Difference between Dwarf and Standard

[Tysxno]

So I’ve recently planted a Eureka Lemon, and it’s only young so I cannot tell if it’s Dwarf or not, the place we got it from said it was Eureka Lemon and they pointed out the seperate dwarf ones, it had no label on the one we chose. Besides the size is there obvious differences to tell if it’s dwarf besides waiting for it to grow?

[pagnr]

Hi from Australia too.
Over here there is  a range of dwarf Lemons and Limes grown from cuttings.
Basically they look like a branch coming out of the pot. Usually called Lotsa Lemons or similar.
Also there are Dwarf grafted types, on either Poncirus trifoliata rootstock or Poncirus var Flying Dragon.
Flying Dragon is a dwarfing rootstock, standard Poncirus is semi dwarfing, at least in the early years.
With both of those grafted types, you should see a distinct rootstock trunk with different bark to the lemon on top.
So it could be either of the three above.
If you post a pic, it should be easy to tell. Mainly need to see the 30 cm or so from the soil up.

[brian]

My experience here in US is that lemon trees for sale are commonly rooted cuttings.  These would not be dwarfing.

I finally bought a Lisbon lemon (for its trifoliate orange compatibility) and grafted it into Flying Dragon so I can keep it in a container forever. 

[scamper]

A nursery can also shown you a small "standard" tree that has simply been well pruned and managed. Bonsais are a prefect example of this. Many nurseries actually sell the "dwarf" and "standard" using the same rootstock; the only difference being the head height (pruning decision).

A newly purchased tree on a true dwarfing rootstock should have a sign of being grafted (especially at a young age). If it is on a dwarfing rootstock they should be able to tell you what rootstock it is on. If they can't tell you, then it's 99% standard.

[sc4001992]

If you buy a 5 gallon potted citrus from a nursery/store, you can tell the difference between a true dwarf rootstock (FD) and semi-dwf by looking at the size/caliper of the rootstock. Flying Dragon grows very slow and its diameter will be obviously smaller when you compare it to the semi-dwf rootstock. Even afterr 5 yrs the FD rootstock will be small in diameter while semi-dwarf will start to show signs of larger growth. I have a 40yr old FD tree and the trunk diameter is 2 inches.

[brian]

40 years and only 2in diameter?  That is amazing.

[sc4001992]

It is about 10 ft tall.