Washington Navel orange: variety description and growing at home

Exotic for Russia orange can be grown at home. It is grown in greenhouses or in voluminous pots in the room. Consider the description of the variety and characteristics of the Washington Navel orange, its inherent pros and cons, and growing features. How to care for a heat-loving plant, how to protect it from diseases and pests. When to harvest fruits and how to store them.

The history of the origin of the variety

The variety is the result of a mutation of a plant of the Selecta variety or, as others say, Umbrigu. The variety was bred in Brazil, in the state of Bahia, in 1810-1820.The fruits of the new variety had better characteristics than the predecessor. Thanks to them, the variety spread to other continents - the USA and Australia.

Description and characteristics of the Washington Navel orange

Washington Navel is an early ripe variety. When grown in a room, the tree reaches 1-2 m in height, in natural conditions - 4 m. Its branches are long, thin, hanging down. The leaf is medium in size, elongated, dark green. Flowering time - 1st half of spring, orange begins to bloom after reaching 3-4 years. Flowers solitary, sometimes in inflorescences. To obtain large fruits, you need to thin them out, leaving no more than 1 piece on each branch. Fruits of orange Washington Navel are round, weighing 150-300 g, with a dense orange skin.

Flesh is reddish, juicy and sweet, with strawberry flavor. There are no bones inside. The fruits are transportable and stored for a long time, retaining consumer properties.

Advantages and disadvantages of the variety

Pros and conslarge-fruitedness;good taste;no bones;early maturity;keeping quality.fruit with thick skin.

Features of growing at home

Orange when grown in a room is completely dependent on the conditions of detention - temperature and humidity, watering and care that a person will create.

Plant care

An orange bush should be placed near a south or east window so that it is illuminated by the sun's rays. In the summer, in the heat, it must be moved to the back of the room so that burns do not form on the leaves. You can take the plant to the balcony while the weather is warm. From time to time, the orange needs to be turned to the sun in different directions.

Temperature and humidity

Washington Navel variety is light-loving, so the plant should be placed close to the windows. In summer, it is desirable to ventilate the room every day. In winter - spray the leaves with a spray bottle once a day. In winter, maintain a temperature of 15-18 ˚С. Violation of temperature and humidity conditions often leads to the fact that the plant does not bloom or sheds fruit that has set.

Feeding

In spring and summer, when the Washington Navel plant is actively developing, it is watered with small portions of water once a day, in winter and autumn, watering is carried out 2 times a week. Fertilize indoor orange with ready-made complex fertilizers designed specifically for citrus fruits. Fertilize when the plant begins to bloom, and then once a month, until the end of the growing season.

Transfer

The soil in the pot is depleted despite constant fertilization.Therefore, every 2-3 years the plant should be transplanted, completely changing the substrate. While the orange is growing, the pot should be taken a little larger than the previous one. When the tree reaches the size of an adult plant, do not increase the volume of the pot.

Transplantation is carried out in early spring, before active growth begins. A substrate specially prepared for citrus is poured into the pot. You can buy it at a gardening store. At the bottom you need to put a layer of drainage. An orange is transplanted using the transshipment method, that is, they are taken out with a clod of earth, shaken a little from the roots and placed in a new place. A freshly transplanted orange is placed in a light, warm place, but not in the sun.

Crown care

Pruning is done with pruners or sharp scissors. Remove branches affected by diseases, dry, weakened, growing inward. Proper removal of branches activates the growth of shoots, rejuvenates the plant, stimulates flowering, increases yield, and improves the quality of orange fruits.

The crown is formed so that on the skeletal branches there are 1-2 branches on each, 3-5 shoots on them. Orange bears fruit on young shoots of the 4th and 5th orders.

Pests and plant diseases

Harm the tree of this variety of scale insects and spider mites. Against ticks, use soap foam treatment once a month. Wipe the leaves with a solution and leave to dry. After 0.5 days, they are washed off with water, covering the soil with a film. The scale insects are destroyed with a mixture of washing powder and laundry soap (2 tablespoons and 40 g per glass of warm water). Leaves are wiped with a solution, washed off after 4 hours. For a month, processing is carried out every week.

Harvesting and storage of crops

Oranges are removed from the tree when they are ripe or slightly unripe.They are stored perfectly, you can put the fruits in storage, eat fresh, process, transport. They do not lose their quality and taste, do not dry out if stored in the refrigerator. In it, Washington Navel oranges can lie for 1-2 months. But it is usually not necessary to store homemade orange fruits for this long, because they taste best right after picking.

Growing a homemade orange is not difficult for experienced owners. But for beginners, this plant may seem capricious and demanding. But if you take into account all the recommendations, do not forget to pay attention to citrus every day, it will grow and develop correctly, bloom and bear fruit. Collecting oranges grown by one's own hands will be a pleasure for anyone.

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