Koala, I read where you should juice the lemons when ripe, put the juice into ice trays and freeze. Then put the frozen cubes in a ziploc bag and keep frozen till needed. Great for lemonaide, margaritas, marinating meats/fish, cleaning cutting-boards, etc.

My Bug-man also suggested mixing lemon juice with water and putting it in a spray bottle. Spray around (not on) houseplants that have been outdoors to kill the little gnats, ants and other bugs that made a home there.

You sure are lucky to have such a productive tree!

Oh my gosh, I thought I was dreaming there was such a tree!
I love lemons but with the short growing season here we never would have them. I heard to use peelings and place in garbage disposal.

Do you live in an area with a soup kitchen, or can you give to children to sell at the front yard. Does you area have block yard sales?
Here is a Reaers Digest Link with 35 uses , some sound really great!
Di
http://www.rd.com/advice-and-know-ho...icle23881.html

I would have gone with juice and freeze, but Jo beat me to it.

My mom uses lemons cut in half to remove the scales that form on faucets, etc from the hard water. She says it works better than anythign else she has tried, just cut it in half and rub directly on the scales, let it sit a while, wipe away.

Thank you everyone. I already knew about freezing the juice in ice block trays, but I really wanted something that I could actually use that I wasn't already doing.

The juice diluted in water in a spray bottle is an excellent idea astern. Thanks for that one. Maybe I can try something like it as an air freshener. I'd be a bit worried about the citric acid in the lemon juice if I happened to accidentally spray onto something that might stain though. I'll have to find a way around that one.

That's an amazing link about uses of lemons from Reader's Digest DiMarie. Thanks heaps for that one. It even beats my Martha Gardner's Book for worthwhile suggestions.

Breath freshener, face cleanser and exfoliator, and a lemon manicure! I'll be picking lemons like mad now knowing that I actually have a reason to do so.

We'll continue to give heaps away, as this tree just refuses to take a rest, but thank you all for your suggestions. I'm very much appreciative.

Johannacat, Have your Mom try reg Rubbing Alcohol, it shines my faucets great. It is so costly to even use them for Lemonade in the summer. The lemon and baking soda makes my brass shine on the pots. I told hubby to stop wasting my catsup!!!. it is a lot less expensive for me . I buy the huge bag at Sams club of baking soda. 5 lb bag for around $3. I use it for laundry too.

Great ideas for sure,
what about washing and hanging out to keep clothes soft? I heard white vinegar and never tried it though as a softener?

hanging clothes out is a killer for me- my arms just can't do it.

Just got done ordering some stuff online - no more running around wasting gas for miscellaneous things we can buy cheaper online anyway.
I just hope I don't become an online shopaholic LOL

On This Old House they had a energy assessment guy on the show.
had cool gadgets that could measure in real time how much electricity a home is using or even a single appliance.

here's a site where you can check the efficiency of your appliances -
http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?...rig.calculator
you can look at energy usage or best choices by selecting from the list on the left side of the site pages.

[Special Offers and Rebates from ENERGY STAR Partners

To encourage customers to buy energy efficient products, ENERGY STAR partners occasionally sponsor special offers, such as sales tax exemptions or credits, or rebates on qualified products. The search below is provided as a service to consumers to find such special offers or rebates where they exist, based on information that partners submit to ENERGY STAR.

In addition, you may be eligible for federal tax credits if you make energy-efficient improvements to your home in 2006 or 2007. Read more about federal tax credits for energy improvements.]
http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?...rebate_locator