Flowering Mandarinquat Tree

 
A few weeks ago, my mandarinquat tree started flowering like crazy.  I'd never had a citrus tree that did so as much.  The blooms ran all along the stems and filled the room with the most pleasant scent.


Hopefully this means that I'll get a semi-decent crop this year, and by that I mean a number greater than four, which is what I got last year.


Speaking of mandarinquat trees - I have two, though I'm a bit concerned about one.  I'd purchased them from an online nursery a couple of years ago and had expected that their growing habit would mirror one another.  In this picture, you can see that my 'good' tree has small narrow leaves and has flowered consistently during the past year.


My 'bad' tree produces wider larger leaves and has shown no indication that it will ever want to flower.  (They are lighter in color in this picture because they are new leaves.) It's also more vigorous in its growth than my good tree.  I've given my trees the same potting soil, same fertilizer and same growing conditions so I'm at a loss as to why my bad tree is not flowering at all.  All of the growth on my bad tree is happening above the graft line but I'm wondering whether it's still possible for a root stock to assert its characteristics here somehow.  It might be time to consult a professional.

Last Harvest of the Year - Citrus

I actually had a harvest this past week - five good sized Meyer lemons and a few Indio mandarinquats. This was officially the last one of the year and will soon be turned into marmalade today. I use this recipe but substitute half of the sugar with honey, which makes all the difference. Honey and lemons are a match made in heaven if you ask me.

My Own Private Citrus Orchard

I've been wanting to expand my Citrus collection for some time now. Even though natural light is a rare commodity in our cape style home, I thought I'd have a go at it anyway. My Meyer lemon and Kaffir lime trees have tolerated being indoors during the winter months with only 4 to 5 hours of direct sunlight per day. I'm sure that they will be much happier once they are set outside after our average last frost date (May 2).

On Wednesday, my two new trees arrived from Four Winds Growers. I had placed an order for an Indio mandarinquat tree (a cross between a mandarin and a kumquat) and a Seville orange tree a few weeks ago. As a gardener, I try to grow vegetable and fruit varieties that are hard to source locally or are unique in some way. These two definitely hit the mark.

As many of you already know, I am a huge marmalade fanatic. It would make sense than that I would want to grow Seville Oranges in order to make that quintessiantial English marmalade. I'm also looking forward to tasting my first mandarinquat, which is supposed to be sweeter and less sharp than an ordinary kumquat.


Hopefully, these trees will enjoy their new home. I potted them up using a cactus/citrus potting soil mix amended with some slow release organic citrus fertilizer (the brand I use is Growmore). Although somewhat pricey (the cost of these trees, including shipping, came to $70.00), Four Winds has a great selection of true dwarf citrus trees. Chances are good that they will have what you are looking for.