Buck, I'd leave the fruit on the tree until ripe. My Meyer's, Variegated Pink Lemon and Ponderosa's bloom yr round..You didn't mention which lemon you have, but of the three I mentioned, they seem to be everblooming.
If you know it's going to be freezing, maybe you should set the lemon in your porch. At least until the freeze is over. Toni

The porch is just screened, but I can put it next to the house wall which should be warmer. I would still guess that it would freeze in the middle of the winter if I didn't bring it indoors. my real question was " does say 40 degree weather harm the tree? or do I only need to keep it above freezing?

I would not let them get close to freezing at all. I read here actually that you could leave your trees outside unless it's going to be below freezing for more than 4 to 5 hours. I thought that was ridiculous and check other more learned sources, to find that my initial reaction was correct. If you do that, you'll probably end up with dead trees.

I would definately think about where your are going to put them inside during those cold snaps, or put them in your garage during that time. I've read about some that do that.

Buck, 40 is a little too cold..Although the trees wouldn't die at that temp, especially if it was at night and only a couple wks. You can always set Christmas lights on the soil like many people do here on Gw. Toni

I never read anyone put their Christmas lights on the soil. It is against all practical reasons because you water your plants. Never touch a wet wire of your Christmas lights and don't even go near it if it is raining unless you want to lit like a Christmas tree. And I am not joking.
I am a licensed electrical contractor by the way.

Buck, this is a (2)step process for you,put your lemon tree on the porch for a limited time before the frost to climatatize it next to the house. And then into the house.Don't be suprized if you have yellowing and fallin leaves because of this also.If it's a covered porch then you can use christmas lights...but put them around but ON the tree:)***Suzanne

Forty would be no problem. Closer to freezing is, lemons are particularly cold sensitive. Once you get near 32 it will start being a problem.

Gary

I have a nasty habbit of decorating trees for Christmas and placing some lights on the soil. So far I've never been electrocuted..but to be safe, maybe it's best you just set lights on the tree itself. If you end up bringing your tree in the house, there's no need for these lights.
40F degrees will not kill your tree but might slow down the growth..After all, even Fl gets 40F and colder nights and trees survive. Good luck in whatever route you make. Toni

I couldn't stand exposing mine to 40 degrees, but then again, I am right on the St Lawrence river/seaway, so the "chill" factor is very different.

re: lights. I bring plants inside in the winter, so I don't really know, but I always thought the idea of the lights was to wrap them thighly around pot to keep soil temps higher, rather than wrapping the tree itself. I must say on citrus that could be cool decoratively... Being from Canada I tripped out on seeing palm tree trunks covered in white lights during my few xmas' in Fla. But I don't see the functionality.

Toni, how do you put the lights "on" the soil? Coiled in the pot around the trunk?

For those people who have been electricuted never come back to tell their story.
The fatality is less than 1%.
But for people who have experienced like me the feel of being electricuted when the electricity passing through their hands and out of their feet or body will never forget it even for 40 years hence when it happenned.

I might add that if you are going to use Christmas lights around the pot or even on the tree use a GFI (ground fault indicator) outlet. You can buy this outlet in portable form at Home Depot. This device will protect you from ground or jolt that you might encounter. it will tripped the circuit before you feel the electric current flow. It is also in the electric code to use this always when working outside or bathrooms or garages and wiithin six feet of your sink in the kitchen.

Eco, how do I wrap lights? WEll, just like one would decorate a Chrismas tree..Start from the top and work down.
Since I use indoor/outdoor lights, I guess I don't worry about getting electrocuted. Those of use who decorate the outside of our homes, not to mention get 4+" of snow, which is water, guess it just doesn't bother me, and I don't like playing w/electric. I'd assume outdoor lights are meant to use near water since some areas get several feet of snow per winter, not to mention warmer climates who get rain..I'm sure it's possible to get electrocuted, nothing's impossible.

If outdoor lights were a danger, they'd stop being manufactured..the last thing companies need are law suits.

BTW, I do not use Christmas lights on plants for heating purposes. There was some debate on this same topic last year..I don't see the purpose when a tree is grown in someone's house. Unless someone is living in an igloo, there's just no reason for it.
Still, certain people argued w/me for expressing my opinion..now it seems those same people have changed their minds..I wish they'd make up their minds..Toni

See, that's why I asked, I wasn't clear on whether you did it decoratively speaking, or for heat benefit. But you were suggesting to buckeyedjoe that maybe he should look into this as a way to heat up his plants on the porch. Not wrapping it around the pot is what was throwing me off.

Of course I agree there's no point in using lights for heat when the plant is indoors. I also did not know whether you bring your plants indoors or not.

Thanks for the clarification.

Eco when Buck mentioned a porch, and since we were discussing heat, I automatically assumed he was talking an enclosed, warmer area..then when he mentioned 40 degrees, that's when I recommended the lights.
When one places plants on a pot, how do they stay attached? I've never tried this before, other for using lights during Christmas as decoration, placing lights around the branches.
Some citrus are kept in an 8x12 gh, the others are in the house. I do have Poncirus/Flying dragon growing in the garden outside. But they're slow-growing here in IL. We'll see how they do next summer since I feel this winter is going to be a bad one..WE've already had snow, which isn't a good sign. I dread Jan and Feb since SEpt and Oct have been terribly cold. brrrr..Toni