Both the Original Meyer lemon and the Improved Meyer Lemon make great container plants for indoors or outdoors. Gardeners in cold climates can bring the pots inside for the winter months.

Original Meyer Lemon

Despite the name, this plant is not a true lemon. It is actually a lemon/orange hybrid. The Original Meyer lemon is naturally dwarf. This is a perfect choice for all types of containers.

This does very well in marginal areas that are less than ideal for most citrus. This hybrid tends to be slightly more colder hardy than most citrus, especially the true lemon. It is also as hardy as the sweet orange.

It is believed to be a hybrid of the lemon and either a Mandarin orange or an orange. This plant is relatively new. The leaves are four inches long.

The Original Meyer lemon is named for Frank N. Meyer, who brought the plant from China to the U.S. in 1908. Meyer found the plant close to Peking, China.

This hybrid is grown just like the sweet orange. It is a very popular kind of citrus. The plant is widely grown in warm regions of the country as a landscape plant, such as for hedges.

The beautiful compact plant can be grown in pots for years without getting too big. It bears good crops of fruits, and can bloom for much of the year.

The Original Meyer lemon is only about four feet or so in height when it is grown in pots. The small shrub’s foliage is four inches long. The plant requires almost no pruning other than the removal of crossing branches.

The fruits can be used like a sweet lemon, and look somewhat like a small orange. These rounded lemons aren’t oval like the true lemons. They can be used as a substitute for lemons.

Meyer lemons ripen to a golden yellow or light orange. These have a smoother skin than that of the true lemons. They are about three inches in diameter.

These ripen from October through May. They can be kept in the refrigerator for two weeks or so in a plastic bag. The fruits last very well if left on the bush.