Youngest age your lime/lemon/orange tree started producing fruit?

bought a lime tree from home depot in the fall and it produced about 4-5 nice fat limes the very next summer.

i would have had twice as many except my 3yo kept picking them off when they were tiny and bringing them to me.

eta also i live in TN so its lived indoors its entire life. this is the second summer i've had it and i have about 4-5 limes growing on it right now.

Key Kime, in container, flowered and produced well its first year. As did 2 Meyer lemons (in containers). Citrus flower and can bear at an early age, although they may abort much of the fruit at a young age - that’s normal. Keep it well watered and fertilized. Also keep it in full sun. I’ve done nothing special other than that.

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How big was your tree the first year you had it?

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I’d say the both the key lime and Meyer lemons were between 3 and 4 feet tall when purchased. I’m growing them in 15 gallon poly nursery containers.

I also use Osmocote, supplemented with soluble “Miracle Grow” type fertilizer about once a month. Also am using CitrusTone organic fertilizer on the recommendation of the “Citrus Guy” in SC (you can check his website) but the stuff smells so bad when I finish the bag, I won’t continue to use it.

All three of the trees have plenty of small limes & lemons this year as well.

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Pick all the fruit off the first year, don’t let them mature, as it will stunt future growth and limit yield.

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You’re correct, though I’ve been told minimum of 4 years by the horticultural extension specialists at LSU, and my brother-in-law who farms citrus commercially in Port Sulphur, and I’m following that approach with the the satsumas I’ve planted in the ground in BR.

The Key Lime and Meyer Lemons planted in containers I’m letting fruit b/c the plants aren’t going to get very large anyway, however, on the lemon trees I’ve had to remove about 2/3rd of the lemons before maturity b/c the branches are not large enough to hold all the fruit without breaking. Not implying that’s the right thing to do, just my personal decision b/c I need to restrict the growth and size of the plants anyway.

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Pick all the fruit off the first year, don’t let them mature, as it will stunt future growth and limit yield

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wish i had known this the first year. i waited until the limes were good and fat and made a nice margarita with them.

Anyone have any luck with the dwarf orange trees? I really want to grow one and then go outside a pluck a fresh orange for my old fashioned garnish.

Oh ok. So just buy an orange tree and put it in an appropriate sized pot for how big you want it and it will acclimate and stay small?

Depends on how cold the winter is in my experience.

I have a meyers lemon tree that has more fruit on it than ever before this year. I bet there 200 lemons on that tree. I don't know if it can carry them all to ripe.

Citrus likes fertilizer. I put a cup or two of 13-13-13 every month or two under the tree.