Dr. Mongi Zekri spoke at our last meeting on citrus. He had a power packed presentation for us with lots of information. I have done the best I could to write it all down for you. I will try to post the fliers he provided as additional posts.
Seedless = 6 seeds or less
Backyard spacing = 7 feet
Trim before bloom and flush
Tangerines.
They need thinning to have large fruit. They usually have one good year then a bad year of fruiting.
Ponkan: has an easy to peel skin, matures at Xmas, has lots of seeds, good for the backyard, cold in Lehigh is okay
Dancy: more acid, seedy, Xmas matures, easy to peel
Honey/Murcott: not as easy to peel, can lose to frost, sweetest, late maturing
W Murcott: easy to peel, LOTS of seeds, good for home gardens, good color
Oranges.
Prefer North of I4.
Bloom February-March
4-5% fruit set
Pick before fruit turns orange
Needs water and fertilizer
Cara Cara Navel: red inside, pick green
Hamlin Seedless: productive, early, LARGE tree
Valencia: late maturing, blooms March and harvest one year later in March, sensitive to freezes
Blood: does not grow well here
Tangelo/Honeybell.
Need cross pollination
Very sweet and juicy
Is a tangerine hybrid
Minneola: not easy to grow, Xmas matures, sensitive to citrus scab and brown spot, cross polinate with Temple
Temple: sensitive to citrus scab
Sugar Belle (clementine x honeybell): least sensitive to citrus scab and brown spot
Citrus scab causes pits on fruit. Copper Fungicide sprayed before bloom.
Alternaria Brown Spot is a disease. As I recall, there was no cure.
Grapefruit.
Grow in bunches, like grapes.
White and Red.
The longer on the tree the sweeter and less bitter.
Don't pick to ripen on the table, pick when ripe.
Duncan: 50 + seeds, delicious
Ruby Red: seedless
Marsh: seedless
Pummelo.
Huge, thick skinned fruit.
Hirando Buntan: red
Lime.
Frost sensitive
Persian/Tahiti: seedless, large limes
Key/Mexican: fruits all year long
Lemon.
Frost sensitive
Meyer: most frost tolerant, lots of fruit, November to March matures
Dealing with problems.
Use oil for insects.
Sooty mold: can wash off, spray with oil, problem is sucking insects
Rust Mite: cannot wash off
Citrus Leafminer: attacks new leaves, larvae eat the leaves, spray with oil
Citrus Canker: lesions surrounded by yellow halo, on both sides of leaf, can eat the fruit, spray with oil
Citrus Greening: sour fruit, caused by an insect that is the size of a fire ant, damage is on both sides, fruit is lopsided, green, and small, it is not a mirror image on both sides of the leaf
Fertilizer deficiency: yellowing is mirrored on both sides of the leaf
Suggested oils: Ultra-fine pesticide oil, malathion oil, neem oil, or Bayer advanced fruit insect control. Spray under 85 degrees, not in full bloom, not in wind.
Whew.
