Growing Orange Trees
Tips for Growing Orange Trees
Growing orange trees is possible no matter where you live. If you live in regions other than zones 9 through 11, you can still grow orange trees indoors. There are a number of different types of orange trees that you can grow at home; each of these varieties of trees have different characteristics, as well as different harvest times.
If you plan on growing orange trees, you will find these trees are often available at your local greenhouse nurseries.
- Orange trees come as starter plants in containers; you’ll want to look for plants that look healthy and have dark green leaves with no signs of damage or weakened limbs.
- Although orange trees can be planted at just about any time of the year, with the exception of winter, the best time to plant is during the spring. When searching for a place to plant your tree, you will want to choose a location that gets plenty of sun during the day, and also provides enough room so that your tree can grow to maturity with no problems.
- Due to the fact that orange trees do not do well when the roots get too soggy, your soil will have to be a well draining soil, add sandy soil to the area to mix with the native soil. You will need to dig a hole to plant the tree that is not quite as deep as the soil in the container, but it will have to be about twice as wide.
- Once you have dug a hole adequate enough to plant the tree, carefully remove the tree from the container and loosen the soil around the roots. Place the roots in the hole you just dug and back fill only about half of the soil. At this point you will want to water the area so that the soil settled around the roots before replacing the rest of the soil around the hole. Create a watering ring around the tree that will successfully retain water.
If you plant on keeping your growing orange trees indoors, you will want to transplant to a container that is a little larger than the original container. Again the soil and container will have to drain sufficiently that the roots do not become too soggy. Keep your orange trees near a window in your home that faces south, if at all possible.
After planting your orange tree you will need to ensure that it is getting plenty of watering during the time that it is becoming established. It is best that you water on a daily basis for approximately five days, or until you notice new growth; at that point you can reduce watering to about once a week.
When you plant your orange tree you will have to be prepared for it to take about four years before you will get full fruit production from the tree. When fruit does appear in the first years of growth, it is best to remove the fruit so that the nutrients will be going to maturing the tree.
Not all orange trees will mature at the same rate, nor will the oranges be ready to harvest at the same time. In general, the fruit is mature and ready to harvest when the peel is a deep orange color and the flesh is sweet and firm.
Growing orange trees will give you a great opportunity to enjoy the scent of orange blossoms right in your own yard, as well as being able to harvest your own fresh oranges. No matter if you grow your orange tree indoors or out, these are really great trees to cultivate.