Chris Perry talks about planting Citrus trees

Chris Perry

“October is Citrus month and we are excited to introduce a collection of posts over the coming weeks to help you to plant your Citrus grove and reap the benefits.”

Oranges, lemons and mandarins are fabulous fruit to eat and the trees they grow on are beautiful. The ripe fruit shows up like gems in the deep green bushy foliage. Citrus can be left to take on their natural bushy habit or they can be hedged into any shape to make living walls that provide shade, wind protection and privacy. The fruit is not prone to bird damage and can be picked over most weeks of the year. Your citrus grove will provide delicious fruit nearly every day and these will provide vitamin C along with many other nutrients.

October is Citrus month at Perry’s because our nursery trees are at their best. They are beginning to grow as the sunshine is increasing and temperatures are warming. Planting now means faster establishment growth and root development which leads to increased tolerance of our hot summer to come. The sooner your trees establish the sooner you will be eating fruit.

The 1st fruit tree in any garden is the lemon tree. It provides the fruit whose juice garnishes at least one meal every day and lemons can be picked for most days of the year. 2nd among the citrus is the orange and two trees can provide sweet fruit for juice all year round. 3rd choice is mandarin. We have four varieties that are seedless or nearly seedless and these will be yielding fruit 1 to 2 years from now.

This long weekend is the start. Come down to Mclaren Flat and see the trees. Buy our special compost, prepare the soil as described in the GreenSheet and get planting.