Lemonwood's deserved reputation has been forgotten. Many times more unbacked lemonwood ELBs have been made, starting in Victorian times, than backed ones.
All the old archery books, when speaking of lemonwood, say it can be worked with no consideration of the grain, because it's grain is so interlocked. The old writers always recommended it for a first bow project because it was almost foolproof. Duff, Elmer, Stemmler, Adolph Shane and their contemporaries all said those making their first bow should use lemonwood.
Backing won't hurt anything, but it's not needed. i have a 42# lemonwood that is at least 70 years old. It's unbacked and still shooting.
Jim Davis