In a recent column, I solicited readers’ citrus stories. Some of your responses follow below:

“I do not know the name of the variety of this wonderful citrus tree that bears seedless tangerines. It was already full-grown and bearing when I bought the house in the west San Fernando Valley in 2006. It grows next to a block wall that faces east. It seems to bear every other year. For instance, in the winter a year ago it had hardly any fruit. Now it has so much the branches are bowed downwards. I keep weeds down by planting ground cover underneath. I soak out to the drip line (canopy perimeter) about twice a month during flowering and through the hottest part of the summer. I know its feeder roots penetrate my raised vegetable beds up to fifteen feet or more out from the trunk, so the tree gets supplemental water that way. (I keep those beds watered on a drip system.) I apply citrus fertilizer four times per year as directed on the bag. I pick the fruit by cutting the stem with hand pruners, not pulling it off. I lop off any major dead branches once a year or so, and thin any crossing branches that rub together. I get so much fruit from this one tree that I juice them (takes me several days to pick and juice them all) and freeze the juice in ice cube trays, then crack the cubes out into freezer bags – I’ll get a dozen gallon bags with three trays per bag. They’ll last me all year long in my iced tea in place of regular ice cubes.” – William Zeiser, Winnetka

You might try harvesting as soon as the fruit begins sweetening up since a later harvest may result in a significantly smaller crop the following year. Your tangerine juice ice cubes sound enticingly refreshing.

“Planted in our back yard in 1973, transplanted that same year to the side of the back yard to make room for our addition, our tree gives sweet navel oranges every year with the crop starting to be edible around December. Been through a number of diseases, including citrus black spot, thrips and Asian citrus psyllid (that carries pathogenic bacteria). It is still going strong after almost 50 years. An amazing plant.” – Olive Seely, Lakewood

I find it interesting that your tree continues to thrive despite being visited by the citrus Asian psyllid that typically infects trees with bacteria that cause citrus greening disease. Perhaps your tree has some immunity to the disease. At present, 80 percent of the citrus trees in Florida have the disease which is invariably fatal. Fortunately, California commercial groves have not been significantly infected so far. The good news is that a rootstock has now been developed that imparts citrus greening immunity to the fruit-bearing scion variety that is grafted onto it.

“This abundant beauty is a 50-year-old tangerine. Southwest light. Gets water when the lawn sprinklers work. Rarely, if ever, fertilized.” – Donna Lynn Foster, Long Beach

Ms. Foster’s experience speaks to the minimal care citrus trees require once they are well established.

“We have a pomelo tree planted in the late 90s that always produces a lot of fruit. It gets sprinkler water and we water it by a hose as needed. I feed it four times a year and add the citrus micronutrients as directed. We already picked the largest ones (1-2 pounds each) and the winds knocked some down. After cleaning and peeling, they are very sweet. – Bob Beberfall, Ontario

Pomelo fruit is like a sweet grapefruit. The Chandler variety bears fruit that is generally seedless and sweet with pinkish flesh. Pomelos with white flesh are more acidic. The pomelo has a shrub-like growth habit and, when grafted onto a semi-dwarf rootstock, will not exceed ten or 15 feet in height.

“I grew up in La Habra, in a house with three of the biggest, oldest Valencia orange trees I have ever seen. The smell of the blossoms was overwhelming at times, and even though we were constantly picking and squeezing oranges in the winter and spring, we could not even begin to use them all. One of the three trees eventually died, but the other two were still turning out hundreds or maybe thousands of sweet, juicy oranges every year until we sold the house.” – Claudia Segger

Yes, Valencias are widely appreciated for their generous crops.

“A juicy semi-dwarf Valencia here in Long Beach, 20-plus years old. A particularly heavy yield this year. Usually sweet pickings April into June. It gets minimal pruning well after harvest, a little homemade compost, and occasional hot weather extra irrigation beyond what it sucks up from the lawn.” – Greg, Long Beach

It is advisable to purchase citrus varieties grafted onto semi-dwarf rootstocks, such as Greg’s, for backyard growing and onto dwarf rootstocks for container growing. The advantage of having a semi-dwarf tree is that even while it produces an abundance of fruit, you are not burdened with having to climb more than an average size step ladder to pick it. Where container growing is concerned, it makes sense to have a dwarf tree so that continual repotting will not be needed to accommodate its growth.

“Our 50-year-old Valencia orange tree is still bearing lots of oranges. We purchased this little twig-like tree shortly after we moved into our home as newlyweds. It was purchased at Kmart for $1.98! All these years later, the tree produces great crops, good for eating and juicing. In terms of care, it thrives on benign neglect, with occasional citrus fertilizer. We also have a small navel orange, a full-size grapefruit, and a small lime tree. We like to share our crop bounty with friends, or set out boxes of fruit on the front lawn with a “FREE” sign, to share with people walking by.” – Hedi Roethel, Cypress

One of the benefits of growing citrus is the longevity of the trees, especially orange and tangerine trees. In Southern California. you are lucky to get 15 to 20 productive years from a peach, an apricot, or a plum tree, and perhaps a few more from an apple tree, whereas oranges will reliably thrive for 50 years and often a lot longer.

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