Content

• To step
• Part 1 of 3: Planting an orange seed
• Part 2 of 3: Caring for a seedling or sapling
• Part 3 of 3: Troubleshooting
• Tips

Orange trees are nowadays cultivated all over the world for their delicious and nutritious fruit. They can be grown indoors or in a greenhouse if you don't live in a warm climate. The best way to grow a healthy tree that produces fruit is to buy a sapling or seedling. However, you can also plant an orange seed directly into the ground if you want the experience of growing from scratch.

To step

Part 1 of 3: Planting an orange seed

1. Know the problems of growing from seed. It is possible to grow a tree this way, but it will be more vulnerable to disease and other problems. It can also take anywhere from four to fifteen years for the tree to bear fruit for the first time. A sapling bought from the nursery is basically a combination of two plants: a tree grown for healthy roots and other parts, plus the branches of another tree grafted onto the first. These branches come from a tree that is already producing good quality fruit, and because they are already fully grown, this tree will also produce fruit within one or two years of purchase. Having said this, you are free to follow these steps if you are up for a challenge.
2. Select seeds before they are dry. Cut open an orange carefully without breaking the seeds, or simply use the seeds that have not been damaged by the knife. Choose seeds without dents or discoloration. Seeds that look shriveled and dry, usually after being left out of the fruit for too long, have less chance of growth.
   • Note that some orange varieties are seedless. Ask a fruit seller for a variety with seeds.
3. Wash the seeds. Hold the seeds under running water and gently rub off any pulp and other material that has collected around the seeds. Be careful not to damage the seeds, especially if some of them are already starting to sprout.
   • There is no need to dry the seeds afterwards. Keeping them moist makes them more likely to germinate.
4. Make the seeds germinate faster by keeping them moist. Assuming you are using seeds that have not yet begun to germinate, you can shorten the time for them to reach that point by keeping them in a moist environment. You can place damp seeds in a plastic bag in the refrigerator for 30 days before planting, or simply keep the soil they are planted in moist, but not soggy.
   • If you use seeds that have dried out, they will be dormant and may take months to germinate, if not at all.
   • Professional orange growers soak a number of slow-germinating varieties in gibberellic acid before planting to speed up germination. This is unnecessary for a home project with a handful of seeds, and can easily work against you if the wrong amount is used for your orange variety.
5. Plant each seed in a small pot with well-drained potted plant mix or soil. Plant them about 1 cm deep in the ground. Orange trees are not very choosy about which potting soil you choose, but it is important that no puddles of water form around the seeds (and later the roots) and cause rot. Water should drain quickly when you water the soil. Optionally, you can add citrus potting soil to the mix, which improves nutrient retention and creates the more acidic (low pH) conditions that citrus trees thrive on.
   • Remember to put a plate or other object under the pot to catch the water that runs out.
   • If the soil is not well-drained, mix in shreds of bark. This makes the soil less compact, allowing the water to drain more quickly.
6. Keep the soil in full sunlight. Whether indoors or outdoors, the best temperature for the soil is between 24 ° and 29 ° C. Sunlight is the best way to warm your soil to the right temperature, as a radiator allows the soil to dry out too quickly. If you live in a cold region or one with little sun, you may need to keep your orange tree in a heated greenhouse or sunroom even before it has sprouted.
7. Add a balanced fertilizer once every two weeks (optional). If you want to speed up the growth of the tree, adding a small amount of fertilizer every 10-14 days can help. For best results, match your fertilizers to the amount of nutrients in your soil, which should be on the label of the bag of potting soil, if you purchased one. Otherwise, choose a balanced fertilizer with relatively equal amounts of nutrients.
   • Stop adding fertilizers once the plant has grown into a sapling. Instead, follow the instructions for a seedling or sapling. He shouldn't need additional fertilization until his second year.
8. Remove the weakest of the three sprouts when the seeds germinate. Citrus seeds have the unusual property of producing exact clones like the mother plant called nucellus seedlings. These are usually the two fastest growing sprouts, while a third "genetic" sprout tends to be smaller and grow more slowly. Cut off this weak third sprout to grow a tree of the same quality that the mother tree was grown on.

Part 2 of 3: Caring for a seedling or sapling

1. As often as necessary, plant the tree in a pot slightly larger than its roots. Whether you have just bought a tree or have been growing it for years, you should plant it in a pot where the roots will fit easily. But the pot should also not be much bigger than the root ball.
   • The best time to repot your orange tree is in the spring, before it has put a lot of effort into growing it.
   • Trim any dead or broken roots before planting the tree. Sterilize the knife first by boiling or rubbing it with alcohol to reduce the chance of transmitting disease to the tree.
   • Gently press the soil around the roots to remove air pockets. The top roots should be just below the surface.
2. If you plant them outdoors, choose a sheltered spot with plenty of space and use the existing soil. If you live in a warm climate like Florida, California or Spain, you can grow orange trees outside. Choose a place where the sapling is sheltered from the wind, such as near a wall or a larger tree that blocks the wind. However, keep orange trees at least 3.5 meters away from these major obstacles. Especially other trees with competing root systems. Orange trees can grow up to 3 meters in diameter, so choose a site at least 1.5 meters from roads and sidewalks.
   • Dwarf orange tree varieties often don't need more than six feet of distance from each other, but check the specific needs of your variety, or take extra space if you're unsure of what type it is.
   • Dig a hole just deep enough to cover the roots. Never plant the orange tree too deep or it could die. Use the soil you scooped out to re-press the roots, not potting soil that can hold too much water and cause rot.
3. Keep your tree in full sun and high temperatures. Keep an eye out for young seedlings, as they are always more vulnerable to burns or other hazards than mature plants. But orange trees grow best in full sun. The best temperature for orange trees is between 24 ° and 32 ° C. They do poorly in spring and summer temperatures below 7 ° Celsius and depending on the variety they can die at temperatures of 0 ° C. or below. Persistent temperatures of over 38 ° C. for several days is likely to cause leaf damage.
   • If your mature tree is exposed to excessively high temperatures, hang a sunshade or tarpaulin over the tree until the temperature has dropped below 38 ° C.
   • Move your orange tree indoors before frost. Citrus trees are more vulnerable to frost than heat, although some varieties can survive a mild frost.
4. Water the plant rarely, but abundantly. Orange trees, once they have grown into saplings, prefer to be in soil that dries out before re-watering. Wait until the soil feels dry when you make a deep hole with your finger, then water abundantly until the soil is soaked. A large, mature plant should be left alone until the soil is dry to 6 inches deep.
   • In general, the tree can be watered once or twice a week, but this varies depending on temperature, humidity and amount of sunlight. Judge for yourself and water more often during hot, dry seasons, although you should generally avoid watering when the sun is high in the sky.
   • If you have hard tap water (lots of minerals, leaves a white deposit on boilers and pipes), give the orange trees filtered water or rain water.
5. Fertilize carefully according to age. Adding fertilizers or manure at the right times gives the trees all the nutrients they need for fruit growth and production. But misuse can burn the tree or cause other damage. Use a special citrus tree fertilizer or another fertilizer with a high nitrogen content. Follow these instructions for applying fertilizers or compost:
   • Young trees 2-3 years old are fed two tablespoons (30ml) of high nitrogen fertilizer spread under the tree 3 or 4 times a year just before watering. Alternatively, you can mix four liters of high-quality composted manure into the soil, but only in the fall, when the rain can wash away excess salts before causing damage.
   • Mature trees of 4 years or older that grow outdoors require 0.5 - 0.7 kg of nitrogen per year. Your fertilizer should list the percentage of nitrogen it contains, which gives you a chance to calculate how much fertilizer you need to achieve the correct amount of nitrogen. Scatter it over the tree's root area and rinse it into the soil. You can do this annually in the winter, or in three equal parts in February, July and September.
6. Regularly remove dust from indoor plants. Dust or dirt accumulated on the plant's leaves can prevent it from photosynthesis, which is part of how it obtains energy. Brush or rinse the leaves every few weeks if the plant is kept indoors.
7. Understand that pruning is rarely necessary. Unlike some varieties of trees, oranges and other citrus fruits do just fine without pruning. Only remove dead branches and offshoots at the base that look very unhealthy. You may prune your tree to shape its growth direction and keep it low enough to pick all the fruit, but only remove large branches during the winter months to avoid burning the exposed core in the sun.

Part 3 of 3: Troubleshooting

1. Protect burnt or withered trees by wrapping the trunk in newspaper. If your tree is young and just planted outside, it can be extra vulnerable to sunburn. Tie newspaper loosely around the trunk and large branches if you see signs of sun damage or if you live in an area with high sun power.
2. Increase the acidity of your soil if the leaves start to turn yellow. Yellow leaves are a sign of alkalinity, or too much basic salt on the tree. Add a low pH fertilizer and rinse the soil thoroughly to flush out any alkaline salt.
   • Too much compost fertilizer, or compost, added during the dry season can cause alkalinity.
3. Wash off aphids with soapy water. Aphids are small green pests that feed on many plant species. If you see them on your orange tree, wash them off with soapy water. If that doesn't work, many other solutions are described in this article.
4. Exterminate ants and other pests that live on the tree. Ants can be difficult to eradicate, but putting the pot in a larger container of standing water makes it impossible for them to get to the tree. Use pesticides sparingly and as a last resort, especially if the tree is bearing fruit.
5. Use insulation material to protect trees that will be exposed to frost. If possible, young trees should be brought indoors before frost. However, if they are planted outside and you have no space inside, you can wrap the trunks with cardboard, corn stalks, fleece or other insulating material. Cover the trunk all the way to the main branches.
   • Healthy mature orange trees will rarely die from frost, but they can suffer leaf damage. Wait until spring to see which branches survive before pruning the dead branches.
6. Improve the yield of fruit in the following year by picking all the ripe fruit this year. Leaving fruit on the tree can reduce the amount the tree produces next year, although if you only use fruit for home use, a mature tree will produce more fruit than you need. Some varieties, such as mandarins and Valencia oranges, alternate years of high production with years of low production. During the year that leads to low production, fertilize less, because the tree then needs less nutrients.

Tips

• Do not let animals near your orange trees. You may need to put up fences or have pest control plants or odors.
• You can grow orange trees indoors all year round if you live in a cold climate. Dwarf varieties will take up less space. For smaller trees, a window frame with full sunlight is ideal. Larger plants will benefit from an environment such as a humid greenhouse or conservatory.