sooner or later the gardener has to try growing a citrus tree inside. There's something so winter-defying about it--the notion of growing tropical fruits when outside the driveway has been iced over for days. But as most gardeners know, success can be fleeting. Tell that to the thousands of folks who get citrus plants as holiday gifts every year or the thousands of gardeners who have brought one inside to overwinter. Chances are, a month after they've been unwrapped and lovingly placed by the window, the little orange, lemon or kumquat trees look more than worse for wear.

In fact, most of them succumb because they're not getting the conditions they need, says master gardener Paul James, host of Gardening by the Yard. "Citrus trees are not ideally suited as houseplants. They have very specific requirements, and you have to respect that."

Still, he says, overwintering citrus indoors can be done--with a great deal of the right conditions and a dose of good luck. "These recommendations are the ideal. Not everyone can provide all of them." The closer you get to ideal, however, chances are you'll be able to keep your citrus alive and thriving.

When Mother Nature isn't close at hand, you have to step in. To set fruit indoors, you'll have to hand-pollinate these plants, says James. "Take a paintbrush, push it into a flower and move it onto the next flower, and so on and so on and so on."

If your tree hasn't bloomed yet, don't panic. You have to wait four to five years before your citrus blooms, unless you already have a mature plant.

Some citrus works better indoors than others. You'll have the best luck with dwarf plants that have been bred for container gardening, and if you select from these varieties:

Meyer lemon
lime
sour orange
grapefruit
kumquat
mandarin
limequat