You should graft your citrangequat on a poncirus trifoliata rootstock to give it some more naturally cold protection. Citrus grafted on Poncirus would go dormant at 50F and would not break dormany if the winter has been warm for a few days or weeks while citrus on other rootstocks would not go dormant unless temp has dropped below 30F and would wake up after a few warm days.
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We were over 60 degrees this past Friday before the Winter storm hot, and it was above 50 degrees for 7 days straight (In Mid January). I could graft it, but the slower growth of the trifoliate and lack of yard space isn’t a large enough motivator. I have a trifoliate in the yard from a satsuma that died, and the citrangequat is much more vigorous. I’ll be using the trifoliate for some other citrus that I have, and I will probably put a bud or two of the citrangequat while I’m at it for practice.
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Manfromyard, did your citrangequat bear any damage at all after the previous warm winter?
I bought their 12 degree tangerine and it died the first year at 18 degrees.
John S
PDX OR
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It had some tip burn, but 90% of the plant is untouched. It is growing very vigorously but no flowers yet. The Ichang lemon on the other side is blooming, but I think the citrangequat is a late bloomer anyway…
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It might not be 100% their fault. The 12F degrees mandarin might be able to withstand 12F when fully matured. And its cold hardiness also depends on the duration of freeze and the pattern of temp fluctuation.
For example, if the temperature drops to 12F for more than 72hrs continuously, even Ichang papeda might not survive. Or if temp drops so sudden, and the tree is not acclimatized timely, it may die.
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So because people may be interested, I actually used some citrus tone on the tree this year. I normally only use them on my “good citrus” , but wanted to see how it would do with some care. So many flowers! The production on this tree is ridiculous. Definitely going to do some top working this week.
It also did amazingly this winter even with the fluctuating temperatures which killed my pear tree just from the cold cycles which burned the new growth and flowers!
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So almost all of my citrus died this past crazy winter since I was stuck out of town and wasn’t able to protect any. Only 2 of my trees made it. I had to do major surgery to remove the dead wood, and wasn’t even expecting them to survive. But my citrangequat not only recovered this spring, but is flowering and fruiting on the new growth! It was my first hardy citrus and is still the toughest! I give this tree 5 stars! Ready for key lime pie in a month or so!
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The name “12 degree tangerine” isn’t quite a misnomer, since, when mature and fully dormant, the tree can survive dips into the low teens, it is a bit misleading to people not familiar with cold hardy citrus. When people see “hardy to 12 F” or “hardy to 0” they, being used to temperate zone plants that have very strong dormancy, think “cool, this plant will survive winter temps at 12 F” when, for citrus, it’s “cool, this plant can survive winter temps at 12 F.” Can, not will.
Being in Oregon probably isn’t helping you. Winter temps in the South where Stan is jump up and down a lot, and day-to-night swings are pretty wide. While dormancy is usually better in your less chaotic climate, when it gets cold, it stays cold. A 12 F freeze in SC will probably be all of 2 hours long right before dawn. A 12 F freeze in Oregon is going to be much, much longer on average. And since y’all have far more chilling hours, the ground itself won’t be as warm, which would normally help protect the tree. Finally, citrus love heat and humidity, and a strong, healthy tree with plenty of stored carbohydrates (which are both energy and anti-freeze) is going to be much more likely to survive a cold winter.
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Good perspective. Actually, our climate is very mild, and 12 F is extremely unusual. Here in the Willamette Valley, it would occur every 6 years or so. With climate change, maybe never again? It doesn’t stay cold for long here, like Intermountain, Great Plains or Midwestern states. We are definitely West Coast. However, the thing that kills more plants here is the constant moisture, which leads to diseases for plants that aren’t used to it. They die from the disease, not the cold.
John S
PDX OR
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Did you have any luck with any other citrus here in oregon?
I am growing Trifoliate orange. They caught some disease and didn’t leaf out for awhile. It may have been a virus, in which case I should just remove them. I may do that.
I am growing meiwa kumquats. They are old enough to bear fruit this year, I think. They have little fruitlets on them. I may get fruit this year.
I just bought a Morton citrangequat. It started to fruit heavily in its first year. I removed the fruits because I didn’t think that the plant was mature enough to ripen them yet.