Growing Citrus for health, food and savings.
Grapefruits ripen throughout the year, producing crops that ripen summer, fall and spring. From the time they flower to harvest time is about 16 to 18 months. Most hold on the tree very long and still maintain excellent, sweet quality.
Cultivated for thousands of years, most citrus originated in Asia. The two biggest growers of orange fruit for juicing are San Paulo, Brazil and Florida. Central California is an ideal location to grow many varieties of citrus. See www.Montereybaynsy.com or www.fourwindsgrowers.com/ for the best source of information on Citrus varieties and valuable information on growing in the central valley of California. I’ll tell you my recommendations later, but first, let’s look at what to do with what you are already growing in your yard. Since citrus are mostly subtropical and we live in a temperate to subtropical area, winter frost protection is a concern. Limes tend to freeze the easiest and Meyer lemons, tangerines and grapefruit tend to be the most cold-hardy. We experienced a very cold snap in early December 2009 that ruined some fruit and damaged some citrus plants. If your tree or bush has branch damage, wait until April to determine what will not grow back. Be sure to check the soil for moisture in spring and do not let the frost damaged plant go too dry. Lightly fertilize in April. When new growth starts, prune out the dead wood.
Citrus plants need sun and heat. The dwarf types can grow productively in large containers, such as a half wine barrel. Full size trees can grow 30 feet by 30 feet if they are vigorous varieties. If you have limited garden space and want several different types of fruit, you can plant 3 types in the same hole. Be sure to match their vigor so that one variety doesn’t shade out and crowd out the other types. Here are some good combinations: Kumquat, Lime and Meyer lemon. All three are small. If you have more space and don’t do any pruning, Orange, Grapefruit and sour lemons are all vigorous and will grow to 30 feet. If you do prune the vigorous varieties, you can keep them 12 feet tall and as wide. Especially with the vigorous types, choose a dwarfing rootstock so you don’t have to prune very often. You’ll still get plenty of fruit even if you prune the plants back a bit every couple of years.
The October newsletter talked about fertilizer. For citrus, high nitrogen and high iron fertilizer is best for spring and summer applications. In fall and during bloom time, switch to 0-10-10 or bone meal to promote flowers, sweeten the fruit and add cold hardiness. Too much fruit production can break branches, so be sure to thin the fruit when it is the diameter of a dime or nickel. If it still produces too much, you’ll end up with small fruit that lacks sweetness. See “Frequently Asked Questions” from the about growing techniques www.fourwindsgrowers.com website for lots more information about growing techniques and answers to common questions.
The most popular citrus varieties are: Meyer Lemon (sweet), Washington Navel Orange, Owari Satsuma Mandarin, Eureka Lemon (acidic), Kaffir Lime (Cook with the foliage), Fukushu kumquat, Limoncello Santa Teresa Italian lemon. For making pretty and fun citrus juice, add color to summer drinks by squeezing in Moro blood oranges which have dark red juice inside. Valencia is the primary juice orange because the juice holds well in the refrigerator whereas navel and other juiced oranges become bitter overnight.
Many varieties of citrus grow well in the Sacramento valley. Don’t be afraid to experiment with something you really want.
Healthy Gardening!
Ken Brizzi
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