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I imagine it's a shot in the dark. I read all the possible negatives as I was busy sprouting my seedlings. On mine for instance they have very long thorns which is likely something they worked to weed out among other bad characteristics. The fruit in my case is excellent but the thorns make it painful to harvest them. I'm working on an idea for extended lemon picker device while I wait for this years crop.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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Quote:
Originally Posted by whakru
This is an interesting thread and I am curious about our tree. Here is the back story:
About 6 years ago when my daughter was in kindergarten, they did the "plant a seed in a Styrofoam cup" experiment. She brought it home and told me that it was an orange tree. They apparently took the seeds from an orange and each kid got to plant a couple in their cup. As with most of these "plants" I expected it to die within a couple of weeks or not sprout at all. Just our luck, the damn thing has thrived and is now about four feet tall and in it's fifth pot. We live in the Chicago area so we cannot leave it out for the winter because it will die. Now it is getting too hard to move in and out of the house. I don't believe it will ever bear fruit. Am I wrong in that assumption?
So.....what to do? I don't think that I can drive it too another state that is warm because of the agricultural laws. I want to plant it in the back yard and just leave it up to fate but my daughter would be heart broken.
TL;DR: We managed to grow an orange tree from a seed so, yes it can be done. However, don't know what to do with it.
I have a Meyer lemon in 5 gallon pot that I bought in CA and brought up in the car. It's given us 4-8 wonderful lemons every year. It stays outside about mid May to mid September. You can get plastic tubs with rope handles and cut drain holes to put it in so two people can carry it in and out, or put it on a small furniture moving dolly to roll in and out if no steps. The smell of blossoms in the house really brightens up the winter!
Plums, cherries, pears, apricots back in the old country. More or less the same tasting fruits as parents, especially plums. That's how people planted them - dug up from a brush under a mother tree. But those were not designer grocery store varieties, folk selection, there were absolutely amazing varieties, including apples, I still remember taste and smell of apples grown from seed, no professional variety stands close imho. If many people grow trees from seeds, there are good chances to have a good tree nearby.
it's all a function of weather. if you go through a cycle of warm winters and hot summers for 4-5 years, you'll get good growth out of trees from seeds. in the northeast, seeded fruit trees, saplings and young trees have suffered greatly these past 5 years because of excessively cold weather.
if you want fruit, without trying to be nostradamus about the weather, best to buy a mature tree and plant it.
SATX56, I noticed you called yours 'Chinese plum...' and if it is the same as my Loquat, or Japanese plum?
The reason I asked, is mine-the Japanese; can withstand freezing temps. I've seen pics on the internet of them with snow on the branches, full of fruit-so technically the Japanese plum can take frost/freeze. Do you have a picture of the leaves? My Loquats have thick, deep green glossy veined fat spear shaped leaves. Incidentally, the Asian culture is also said to make a delicious tea from the fresh leaves, although I've yet to try it.
I wonder if I can buy the proper seeds so they will grow and produce fruit or do they have to already be starts and grafted from an exiting fruit tree?
The reason for my original question in this post is I have had 3 avocado trees and 2 lemon trees that were shipped to me. The avocado trees have all died and my last lemon seems to be thriving. I was thinking if they started as seeds maybe they'll be stronger and automatically be accustomed to the growing area. Then it doesn't have to go through the stress of when a tree is shipped, repotted, and then placed in an area not native to where it was started.
Growing from seed is the best and primary method of getting rootstock for fruit trees. At the 3 to 5 year mark you cna then graft edible stock onto these trees.
SATX56, I noticed you called yours 'Chinese plum...' and if it is the same as my Loquat, or Japanese plum?
The reason I asked, is mine-the Japanese; can withstand freezing temps. I've seen pics on the internet of them with snow on the branches, full of fruit-so technically the Japanese plum can take frost/freeze. Do you have a picture of the leaves? My Loquats have thick, deep green glossy veined fat spear shaped leaves. Incidentally, the Asian culture is also said to make a delicious tea from the fresh leaves, although I've yet to try it.
I started to call it a Loquat also in my post. I hesitated because it's been recent times that I've discovered that name and still get it confused with Kumquats. I may have yet to see a kumquat tree. We've always called these trees, which are plentiful here, Chinese plums. Just now wondering if it's a result of WWII as our Japanese tea gardens here were renamed the Chinese tea gardens for many years during and after WWII.
It does have long spear shaped leaves with fairly deep veining. Wouldn't call them thick though. The fruits are yellow with yellow meat and I think generally have 3 seeds in each. I can post a pic after while.
I have grown some Citrus and Avocado trees from seed. And like most from seed, it will be some time, if ever, before they fruit.
What I and the rest of you should do is graft them.
But I would need the time to sit down and learn how to do that.
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