How to quickly and correctly germinate a tangerine seed at home?

Finding seeds in citrus fruits, many simply throw them in the trash. But in vain, because if you figure out how to germinate a tangerine seed, you can grow a neat tree at home - it will show off on the windowsill in just a few months. Its leaves are juicy, shiny, bright green and very fragrant. A tangerine grown from scratch is a source of pride. Follow the instructions and everything will work out!

Is it possible to grow a tree from a seed?

Even novice indoor flower lovers can grow tangerines. The tangerine seed germinates in about 80% of cases. Many people simply drop it into a pot next to another flower, and after a month or two a green sprout appears from the ground.

Of course, it is better to plant several seeds at once. This will not only increase the chances of getting a seedling, but will also subsequently allow you to select the strongest, most viable specimen.

To germinate the seed, it is better to choose one of the following varieties of tangerine:

• Abkhazian early,
• Sochinsky 23,
• Uzbekistan,
• Unshiu,
• Agudzera,
• Kovano-Vase,
• Miho-Vase.

They are good because they grow up to 2 meters in height. At the same time, they are distinguished by large and sweet fruits.

Instructions for germinating seeds

Tangerine seeds quickly lose their viability in the fresh air. You need to start germination immediately after it has been separated from the fruit pulp. Follow the simple instructions:

1. Rinse the seeds under running water to remove any remaining pulp.
2. Take gauze, fold it in 2 layers and slightly moisten it. Wrap the tangerine seeds inside and place them in a warm place on a plate. Wash the gauze with seeds every day. Also suitable for tangerines is soaking them in hydrogel. You need to place the grains between balls pre-saturated with water. The duration of soaking can vary from 2 to 5 days. During this time, the seeds will awaken and swell. If you don't need to quickly get shoots, you can skip this point.
3. Prepare a pot with a drainage system: holes and expanded clay or its equivalent at the bottom. It is better to choose a small volume (up to 0.2 l). You can use a seedling box or disposable cups for germination (you need to make holes in the bottom using a hot knitting needle).
4. You can take store-bought soil, marked “for citrus fruits.” It is advisable to find one that does not contain peat, otherwise the substrate will sour, dry out quickly and will not provide the required supply of nutrients. Also well suited for germinating tangerines is a soil mixture made independently from turf soil, leaf soil, river sand and rotted cow manure (proportions - 3: 1: 1: 1).
5. There is no need to deepen the seeds too much; 3–4 cm is enough. It is important to maintain a distance between them of at least 4–5 cm, otherwise the seedlings will become intertwined with their roots, and it will be difficult to separate them from each other later.
6. The tangerine will germinate within 2-3 weeks. All this time you need to keep the ground moist and warm. Sprouts appear fastest when germinated on a radiator and under a greenhouse bag that maintains humidity.However, in this case the plant gets used to the film and may die if it is abruptly removed. The covering is removed gradually over 1–2 weeks: first, the shoots are left open for 1 hour, then for 2 hours a day, and so on.

If you decide to germinate a tangerine seed, it is best to do this in late December or early January. Then, around February or March, it will be possible to plant the strongest seedling in a permanent place. Compliance with planting dates guarantees rapid growth and active development of the plant.

How does a tangerine grow?

If you properly care for the seedling, then in six months it will reach a height of 10–15 cm, and in a year – 20–25 cm. Around the same time, the stem will begin to coarse and become wooden.

Tangerines grown from seeds can grow thorns in addition to leaves. In fact, these are modified leaves, characteristic of any citrus “wild”.

With a height of 25–30 cm, at approximately 1.5–2 years, it is time to start molding. The tree develops a beautiful crown over another 1–2 years, after which it can bloom and bear fruit. Tangerine flowers are white, delicate and exude an amazing aroma.

Stimulation of flowering

After completing the crown molding, you can safely stimulate the flowering of the tangerine tree. To do this, you need to wrap copper wire around the trunk just above the root collar. The wire should not just hang, but tighten the plant, disrupting the movement of sap. After six months it can be removed and the damaged area can be covered with garden varnish. Before this event, the tangerine must be overwintered in a cool room.

The pot with tangerine cannot be rotated around its axis, otherwise the plant may begin to shed leaves or slow down its growth. The turn is made gradually.Once every 2-3 weeks the tree is rotated 2-3 cm or 10-15 degrees.

Features of care

In general, caring for a tangerine tree is not difficult - in this it is practically no different from other citrus fruits. Tangerines are often grown next to lemon, kumquat, and grapefruit.

Plant care includes the following aspects:

• Watering. You need to water the tangerine sparingly, not allowing the soil to dry out completely. In summer, the recommended frequency of watering is once every 2 days, in winter – once every 5–7 days. Only settled, warm water should be used. In hot weather, the plant must be sprayed with water in the morning and evening hours.
• Temperature. For normal development, tangerines need warm summers and cool winters. In the summer months, the optimal temperature is 18–22 degrees, in the winter – 12–15 degrees Celsius. If you do not take care of wintering, most of the flowers on the tree will be barren. In hot weather, it is useful to move the pot with the tree to the balcony or street.
• Lighting. It is recommended to place the tangerine tree on the windowsill of a south or east window. It needs bright light and a daylength of 9–10 hours, including in winter. In winter, it is necessary to supplement the plant with a phytolamp.
• Feeding. A young, actively growing tangerine tree requires regular feeding during spring and summer. Citrus fruits need higher levels of potassium and magnesium. With a lack of nutrients, the foliage becomes yellow. In this case, pour 1-2 teaspoons of Epsom salt (magnesia, magnesium sulfate) on top of the soil. Fertilizers are introduced every 10–15 days, alternating: mullein diluted with water (1:10), complex fertilizer with nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, wood ash (3 tablespoons per 1 liter of water).
• Transfer. The tree must be replanted into a larger pot annually. It is better to do this in March. The plant is transferred along with a lump of earth very carefully so as not to damage the roots.
• Crown trimming and shaping. When the tangerine reaches a height of 25–30 cm, the top of the stem is trimmed or pinched. This is necessary so that the tree branches, looks good and quickly enters the fruiting stage. Side shoots - branches of the 1st order - are pinched at a length of 20–25 cm. Branches of the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th orders are shortened to 15–20 cm. After the tangerine has begun to bear fruit, pruning is carried out every spring shoots on which fruits hung, shoots growing inside the crown, as well as drying tips.

Citrus fruits appear only on branches of the 4th and 5th order.

Fruiting of tangerine grown from seed

Tangerine from seed develops slowly and bears fruit no earlier than 10 years of age. To bloom, it needs comfortable conditions all year round. Some manage to see the first fruits only in the 20th year of the plant’s life. They taste sour (“wild”).

If you want to grow not only a beautiful tree, but also one that bears fruit, you need to get vaccinated. Tangerines are grafted at the end of May and beginning of August, when sap flow occurs. A seedling with a stem diameter of at least 6 cm is used as a rootstock. A T-shaped cut is made on it, into which a “cultivated” fruit-bearing tangerine (cutting) is inserted, and the graft is wrapped in film. The plant is placed in a greenhouse for a month.

It is worth considering the fact that citrus grafts do not grow well together. But if everything works out, the fruits appear the next year and have good taste.

Today, real tangerines are almost never found.In supermarkets and grocery stores, hybrids are often sold under their guise. For example, clementines, which are very reminiscent of oranges in a reduced size. Hybrid tangerines have completely different properties. Many of them tolerate vaccinations well and bear fruit earlier.

It is not difficult to germinate tangerine seeds at home. The main thing is to get down to business immediately after removing it from the fetus. To make the sprout appear faster, the seed can be soaked. And some citrus connoisseurs recommend cutting with a knife and removing the hard film. In any case, in the future the seed will sprout in the ground, and its choice should be approached responsibly. The soil must be neutrally acidic, peat-free, and loose. Optimal humidity and heat will do their job, and the tangerine sprout will appear in 10–20 days.