Hello Laura
Yes you are so true about the temp changes between your spot and us... and
you do get those heavy rains much more than we do. We are still trying to
get our orange trees past year 2, a water oak fell on one and mashed the
hell out of it...good luck with the planting, hey, you never know, what's
going to work till you try.

Jim in Jacksonville

"Laura Stanley" wrote in message
...
Hi, Jim.

I probably was a little conservative in my recommendations to the Weilers,
but I've lost three fruit trees due to simply planting varieties that were
inappropriate for my climate. If they choose to plant varieities that are
borderline-hardy for their area, I'd like for them to do so as a result of
an informed decision.

Mr. Weiler is at least somewhat aware of the climate - he said
"relatively"
frost-free. But he may not really understand how cold it can get on
occasion when a really strong front comes through. I'd hate for them to
just
run to the nursery and buy whatever trees look nice, then lose half of
them
in January.

BTW, I'm over in Panama City - we get quite a bit colder over here than
you
do in Jax. The cold fronts usually weaken *a lot* between my place and
yours. During that record cold spell we had in January, it got down to
12-14
degrees one night, and in the upper teens for two nights thereafter! I
even
had to protect my Owari Satsuma Mandarin, because it is only hardy to
about
18 degrees!

Still, I'm thinking about planting more citrus trees on the south side of
my
house, near a brick wall. That location should give the tree about 5
degrees
worth of cold protection.

Specifially, I am thinking of one of the hardier oranges or navel oranges.
Grapefruit would probably be OK in a protected area like that, too, but I
don't eat them enough to justify the space for a tree. Possibly an
Improved
Meyer lemon, since they are much hardier than other lemons. But if I plant
those trees, I'll need to have a plan for serious protection - complete
covering plus supplemental heating - when it gets really cold.

I'd love a lime tree, but they are so tender I could only have a small one
in a container, so I can bring it in for the winter.

I have a peach tree, two dwarf weeping Santa Rosa plum trees, and two
apple
trees - a Dorsett Golden and an Anna. The peach tree bore this year for
the
first time - it's a "donut" peach. The fruit was very small (and not much
of
it, since the tree is still small), but it was extremely good. The plums I
planted as whips in 2002; they put on a few blooms this year but did not
set
any fruit. The apples I just planted this spring, so they probably won't
bear for 2-3 years.

I'm thinking hard about a pear tree and/or a fig tree. But I still have to
leave room for those blueberry bushes I want. :-)

Laura

"Jim A" wrote in message
news:5yiXa.41509$Oz4.11942@rwcrnsc54...
Hello Laura
I'm in Jacksonville, and have several neighbors that get plenty of
oranges
and navel oranges from their trees. Lemons, grapfruits, pears, and
peaches
all do pretty good on our side of the river.

Jim

with proper protection for that frosty night that is.


"Laura Stanley" wrote in message
...
Hi! Congratulations on your retirement!

The good news: citrus are among the easiest tree fruits to grow, with
relatively few diseases and serious pests for a home grower. But they
do
need some basic care to bear reasonable quantities of good quality
fruit.

But it will be crucial for you to choose the right varieties.

50 miles north of Orlando is probably too far north (too much chance
of
a
killing frost) for the more tender citrus, especially if you will be
living
at an inland location. You really should find call the county
agricultural
extension agent for the county you're moving to. They can tell you
exactly
which citrus varieties are reliably hardy in your exact area, and
almost
certainly will have brochures or other information covering basic
citrus
care.

Pollination and cross-pollination requirements vary widely. For
example,
some oranges need cross-pollination with another specific orange
variety,
other types of oranges are self-fertile. And a few mandarin oranges
will
set
fruit without any pollination at all! You need to research the
pollination
and cross-pollination requirements for specific varieties you are
considering.

You should check out this link:

http://volusia.org/extension_service/citrus.htm

This page gets you into the University of Florida agricultural
extension
service's publications for the home citrus grower. (UF's extension
service
is *the* source for citrus info in Florida.) Through this page you can
get
all the information you need, including variety selection,
cold-hardiness,
cross-pollination requirements, care, etc.

I hope you enjoy your retirement and have great success with your
citrus
orchard!

Laura
NW FL USDA Zone 8b









"Bill and Nancy Weiler" wrote in message
...

Hi All,

Wife and I are retiring to Florida, north of Orlando 50 miles. We
have
a home that has plenty of space for several (6 or more) citrus
trees,
particularly if they are dwarf varieties. Having NEVER grown
citrus,
is
there anything I should be careful of when choosing varieties? Do
dwarf
trees produce well enough to supply fruit for the two of us? Is
cross-pollination necessary or desireable? Any problems with the
root
system close to concrete sidewalks or foundations? We are
interested
in
growing lemons, limes, oranges, and grapefruit. Should we consider
others, like tangerines, etc? What kind of maintenance is there?
Any
help would be appreciated. We are looking forward to gardening in a
relatively frost free area--for a change.

Bill
--
Bill and Nancy Weiler
Tony, Wisconsin
http://home.centurytel.net/spinandfish/spinandfish