The lemon tree with the scientific name of citrus lemon is one of the popular citrus trees with a lot of health benefits. If you are interested in identifying lemon trees before fruiting, I’m a horticultural consultant and want to tell you about lemon tree identification by leaf.
In my other post I told you about fruit tree identification by images including lemons, However, identification of lemon trees from other citrus species is very easy with their fruits but before bearing, lemon tree identification by leaf can be challenging.
It is imperative when you want to buy a lemon seedling. Hence, I will help you distinguish a lemon tree from other citrus trees by its leaf. I first will describe a lemon leaf and then compare it with others. Let’s get going.
➡ You can also hear the audio version of this article.
As shown in this picture the lemon trees have elongated elliptic glossy vibrant green leaves. Its leaves are small to medium in size. the edges of the leaves have fine teeth and sometimes are assumed as smooth edges. You can also see a slight rippling in the edges.
Another feature of Lemon tree leaves is a prominent central vein with several small lateral veins.
There are various lime species and two of them are more famous: Tahitian or Persian lime (Citrus latifolia) and Key lime or Mexican lime (Citrus x aurantiifolia).
Persian lime (Citrus latifolia) has broad green hard thick leaves with serrated edges.
Key lime or Mexican lime (Citrus x aurantiifolia): its dark green leaves have a very small heart-shaped leaf in its front.
The orange (Citrus sinensis) leaves are large and long. Its elliptical leaves are pointed and their color is glossy green. You will find them with a firm even texture with smooth surface and edges. You can distinguish lemon leaves from orange with a small heart-shaped leaf in its front.
The grapefruit trees (Citrus paradisi) have long glossy dark green leaves. Their leaves are also thin. The leaves of grapefruit trees have a small heart-shaped leaf in their front (similar to orange leaves) that helps you to distinguish lemon leaf from grapefruit leaf.
Kaffir limes (Citrus hystrix) with the scientific name are native to tropical regions of Asia and have very distinct leaves. Its leaves are similar to an hourglass due to its double-lobed appearance. Hence you can easily distinguish lemon leaves from Kaffir limes.
Citrus trees are popular fruit trees in Texas, California, etc. In this post, I tried to help you with lemon tree identification by leaf. I compared the appearance of lemon leaves with other common citrus species such as lime, orange, grapefruits, and Kaffir lime.
Have you ever tried the plant identifier to identify the lemon trees with their leaves? I tested the “House Plant Identifier” on various trees from ornamental to wild plants identification. But I don’t have experience in distinguishing citrus species.
If you have tried it or any other free online tools, please tell me and my readers about your ideas and experiences below this page.
Hi, I’m Elaheh. My Academic major is plant protection, and houseplants are my expertise. As a houseplant lover, my house is full of indoor plants and it is my passion to take care of them. Hence, I’m here to share my knowledge and experience about growing healthy houseplants. I am also a plant protection advisor, so feel free to ask me any questions you may have.