We’ve been given a lemon tree. It’s in a pot at the moment.
We’re in the north of Vienne.
Does anyone have any advice re planting? We are both novice gardeners, but willing.
So you need elementary advice in more ways than one …
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The only advice (Not a Novice but by no means an expert) I can give is what I have been looking up as I want to plant several fruit trees this year in my house in France.
I was told to only plant in mid to late Autumn when the trees are dormant and have stopped growing for the colder seasons to start. If you plant them during the Spring / Summer you will have issues and may kill them as they are in the growing seasons.
this was a good post talking about fruit trees
There are other posts on this site that talk about Fruit Trees and planting them so do a search and you will get about 15-20 posts giving advice
We are in south Vienne, we don’t have a lemon tree but 3 of our french neighbours do. They grow the lemon trees in large pots on wheels. Every winter the trees are wheeled into a garage or barn where they stay until the risk of frost has passed. Hope this helps.
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And, in due course, perhaps alimentary 
Thanks - looking elsewhere (not much on SF), pots seemed to be recommended too.
I live a bit to the south of you, it’s considerably milder in winter. I have lemon trees (and mandarins, kumquats, yuzu and kaffir limes). They live in pots in a south facing courtyard and migrate up a couple of steps to a covered but open veranda in winter, I wrap them in anti frost tissue if need be. Some branches die, most survive. I wouldn’t plant them in the ground as it’s clay and they would certainly die in winter. My citron des 4 saisons is a lot tougher than my Sicilian lemon.
Where I’m from on the SE coast they all grow in the ground.
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My impression was that frost was a problem, and I’m quite prepared to cosset it. Our friend bought it near La Rochelle, which is - if I understand correctly - a more temperate area than here.
Looks like it will be pampered!
Our citrus are in large pots. They can take a small frost but not a prolonged winter - they hate being waterlogged.
At the moment I move ours to the conservatory in winter - and keep them pruned to fit. But they’ll live outdoors going forwards - but near the wall that shades from rain and under fleece during the really cold spells.
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I’m not that far from you in the south of 86 and we regularly get a week or so of temperatures well below zero. The lowest I’ve known is -10/-15 for a week. Most years it’s reliably below -5 for a spell so I think protection (shelter + fleece) will be required.
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We are on the border of Charente/Haute Vienne. I have several citrus trees/bushes and would not recommend planting a citrus in the garden.
Best kept in a pot. During summer water liberally and add fertilizer at least once a week. In winter put in a frost free green house/ garage with window and water more sparingly.
Keep an eye for pests like wooly aphids and treat quickly.
I tried for a few years to keep my lemon trees in the house (for the scented flowers) , but it is better to give them a cooler spot to over winter.
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I’m in a similar area (near Civray) and was considering planting a lemon tree directly in the garden, but it’s clear now that keeping it in a pot is the way to go. I hadn’t thought about pests like woolly aphids, so I’ll definitely keep an eye out for those. Sounds like a sunny spot in summer and a frost-free shelter in winter is the best routine. Appreciate you sharing your experience.
I have an orange tree in a pot. It spends the winter in front of the window in my salon and the summer outside where it is in the sun/shade about 50:50.