Mandarin at home: growing and care conditions in a pot

Tangerine trees are a popular option for growing at home, along with lemons and decorative succulents. With proper care, plants actively develop and eventually begin to bear fruit. When growing tangerines at home, you should provide suitable conditions.

Features of growing mandarin

When deciding to plant mandarin seeds, you should think in advance what result is needed. The tree can serve a purely ornamental function or be used as a source of fruit Since mandarin grown from seed takes a long time to develop, you need to choose the most suitable variety by knowing how much a particular variety grows.

In the process of growing, it will be necessary not only to create favorable conditions for the development of the plant, but also to provide regular care. It is also recommended to first consider the possibility of further propagation of the tree.

Plant varieties

There are a large number of varieties of indoor tangerines. When choosing the right option, consider the following indicators:

Height of the plant. Dwarf plants stop growing when they reach 40-50 cm, while other varieties can reach a height of 1.5-2 m.
Specific care. Certain varieties require pollinators, more frequent watering and stem formation during the growing process.
Destination. Trees can be fruit-bearing or ornamental.

Tangerine reproduction

Like other citrus fruits, the tangerine tree can be propagated. At home, the procedure is performed by cuttings or seeds.

Seed propagation

To germinate new seedlings from seeds, you should plant them in a separate container. Shoots will begin to appear after 30-40 days. When the seedling has 4-5 leaves, you will need to cut the taproot. If left uncut, it will grow in length and curl. 2 weeks after root pruning, the seedlings grown from the stone are transferred to a permanent container.

Propagation by grafting

2-4-year-old trees are suitable for propagation by cuttings. On the trunks of plants 7-10 cm from the ground, a place for grafting with a smooth surface and without buds is chosen. With a gentle movement of the knife, a transverse cut of the bark is made and a longitudinal incision is made from its middle, where the cutting should be grafted. A bud is cut from the scion branch and connected to the trunk.

The grafting site is tightly wrapped with plastic wrap and additionally treated with garden pitch.

How to grow a tangerine tree at home?

When planning to grow tangerines, it is necessary to carry out a number of preparatory work. Direct sowing of seeds should also be carried out taking into account a number of nuances. In order for the trees to actively develop and bear fruit, you will need to choose a suitable container for them, use fertile soil and follow the planting rules.

Choose dishes or planting container

Various containers are suitable for planting tangerines, regardless of the material of manufacture. The pot can be in the form of a wooden, glass, ceramic or plastic container. An important requirement is the size of the upper part of the diameter is not more than 15 cm and a similar height indicator. There should be several small openings at the bottom of the pot or container, thanks to which the water will not stagnate in the container, and the roots will not begin to rot.

Preparing the land

When preparing the substrate for trees, it is recommended to use soil without peat. Mandarin better develops the root system and bears fruit, being in soil with neutral acidity. The optimal acidity is 6.5-7 pH.

Suitable soil can be purchased at a specialized store or made by yourself by mixing rotted humus, forest soil and sifted sand in a ratio of 2:2:1.

Planting tangerine seeds

Drainage layer no more than 5 cm and moistened soil are poured into the container for the future tree. It is recommended to plant seeds immediately after extraction from the fruit, without leaving them to dry. If it was not possible to sow immediately, then the seeds should be soaked to speed up the germination process, since being in water, the seeds will take root faster.

The timing when sprouts begin to peep out directly depends on the selected variety and environmental conditions. As a rule, seedlings begin to grow a month after sowing. It is not recommended to cover containers with seedlings with plastic wrap, as plants grown in greenhouse conditions will need to be additionally adapted to room temperature.

Rules for tree care

Tangerine trees require regular maintenance. So that plants do not lose their decorative properties and the ability to bear fruit, you need to take care of them, taking into account a number of features.

Temperature and lighting

The optimum ambient temperature for tangerines is around 20 degrees. At the same time, higher temperatures do not harm seedlings due to the ability to endure up to 40 degrees of heat.If pots with plants are on the windowsill, you should take care of window insulation.

Feeding and watering

The citrus tree is moisture-loving, so it has to be watered regularly. In summer, it is allowed to moisten the soil several times a day in small portions. In winter, the frequency of watering is 3 times a week, as the soil dries up. For intensive fruiting, tangerines need to be fed. It is recommended to apply mineral and organic fertilizers once a month.

Mandarin Formation

In order to give a decorative appearance, trees need to be periodically formed. Before trimming the crown and pinching the shoots, you should choose the appropriate shape. You can make the mandarin round or more sprawling. The trunks are cut or pinched at a height of 20 cm above the soil level. Growing lateral shoots are to be removed.

How often should a tangerine tree be repotted?

If the seeds are not planted in separate containers, then after the formation of 4 leaves, a transplant into pots is required. Among the grown seedlings, the most powerful and undeformed are selected. With further cultivation, young trees are transplanted every year, and fruiting trees - 2-3 times a year, increasing the diameter of the pot by 4-6 cm.

How to make a tangerine bloom?

Artificial pollination helps to stimulate the flowering of tangerines. In order for the tree to bear fruit, you can grow pollinating varieties in the neighborhood or sprinkle pollen on the plants yourself. It is enough to pollinate seedlings only 1-2 weeks before the expected flowering.

First fruiting of tangerines

The timing of the first fruiting depends on the specific variety. By taste characteristics, aroma and dimensions, the fruits may differ from the parent variety.After the tree blossoms and the tangerines are formed, it is necessary to continue to provide favorable conditions in order to further ripen fruits with high characteristics.

Mandarin pests

Unfavorable environmental conditions, improper care or spoiled seeds cause pest infestation. Insects can gnaw through fruits, roots and greenery.

Spider mite

Small insects up to 0.6 mm in size are almost invisible. It is possible to detect pests by the formation of light spots on the back of the leaves and a thin cobweb. Noticing signs of mite exposure, it is necessary to treat the leaves with a warm soapy solution, and then carry out several treatments with insecticides at intervals of 7-10 days.

Shield

The pest forms a sticky coating on the surface of the leaves, which leads to depletion and drying of plants. To eliminate the scale insects, 2 times a week, spraying with a soapy solution mixed with kerosene is carried out. The fruits on the trees after such processing are unsuitable for food, so they can be removed or left for a decorative function.

Mealybug

You can detect the presence of a mealybug by a white fluffy coating that remains in different parts of the tree. You can remove the mealybug from tangerines manually or scare it off with insecticides. The preparations Decis, Intavir and Karbofos are suitable for insect control.

Aphid

Insects of green color and 1-3 mm long actively multiply and massively attack plants. Aphids absorb juices from young shoots and leaves, destroying their structure and provoking exhaustion. As measures to destroy the pest, spraying with a solution of laundry soap, infusion of garlic or infusion of tobacco is used.

Will a tangerine grown from the seed bear fruit without grafting?

Mandarins grown without grafting can bear fruit if they are properly cared for. The only difference will be the longer time it takes to develop the tree.

Where can I get a tangerine graft?

For grafting, it is recommended to use a cutting or a bud from another citrus plant aged 1-2 years. He althy trees with strong trunks are suitable as rootstock. If grafting will be performed on an adult plantation, then the thickness of its branches and trunk should be more than 5 mm.

Tangerine tree disease control

Mandarins are characterized by a number of diseases due to which plants die or cease to bear fruit. The most common diseases are:

anthracnose, which develops in case of severe waterlogging of the soil;
wartiness, which manifests itself in the form of growing spots that affect leaves and branches;
gommosis affecting the bark and root system;
tristeza, affecting trees older than 5 years and stopping their development.

The main measure to combat plant diseases is the treatment with fungicidal preparations. Severely affected parts of trees must be removed, as some infections can actively spread.

Common problems

A common problem when growing tangerines is yellowing and leaf fall. In adult plants, this process is natural, and in other cases, the problem occurs due to lack of lighting, too dry air, or improper transplantation. Having found one of the listed reasons, it is enough to eliminate it in order to restore the growth of foliage.

Pale yellow foliage indicates iron deficiency. In this case, treatment with iron chelate helps. If yellowing occurs from the bottom of the crown and constantly spreads upward, additional fertilizing will be required using nitrogenous fertilizers.