How to feed a lemon tree
Updated: October 2026
You have a bottle, a spray or a sleeve of sticks in one hand and a pot lemon that looks hungry. How to feed a lemon tree in a UK pot is dilute as the pack says, water first, empty the saucer, and treat foliar spray as a top-up. Wrong dilution, a waterlogged pot, and leaf spray instead of a root drench are the usual failures. The [citrus fertiliser comparison](/hub/fertiliser-soil-and-bark-mulch/citrus-fertiliser) lists the eleven amazon.co.uk packs we kept. We read those listings on 21 October 2026. We did not run a feeding trial.
You have a bottle, a spray or a sleeve of sticks in one hand and a pot lemon that looks hungry.
You have a bottle, a spray or a sleeve of sticks in one hand and a pot lemon that looks hungry. How to feed a lemon tree in a UK pot is dilute as the pack says, water first, empty the saucer, and treat foliar spray as a top-up. Wrong dilution, a waterlogged pot, and leaf spray instead of a root drench are the usual failures. The citrus fertiliser comparison lists the eleven amazon.co.uk packs we kept. We read those listings on 21 October 2026. We did not run a feeding trial.
Our top picks
| Badge | Product | Form | How to apply | Pack | Note | Price | Offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall |  Baby Bio Baby Bio citrus food 175 ml x 2 | Liquid | Dilute, dose not printed | 2 × 175 ml | 10.0 | about £7.98 | View offer |
| Preis-Tipp |  Westland Westland citrus tree feed 200 ml | Liquid | Doser, mix 1:900 | 200 ml | 9.0 | about £6.76 | View offer |
| Alternative |  UK GROW UK GROW citrus foliar spray 300 ml | Liquid | Ready spray on leaves | 300 ml | 8.4 | about £9.99 | View offer |
On this page
Water first, then feed
Citrus in pots need moist compost before a concentrate goes in. The Royal Horticultural Society lists wet roots, dry roots, draughts, cold and hunger among the reasons leaves yellow. Doubling the dose because the leaves paled is the wrong next step. Water with rainwater if you have it, let the pot drain, and empty the saucer. Do not feed a pot that is sitting in water.
Keep the concentrate in its own bottle. Winter frequency is a calendar question. The seasonal switch is on winter citrus feed.
Liquids in this set
Westland 200 ml is a measuring-doser concentrate. According to the product data, the mixing field is 1:900. The brand site’s 5 ml per litre line is not in the product data, so use the doser on the pack in your hand. According to the manufacturer, do not put the mix on foliage.
Baby Bio on B00L5P0I3I has no official dilution on the listing. The cheaper twin pack and the bundle print no drop dose at all. Count drops only if the pack in your hand says so. COMPO Bio 500 ml prints a mixing field of 1:10. Do not treat every citrus liquid as the same capful. yanzisura 100 ml prints no ratio. If the pack does not give millilitres or drops, stop and read the label. The citrus fertiliser buying guide is where a missing dose should have stopped the purchase.
Sticks, granules and spray
Devonia’s 18 sticks go below the soil line. According to the manufacturer, replace them up to every 12 weeks. Push them in on a moist pot and keep watering as usual. Cultivers granules stay off the trunk. Miracle-Gro is shaken onto soil within the branch spread, kept off trunks and foliage, then watered. Granules against the bark are the usual placement error.
UK GROW 300 ml is ready to spray on leaves and branches. Use it as a foliar top-up after a root feed, not instead of one. Tomato feed in the same week as a citrus drench is a salt load, not a programme. That argument is on citrus feed vs tomato feed.
When feeding is the wrong next step
Yellow leaves after you start feeding often mean the pot was already wet, dry, cold or in a draught. Check the compost with a finger before you add another capful. If the tree is resting in a cool bright room, weekly summer-strength feeds are the wrong rhythm even when the technique is right. Cut frequency first. The bottle you already own is enough for method.
Common questions
How often should I feed a pot lemon in the UK?
Follow the pack in your hand. Westland’s brand page talks about every second watering in growth and every fourth in winter. That split is not on the amazon.co.uk listing. Baby Bio high-street copy talks about weekly drops in summer. Devonia says up to 12 weeks. Miracle-Gro says every 3 months. The RHS still wants citrus fed through the year, with a lighter winter rhythm. Do not invent a weekly rule for a stick pack.
Do I water before I feed?
Yes, for a liquid drench. Moist compost, then the dilute feed, then drain and empty the saucer. Feeding a dry root ball risks scorch. Feeding a pot that stands in water adds salt to a wet root system. Rainwater is the RHS preference when you have it. Tap water is what most UK pots actually get; the method is still water, drain, then feed.
What is the Westland dose?
The product data gives a measuring doser and a mixing field of 1:900. One United Kingdom review mentions a pre-pour into 1 litre. The brand site’s 5 ml per litre line is context only. Use the doser on the bottle you bought. Do not put that mix on the foliage if the pack says the feed is for the compost.
How many Baby Bio drops per litre?
The 353-review twin pack has no official dilution on the card. One United Kingdom review quotes 5–10 drops per half litre or one pint, which is roughly 10–20 drops per litre if you scale it. That is a reviewer’s figure. Read the bottle. The cheaper twin pack and the bundle print no drop count in this capture.
Can foliar spray replace watering-can feed?
Not on the listings in this set. UK GROW tells you to spray leaves and branches. That is a top-up. A pot lemon still needs a root feed unless you are using sticks or granules as the soil feed. Yellow leaves plus a wet saucer are a watering problem, not a reason to mist more often.
Where do I put sticks or granules?
Sticks go below the soil line, not lying on the surface. Granules go on the compost, away from the trunk, and Miracle-Gro also says keep them off the foliage. Water after granules. Do not heap product against the bark. On a small pot, a 4 lb bag is easy to overdo. Use the chart on that pack, not a handful.
What if the leaves go yellow after I start feeding?
Stop increasing the dose. Check whether the pot is wet, dry, cold or in a draught. The RHS lists those causes beside hunger. Mottled interveinal yellow can mean missing traces after years of tomato feed, or it can still be watering. If roots are black and soft, or pests remain after home treatment, call a person and take the pack with you.
Related pages
Sources
Public UK sources used for this page in October 2026. Prices, stars and review counts are from the eleven amazon.co.uk listings captured on 21 October 2026. A year-round line, an NPK and an organic wording are listing claims. OMRI and USDA are US schemes. This is not a laboratory test and not a feeding trial.
- RHS, How to grow citrus (retrieved 21 October 2026)
- RHS, Citrus problems (retrieved 21 October 2026)
- RHS, Citrus × limon (retrieved 21 October 2026)
- GOV.UK, Manufacturing and marketing fertilisers (retrieved 21 October 2026)
- GOV.UK, Product marking by sector (retrieved 21 October 2026)
- Defra, Compost: Peat, written answer 19 March 2026 (retrieved 21 October 2026)
- Plants4Presents, citrus tree care (retrieved 21 October 2026)