Content
- 1 What do tangerine seeds look like?
- 2 Varieties of tangerines for growing at home
- 3 Is it possible to grow a tangerine from a seed?
- 4 How to grow a tangerine tree from a seed at home
- 5 Caring for indoor tangerine from seed
- 6 Will a tangerine grown from a seed bear fruit?
- 7 Conclusion
- 8 Reviews on growing tangerines from seeds
It is possible to grow a tangerine from a seed at home, and it can bear fruit successfully. In addition to tasty and aromatic citrus fruits, this exotic tree attracts with its decorative properties. Growing a tangerine from a seed yourself takes time and effort, but the result is worth it.
What do tangerine seeds look like?
The seeds of the tangerine are contained in the pulp. It is easily divided into 10-12 segments, which are the nests of the fruit. Each one contains 1-2 bones, located one above the other. Their shape is elongated, the color is white or cream. The shell of the bone is hard.
Not all tangerines recommended for indoor growing have seeds; Unshiu varieties usually do not have them.
Varieties of tangerines for growing at home
It is better to plant a tangerine seed of a certain variety. It depends on many factors, including:
- fruit characteristics - shape, color, size, taste, aroma;
- type of tree - height, crown dimensions, branching, branch structure, features of leaves and flowers;
- frost resistance.
If you take a seed from purchased tangerines, you will rarely be able to reliably identify the variety. The sellers themselves often do not know it. If you have the opportunity to choose a specific variety, then the following are better suited for home cultivation from seed:
- Shiva-Mikan is an early, low-growing variety, abundant flowering, leaves large and fleshy, dark green in color. The fruits are flattened, weight 25-35 g.
The fruits of the Shiva-Mikan variety are sweet, no sourness
- Murcott is a hybrid of tangerine and sweet orange. Medium-sized tree, compact bush, willow-like branches. Fruiting is often alternating, the yield is high. Tangerines 70-120 g each, the pulp is juicy, there are a lot of seeds.
The variety is called Honey for its honey taste.
- Clementine Marisol. This is a hybrid of tangerine and orange. An early variety, a powerful tree with a dense crown of short branches. Fruits weigh 70-130 g, the flesh is tender and juicy, slightly sour.
Not all varieties of clementines are suitable for indoor cultivation from seeds; some of them are seedless
Is it possible to grow a tangerine from a seed?
Planting a tangerine seed and growing a tree from it is possible, but it takes time and effort.It is important to select the right material, properly prepare it and the soil, and provide comprehensive care. The features of the process depend on the final goal - if, in addition to being decorative, you want to get tasty and edible fruits, then the amount of work needs to be increased.
How to grow a tangerine tree from a seed at home
To germinate a tangerine seed at home, it is important to correctly select and prepare not only planting material, but also containers with soil. Proper follow-up care is also important.
Selecting seeds for planting
To successfully grow a tangerine tree from a seed at home, it is important to choose and prepare the planting material correctly. It is best to select and plant seeds in autumn or early winter, when the tree bears fruit in nature.
You can prepare tangerine seeds yourself or buy them. They should not be thin, severely deformed or blackened. It is more effective to plant fresh seeds.
The germination rate of tangerine seeds is not bad, but not all of them germinate. Some specimens die from disease, and losses also occur during transplantation. In order not to be left without results, plant from ten seeds.
Seed preparation
If the tangerine is just eaten, then the seeds from it can be planted immediately. In other cases, the seeds are wrapped in a damp cloth or gauze and left there for several days. It is better to wait not just for swelling, but for the appearance of sprouts. The workpiece should not dry out; it is important to monitor this. An alternative to wet tissue is hydrogel. You can buy it in gardening stores.
Before planting, it is better to check the seeds for germination by placing them in water. Floated specimens will not germinate.
Choosing a pot and preparing the soil
To properly plant a tangerine seed, it is important to choose the right container. At the initial stage, plastic cups with a volume of 0.1-0.2 liters or small flower pots up to 10 cm high are sufficient.
At the bottom of pots for tangerines, holes must be made from the seed for drainage.
Choosing the right soil is equally important. The conditions are:
- nutritional value;
- looseness;
- water permeability;
- the reaction is neutral or slightly acidic;
- heavy clay and light peat are not suitable.
To plant tangerine seeds, use ready-made soil for citrus fruits or make a mixture yourself. A suitable combination would be:
- leaf soil;
- manure, preferably horse manure;
- humus;
- turf land.
All components are taken equally, coarse river sand is added - 10% of the total mass of the rest is enough. You can take a different composition - forest soil, humus and sand 2:2:1.
The resulting mixture is sifted, poured with water 10:1 and boiled for 30 minutes. The soil for planting the seed can be used after it has cooled.
How to plant a tangerine from a seed at home
After proper preparation, planting tangerine seeds is easy. The algorithm is like this:
- At the bottom of pots or cups, arrange drainage using expanded clay, small stones, crushed walnut shells or pieces of polystyrene foam.
- Fill the containers with soil mixture and moisten.
- Plant a seed in each pot or glass, deepening it by 2-4 cm.
- Organize a film shelter.
The pots are kept on a bright windowsill at a temperature of 20-25 °C. Shoots usually appear after 2-3 weeks. Daily ventilation is required.
Caring for indoor tangerine from seed
When growing tangerines at home, it is important to provide them with the right conditions and proper care. The decorativeness and health of the tree and fruiting depend on this.
Lighting and location
Tangerines are demanding on lighting and thermophilic. It is better to place the tree near the brightest window. In the spring-autumn period during the midday hours the plant should be shaded from direct sunlight. He needs bright but diffused light.
In late autumn and winter, you can use fluorescent lamps. They are turned on in the early morning and evening to extend daylight hours to 12 hours.
Humidity and watering
Maintaining moisture is important for tangerines. In summer they require regular spraying with water at room temperature. It is not stopped even in winter, if the room has central heating. Dry air provokes pest damage to the crop.
To water indoor tangerines, use warm water, preferably rain or snow. During the spring and summer, it is carried out daily. Moisten the soil abundantly. From October, the frequency of watering for the winter is reduced to 1-2 times a week, and be sure to monitor the condition of the earthen clod. It should not dry out, but excess moisture is also destructive.
To maintain humidity, you can place a wide container of water next to the tangerine.
Temperature
The tangerine tree is heat-loving, but does not require excessively high room temperatures. It is optimal to provide 15-18 °C. This is the most acceptable condition for budding, flowering and fruit set. In summer, temperatures up to 30 °C are permissible.
A seed tree needs a cold winter. At home, this is ensured by placing the plant in a room with a temperature of 6-10 °C and diffused light. If there is no such wintering, fruiting may stop.
When organizing additional lighting during the cold period, provide a temperature of 14-18 °C. There should be no radiators or other heating devices nearby.
In summer, it is permissible to place the tangerine from the seed in the open air. The place should be protected from strong winds and direct sunlight.
Feeding
When growing tangerines from seeds at home, fertilizing is required, since the soil is quickly depleted and washed away due to frequent watering. There are several options:
- ready-made complex fertilizers for citrus crops – Fertika, Zdraven, Organic Mix, Bona Forte;
- horse manure - diluted with water, left for two weeks, diluted 1:10;
- mullein – 40 g per 1 liter of water;
- sleeping tea for embedding into the top layer of soil.
In spring, tangerines need nitrogen to grow green mass. It is optimal to use urea by adding 1.5 g per liter of water.
Feeding the tree from the seed begins in early spring. Fertilizers are applied in the first half of the day at a temperature of 18-19 °C. Nutrient formulations can be used for watering or spraying. In the second case, the concentration is reduced.
Organics and mineral compositions for mandarin seeds are not used at the same time. It is optimal to alternate such feedings, making an interval of 1.5-2 weeks between them.
Before wintering, mandarins and seeds are given up on nitrogen, focusing on potassium-phosphorus compounds. During the cold period, fertilizers are needed only when additional lighting is provided and in a warm room. The concentration of substances is reduced three times, fertilizing is done at intervals of two months.
To set fruit, a seed tree does not require artificial pollination; indoor tangerines usually ripen by the end of the year
Transplanting tangerine seedlings
Young seed trees need replanting every year. It is carried out when the roots entwine the earthen ball. If this does not happen, changing the drainage and topsoil is sufficient. When the tangerine from the seed has become fruit-bearing, replanting is carried out every 2-3 years.
It is recommended to move the crop to a new pot in the spring before growth begins. The basic rules are:
- Protect the earthen lump as much as possible.
- Do not damage the roots.
- Be sure to do drainage.
- Bury the root collar exactly as it was in the old pot.
- Place the trunk in the center of the pot.
- For a young mandarin, the optimal soil mixture is turf and leaf soil, rotted mullein, sand 2:1:1:1.
- For fruit-bearing tangerines from the seed, the composition of the soil is slightly changed. Take three parts of turf soil and add a little fatty clay. The remaining components and proportions are the same.
The tree is watered abundantly before transplanting. It is optimal to take a pot with a diameter of 5 cm larger than the previous one.
Diseases and pests
Indoor tangerine may suffer from pests. One of the plant’s enemies is the spider mite. If it is detected, the tree is washed with laundry soap in warm running water. Then use the insecticide according to the instructions:
- Aktellik;
- Inta-Vir;
- Fitoverm.
In addition to the web, the presence of a mite is indicated by small light dots on the underside of the leaves.
Another enemy of the tangerine is scale insects. Control measures are as follows:
- insecticides – Fitoverm, Aktara;
- folk remedies - for 1 liter of water, 5 g of laundry soap and 10 g of kerosene, spray twice a week.
Scale insects must be dealt with in a timely manner, otherwise the plant will quickly become depleted and dry out.
Another enemy of the tangerine is the mealybug. There are several methods of struggle:
- insecticides - Decis, Karbofos, Inta-Vir;
- folk recipes - infusions of garlic, soap.
Mealybug up to 5-6 mm in size, resembles a fluffy white coating
A common pest of tangerines and other indoor plants is aphids. They fight it in the following ways:
- drugs – Decis, Iskra, Fitoverm, Karate, Actellik, Inta-Vir;
- folk remedies - infusions of tobacco, garlic, lemon peels, pine needles, wood ash, tomato tops.
Aphids feed on plant juices and are often brought in with indoor flowers, so “newbies” need quarantine
Tangerine may suffer from chlorosis. The problem is solved by spraying with iron chelate. For prevention, it is carried out monthly.
With chlorosis, the leaves become light yellow, the young plates are the first to suffer
Frequent watering of tangerines and high humidity create a favorable environment for fungal diseases. To solve the problem, fungicides are used:
- Bordeaux mixture;
- colloidal sulfur;
- copper sulfate;
- Fitoverm;
- Alirin-B;
- Glyocladin.
Pruning and crown formation
Crown formation takes 3-4 years. Pinch out the crop in the spring at the beginning of active growth. This measure is necessary when the tangerine reaches 30-40 cm in height. Pinch the ends of the shoots after 4-5 leaves.
Be sure to systematically carry out sanitary pruning. Remove dry, weak and inward-growing shoots.
Will a tangerine grown from a seed bear fruit?
It is possible to grow a fruit-bearing tangerine from a seed, but this requires grafting. It is made from cuttings of a varietal crop. Need a fresh twig. If you can’t use it right away, then put the cuttings on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator, wrapped in a bag. This will prevent drying out.
The vaccination is done as follows:
- Make a shallow T-shaped cut on the game.
- Cut the cuttings of a varietal tangerine at an acute angle.
- Insert the scion into the T-shaped cut.
- Cover the wound with garden varnish.
- Secure the graft with a strip of cloth or bandage.
It is better to keep the tangerine in a mini-greenhouse for the first month, then remove the shelter. As the graft grows, the bush is cut off above it. The wound is covered with garden varnish.
Conclusion
You can grow a tangerine from a seed; even seeds from citrus fruits bought for food are suitable for this. It is imperative to organize the right conditions - ensure the desired temperature, regular watering, fertilizing. If a tangerine is grafted, it will bear fruit successfully.
Reviews on growing tangerines from seeds
