Refers to a relationship between a Western man and his Asian girlfriend. The man will usually display one (if not all) of the following characteristics: White, old (often much older than the girl), fat, bald, often generally unattractive.
In most cases the
woman does not speak
English fluently and can be seen either wrapped around the man in public, smiling at him emptily, or staring off into space while the man hangs out with his
English-speaking
friends. She will likely be scantily clad and display hooker-ish tendencies although she may or may not be a prostitute.
Lemon trees are most frequently found in Southeast
Asia, particularly Bangkok Thailand.
The phrase originated from the need for an innocuous term to acknowledge this phenomenon without the subjects knowing you are talking about them and/or judging them mercilessly.
(walking past the couple) "Did you see that lemon tree?"
(standing next to the couple) "The lemon
trees are in full
bloom this time of year."
(in an area with many lemon
trees) "I didn't know there were lemon tree groves here."