California Honey Mandarin Tree

When it comes to sweet and delicious, nothing comes close to the California Honey Mandarin Tree. Wonderfully sweet, this fantastic mandarin is also packed with flavor, including notes of cinnamon and floral fragrances. A medium-sized fruit on a compact tree, this self-fertile variety is definitely the mandarin to have. It carries ripe fruit for months, beginning in winter and ripening through spring and even into summer – the fruit stays on the tree for a long time with no decline in quality. A compact tree, it’s perfect for growing in a pot, outdoors in summer and inside in winter. If you live in a frost-free part of the country, it can be grown outdoors too, where it will make a tree up to 15 feet tall and wide. In a pot, though, it will stay small and compact, perhaps 6 feet high and 3 feet across. The skin of the fruit is relatively smooth and a light yellow-orange, easily peeled. The segments separate easily, and there may be seeds, especially if you grow several different kinds of citrus. Fragrant white flowers in spring and early summer add to the beauty. If you love sweet citrus, you will adore this one.

• Extra-sweet, juicy fruits with rich flavors of cinnamon and flowers
• Compact tree is very suitable for growing in a pot
• Ripens from late winter through spring and into summer
• Medium-sized fruit is easy to peel and separate into segments
• Cold-hardy to 20o F

Grow your California Honey Mandarin Tree in full sun, outdoors, for as long as possible, until night temperatures reach 40o F. Then keep it indoors in a cool, bright place until it’s safe to put it outside again. The soil should be well-drained and rich, and pots must have drainage holes. Special citrus soils are available, or mix 2 parts regular potting soil with 1 part cactus soil. Fertilize regularly from early spring to fall, and don’t leave your tree standing in a saucer of water. The time outdoors will allow natural predators to control pests and keep your tree clean and healthy. Self-fertile, but if flowers open indoors, take a soft artist’s brush and play bee, transferring pollen from one flower to another. Pruning is generally not needed, but shorten back any long shoots to keep your tree bushy. If your tree sets a heavy crop, removing some will give you bigger fruits.