Company delivers mini citrus trees straight to your door

The coronavirus pandemic is changing the way we eat. Americans used to spend about half of our food budget on eating out, and it turns out that we eat more vegetables when we eat out. And while some are turning to cereal and Goldfish crackers as their comfort foods of choice, others have decided to short-circuit those trips to the grocery store and grow their own food.

If you’ve saved your scraps of green onions to grow food anew instead (something I’ve known was possible for some time but did not do until the pandemic hit), then you’ve probably also thought about how nice it would be right now to pluck fruit from your very own indoor citrus tree.

Although some of the trees are currently sold out, the typical offerings from Via Citrus include small Meyer lemon, Key lime or calamondin (a mandarin orange-kumquat hybrid) trees, which the company will deliver to your house. And they’re rather chic — just look at the beautiful lime tree in this Facebook post:

The trees start at $65, so yeah, a bit pricer than picking up a basil or tomato plant at your local garden center.

Another photo from Via Citrus’ Facebook page sums up what my aspirations for one of these little trees would be:

Via Citrus also sells supplies you might need, including a grow light, and offers tips for caring for an indoor citrus tree. Your tree will need direct sunlight for several hours a day, Via says.

I’ve thought about getting a larger lemon tree to grow indoors (because I love houseplants, plus I’d need the leaves to be high out of range from my feline friends), but I’ve worried about overwintering it. However, though they do need extra care, people do successfully grow citrus trees indoors.

There are other ways to get a citrus tree delivered to your house. Garden Goods Direct has Meyer lemon trees starting at $39.95. Heck, you can even order a Meyer lemon tree on Amazon.

If you have pets, it’s worth noting that lemons and limes are both on the ASPCA’s list of plants that are toxic to cats and dogs, so keep these trees away from your kitties and doggos.