Aldi lemon tree says "not for consumption" is it true?

do you think it,s the actual tree that you not supposed to eat surley lemons are lemons i got a calomondine last year and used the fruit from that and im still here but im sure some one with more knowledge will put us both right soon

Its so they are not covered by food legislation on fertalisers etc, they are a normal variety of lemon , not sure on variety as there always just marked as citrus limon ( probably lisbon or eureka ) quite safe to use normaly , all citrus are safe to eat

Thank-you very much, thats really interesting I have always seen the small citrus sold as ornamental so haven't bothered with them but I will now

I have phoned Aldi. The lemons on the tree have been sprayed to keep there looks instore with chemicals. DO NOT EAT THESE. Any fruit that come later will be OK. I think a warning should be on the lable not just "do,nt consume"
Also I will be changing the soil in case any chemicals are in there.

thanks for that info

If you feel the need.... , chuck the fruit, but it will be fine to use.....

as with all plants you buy, the trees may have been sprayed, if needed with pestacides etc , most people ignore this or just leave fruit a few weeks before consuming, and wash it first , avoid the zest of the mature fruit on the tree now, sometimes the fruit is sprayed with a mix of poly vinyl acetate or carnuba wax to make it shine on the plant but this treatment is also used on fruit you buy to make it last (it washes off)

future fruit will obviously be unaffected, there is no need to change the soil to get rid of anything , however changing to a free draining mix later on in the year is good , but changing shortly after buying with the change in conditions already stressing the tree will probably kill the plant, wait till warmer weather to repot

Excellent info

So happy to have found this post. I, too, recently bought a lemon tree from ALDI here in Spain, and only after planting did I notice the "For decorative use only" warning on the label. I didn't think any citrus was poisonous so I went searching on the internet and found this post. Yey!

I have a follow-on question. I planted my citrus outside. Would the rain wash away any pesticide (chemicals, etc) as the lemons grow? I don't have any fruits growing yet, only tons of little green nubs (where the flowers fall away) which may or may not grow into fruits. If these nubs stay and grow (some usually fall off and the stress of planting may make them all fall off this first season, but just in case) should I still not use the zest of the fruit? (I don't know which ones flowered after I brought the plant home from the store and which ones hadn't yet). Once mature and picked, what if I really scrub the lemons well or immerse in hydrogen peroxide for a bit before using?

Many thanks!

I have been investigating exactly what is used and from what i can find out most citrus plants supplied are sprayed with imidacloprid , and in some places such as the states the soil is drenched with it as well and they have no warnings about not eating ( they just have different regulations on warnings! )

After a month of spraying fruit on the tree is suposed to be fine, but some health experts say its best to remove fruit that was there whan the tree was sprayed, again many say its fine ( most citrus in shops if analized contains trace amounts of imidacloprid from being sprayed regularly )

If you want to be ( in my opinion ) over cautious remove any fruit that was there when purchased, after that any growing will be fine

We used the fruit that was on ours, we always have ( we also use the leaves in cooking ) , until recently the label didnt say not to eat it just said ornamental citrus , the same treatments are applied by fruit growers ( but its not suposed to be a problem as they test the fruit as they spray so often onto the fruit )

Over there the main difference will be that commercial grade citrus ( the 4 foot high mini standard type ) will have been treated with a anti viral treatment like an antibiotic( yours may have been as well ) as commercial fruit growing ones have this , it imunises the tree against some citrus problems such as citrus tristeza , the ornamental ones may have this treatment as well for spain being in a fruit growing area

Any small fruit on the tree could not have much in them anyway! ( even if it didnt dissapear over a month or so (which it does)), they take about a year to mature till they yellow in the colder weather in autumn winter so thats plenty of time for it to biodegrade

A really helpful thread having just bought a lemon and orange standard small tree yesterday...not sure whether to keep them under glass still of not, HAmpshire Uk ? Interesting to hear that lemon leaves are used in cooking intriguing.....can anyone enlighten me...stews maybe?
Thanks Pauline

Dont put them outside until it gets warm may/june , they should be ok in greenhouse but if the weather gets very cold frost cloth in the greenhouse would be best to stop leaf damage

With the sort of temperatures we have had i would put them in the house, mist every day with water and make sure the soil drys out a couple of inches deep between watering (and no saucer under them) ,

Dont repot them unless necessary, particularly at this time of year its too cold ( and they like small pots anyway) if needed they should be repotted only when in rapid growth late spring/early summer


The only things i have done with leaves was inside and around chicken when cooking, i wouldnt take any off a small tree though to try.... it will weaken the tree and the taste wasnt worth it at all

We grow a kumquat tree in Hampshire, just outside of Winchester and have done for about six years. Every summer we move the tree outside and every winter we bring it in where it stands in for a christmas tree in our living room. Hopefully you'll be able to do the same with your citrus, starlocs' given good advise for it's care!

The trees are ok


I bought two lemon trees myself from Aldi and called them about the same thing. It turns out the lemons have been sprayed with some sort of chemical so you can eat the flesh of the lemon with no problems but not the rind. When the trees produce new fruit they will not have been sprayed and so will be safe for consumption, So go ahead and enjoy your lemon trees. I bout a tree for my mother a few years ago and it has successfully produced many lovely lemons over the years.

i am so glad i found this thread and this site! i was just searching for the answer to the very same question! i have a feeling i am going to love this site - tx again, and happy growing xx

Thanks for posting this! I purchased this tree thinking it was a bargain and then was disheartened when I glanced at the label in the car. But it now seems that all is not lost!