Citrus in the fall...

[bman]

The fruit is starting to get ripe- I just love going out into the yard and picking something to eat!

First Tangerine from a newer tree!

Kumquats Small sweet citrus... We have two trees that are loaded with them!

Meyer Lemon tree is about 3 years old and has about 20 big lemons!

[DeanMac]

WoW, Great job.
I was curious if citrus would grew this far North.

I would like to plant a few citrus trees at our place in Carrabelle, What would you recommend and where would be a good place to get some trees.

[Joe]

B-Man, NICE! Do you cover your trees every frost? All my leaves have been turning yellow since summer. What to Do? I got mine at Just fruits and exotics on 98. I cant recommend what type until I find out about the yellow leaves thing.

Thanks in advance!

[big bend gyrene]

DeanMac,

No shortage of places to find what will grow here (even have stuff at Lowes in Tally), but my vote goes to Just Fruits near Medart and Crawfordville... it's right off of 98 just to the northeast of where 319 hits 98. This said, not ALL citrus does equally well with the cold and that's one reason I like Just Fruits... since the local fruit business is their expertise they'll take the time to show you your best bets and give you detailed care instructions.

http://www.justfruitsandexotics.com/

[big bend gyrene]

Joe, low levels of magnesium/iron are notorious for yellowing leaves especially if it was showing during the warm period too. Good citrus fertilizer and little bit of epsom salt sure has helped mine stay green. Sandy soils are good in that they don't let the soil get too wet but they also don't hold nutrients that well, so little fertilizing may well be needed. Might want to wait until spring, though, as you likely don't want to encourage tons of tender new growth right as we're about to start running into freezing temps.

Few good links for anybody interested... here's justfruits care specifically for citrus in our neck of the woods...

http://www.justfruitsandexotics.com/JF%20Citrus.pdf

Here's their care sheets for many different fruits...
http://www.justfruitsandexotics.com/downloads.htm

Last but not least, UF has a good site with lots of good agricultural advice too...
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/department_hor ... l_sciences

Use the search feature on the UF site and you can find info on pretty much everything you might want to know.

[DeanMac]

Great info, thanks I will check it out

[bman]

BBG just said everything I was going to say!

Just Fruits and exotics- GREAT place.
I only cover them when we are getting sustained cold.
A couple of hours of freezing has not harmed my trees.

[lizbeth]

Just Fruits , for sure.

[Jumptrout51]

I have been eating tangerines and giving away tangerines for 2 months and still have tangerines going to waste.
I only have ONE tree.

[bman]

I have been eating tangerines and giving away tangerines for 2 months and still have tangerines going to waste.
I only have ONE tree.

Where do you live

Oh yea- I have an AC for you to service next week!

[Jumptrout51]

I live in the last house on the left before you leave the county.
Call me with a date for next week,nearly booked for the week.

[FUTCHCAIRO]

HEY B,MAN, THAT FRUIT LOOKS GREAT. WE HAD 2,400 ACRES OF CITRUS DOWN IN HARDEE, HIGHLANDS, AND DESOTO COUNTIES UNTILL THE FREEZE OF 1957 CLEANED OUR PLOW SHEAR COMPLETELY. WE LOST EVERYTHING WE HAD GROWING INCLUDING 400,000 NEW PLANTS THAT WERE READY FOR PLANTING. THERE IS ONE ROOT STOCK THAT YOU DO NOT WANT TO USE UP IN ANY AREA NORTH OF LAKE O, THAT IS ROUGH LEMON. I WOULD PREFERE TO USE THE CALAMONDON ROOT STOCK IN THIS AREA, TREES BUDDED TO THIS ROOT STOCK HAVE MUCH MORE RESISTANCE TO THE COLD WEATHER. IF WE EVER GET TEMPS 28 DEGREES OR LOWER FOR A 4 HOUR PERIOD YOUR TREE WILL BE DEAD UNLESS YOU BANK THE TRUNK WITH SOIL AT LEAST 1 FT. ABOVE THE BUD UNION.
GYRENE THERE ARE MANY DIFFERENT THINGS THAT CAN CAUSE LEAF COLORING. I WOULD RECOMMEND SPRAYING WITH AN OIL SPRAY ABOUT THE END OF APRIL, DO NOT DO THIS IF THE TEMP . IS ABOUE 90 DEGREES. A VERY SMALL INSECT CALLED RUST MITE WILL ALSO MAKE THE LEAVES YELLOW AND FALL, LOOK ON THE BOTTOM OF THE LEAVES USING A MAGNIFYING GLASS AND YOU WILL SEE VERY SMALL INSECTS, KINDA TAN IN COLOR, YOU CAN GET RID OF THESE BY SPRAYING WITH SULFUR SPRAY. THERE IS ANOTHER INSECT THAT WILL MAKE LEAVES FALL IN THE SPRING-SUMMER AND THAT IS PURPLE AND FLA. SCALE, THESE INSECTS GENERALY ARE ROUND PURPLEISH OR DARK BROWN IN COLOR, THEY WILL ALSO BE ON THE BOTTOM OF THE LEAVE AND ABOUT 1/16 TO 1/8 INCH IN DIAMETER.

PA THE OLD MAN

[big bend gyrene]

University of Florida ain't got nothing on PA!!!

2400 acres and 400,000 new plants... wow, Pa, sure never doubted you were unfamiliar with hard work but that's a heapin'-helpin' of it right there. MUCH appreciate the wisdom gained by your experience.

Bman likely remembers the biggest problem I got with my citrus. Giant swallowtail butterfly caterpillars... let em' live this season because it was kind of fun watching the butterflies come in, land, lay the eggs, and watch them go through their life cycle. Not sure I'll be so generous next year

[big bend gyrene]

And by the way, for Bman and anyone else who followed my old thread that spoke about the swallowtail caterpillars a bit more reading up on them helped me find out they're also called "orange dog" caterpillars. Found out they have strong smelling antenna they stick out as a defensive measure and prodded a couple on my trees to see for myself... talk about STINKING!!!! Swear the smell made gulp juice smell like sweet wine in comparison! NO JOKE.

Orange Dog.JPG (87.65 KiB) Viewed 1270 times

[bman]

Pa, what do you do for the PURPLE AND FLA. SCALE?