Among the representatives of the Rutov family, tangerine is one of the most popular fruits. In Latin, the name of this evergreen plant sounds like Citrus reticulate. Mandarin belongs to the citrus group, which also includes such well-known fruits as orange, lemon, grapefruit, etc. During its development, the plant can take on various forms - a shrub or a tree with a height of 5 m.
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Indoor tangerine
In recent years, the cultivation of mandarin in artificial conditions has become widespread, for which devices such as greenhouses, greenhouses and winter gardens... If you wish, you can grow this evergreen plant at home on the balcony or windowsill. Today, a large number of varieties of dwarf and low-growing tangerines have been created, which are ideal for these purposes, because when they reach the full phase of vegetative development, they have a height of no more than 0.6-1.1 m.If a tangerine of ordinary varieties is grown at home, then in relation he needs to prune and form a bush.
A tangerine grown in a pot can delight any owner. Moreover, this is manifested not only in the formation of bright, mouth-watering orange fruits, which can remain on the plant for several months. Many owners celebrate the beautiful flowering of tangerines, because when the branches of the plant are covered with white flowers, they begin to emanate amazing scent... There are individual varieties of tangerines that begin to bloom from spring to late autumn. A true masterpiece is the tangerine grown according to the bonsai technique.
One of the advantages of indoor tangerine is that artificial pollination is not required to form its fruits. The moment of their ripening occurs, as a rule, at the end of the year. If you don't want to wait that long, then you can purchase an already mature potted plant that has fruits. Although they look quite appetizing, they are not recommended for use in food. Nevertheless, such tangerines are more decorative, because for their cultivation, large quantities of fertilizer are applied to the soil. Additional attractiveness to the plant is given leathery and corrugated leaves.
Varieties for growing at home
Before growing tangerines at home, you must first decide on the right variety.
Unshiu. This variety, which came from Japan, is very unpretentious. The plant enters the fruiting phase already in the 3-4th year. When grown at home, the plant reaches a height of no more than 0.8-1.5 m. During the growth process, a large number of branches are formed. With the onset of spring, the active phase of flowering begins, the formation of fruits occurs at the end of October-November. They are pear-shaped and contain no seeds.- Forged-Vasya, Miha-Vasa, Miyagawa-Vasa. These plants represent the Vasya group of dwarf varieties. They can be grown on a windowsill. In the process of growth, the tangerine reaches a height of 40-80 cm.Fruits reach ripening phases in the second year, acquiring an orange-yellow color. In the spring, the active flowering phase begins. A feature of these plants, which is typical for all other dwarf varieties, is that there is no need to trim the crown.
- Shiva Mikan. Standing out for its small size, this plant is one of the early varieties and shows active growth. At the stage of ripening, small fruits weighing no more than 30 g are formed.
- Murcott. This plant is notable for its low height and forms very sweet fruits during the ripening process. This explains exactly why the name of this variety sounds like "honey" in translation.
- Clementine. The plant appeared as a result of crossing a mandarin and an orange. When grown indoors, it begins to bear fruit in the second year. One mandarin plant is capable of producing up to 50 orange-red flattened fruits annually. Sometimes plants form fruits containing a large number of seeds, which are commonly called montreal.
Mandarin: home care
In order for a tangerine grown at home to be able to endow you with delicious and beautiful fruits, you need to correctly find a place for him and take care of creating optimal lighting.
Lighting
Good lighting is one of the defining conditions that must be met regardless of the growing conditions for the mandarin. Mandarin grows best when it is exposed to a small amount of direct sunlight. If the plant lacks lighting, this will affect its growth, the number of flowers formed will be small, and in some cases the plant will not be able to enter the flowering phase at all.
Also, the lack of lighting affects the leaves, which acquire a faded appearance, the emerging shoots begin to thin out, acquiring painful condition... For this reason, it is advisable to choose windows facing the east, southeast or south side as a place for growing tangerine. At the same time, he needs to provide artificial shade from the midday sun. With the onset of summer, a decorative mandarin can be placed on the balcony for a while, helping it to adapt to natural conditions.
The tangerine tree is looked after in a slightly different way in winter, when the length of daylight hours is reduced. For plants, it is necessary to choose the most illuminated area, on which direct sunlight falls. However, this does not always ensure sufficient lighting. In this case, you have to use artificial lighting. You can fill the lighting deficit with an ordinary phyto-light bulb, which is connected to a chandelier or table lamp. You should start lighting up the plants little by little. If the duration of daylight hours is immediately increased sharply, then this can lead to the shedding of leaves by plants.
Content temperature
For normal growth, ornamental tangerine must be provided with a summer temperature in the range plus 20-25 degrees Celsius... When the mandarin enters the flowering phase, it is desirable to maintain the temperature at a level of up to 20 degrees in order to avoid falling flowers. In winter, plants need to create conditions for less active growth, so a temperature in the range of 5-10 degrees will be optimal for it. Such a regime allows the plant to accumulate enough strength over the winter to actively enter the flowering and fruiting phase with the onset of spring.
How to water and spray tangerines at home?
The tangerine tree grown on the windowsill has the ability, borrowed from its wild ancestors, to withstand long periods of drought... If the plant does not receive moisture for too long, it will lead to shedding of leaves, which will reduce the volume of evaporated liquid.Great difficulties for owners who decide to grow indoor tangerine arise with watering. It is necessary to correctly select the rate of water consumption, since with high humidity there is a risk of developing fungal diseases.
To correctly calculate the volume of water for irrigating a tangerine tree, the following factors must be considered:
- plant size;
- the volume of the container used to grow mandarin;
- ambient temperature;
- daylight hours and light intensity.
As the leaf surface increases, the indoor plant begins to increase the amount of moisture evaporated, therefore, such plants must be provided with moisture in a larger volume. In addition, the rate of evaporation depends on the ambient temperature: as the temperature rises, the plants begin to release more moisture. Also, the volume of evaporated liquid depends on the length of daylight hours. Throughout the day, the mandarin tree has open stomata, which are formations located below the ground part, which are necessary for gas exchange.
The most suitable time for watering indoor plants is the first half of the day, since it is at this time of the day that the peak of plant activity occurs. Particular attention should be paid to the ambient temperature: as it decreases, the frequency of watering is reduced. In some cases, it is enough to water the tangerine every few days if the temperature is kept within + 12 ... +15 degrees Celsius... In such conditions, plants have enough moisture to maintain their vital functions.
One of the recommended procedures that positively affects the development of the tangerine tree is spraying the leaves. In conditions of low air humidity, the mandarin begins to feel uncomfortable, as a result of which there may be a risk of infection of the plant with a spider mite. Therefore, during flowering, moisture must be avoided on the flowers.
How to feed tangerine at home?
In order for the mandarin tree not only to grow well, but also to bear fruit, it needs care, which includes the introduction of mineral and organic dressings. Since a container with earth is used for growing, which contains an extremely small amount of useful elements, all these elements are washed out during watering. A good feeding for tangerines can be soluble or dry fertilizers.
You can start feeding indoor plants already in the first days of spring, when the length of daylight hours begins to increase. Moreover, the first portions should be small, which must be increased over time. This point must be given special attention, since it is in early spring that the active development of vegetative and generative buds occurs.
For their normal formation, the mandarin tree needs to provide additional nutrients. When growing plants in indoor conditions, fertilization is carried out according to the same scheme as for other indoor plants. Tangerine should be fed in the morning. The recommended ambient temperature for this procedure is not higher than + 18 ... +19 degrees.
Typically, the mandarin tree is fed with soluble fertilizers. They can be introduced through watering or by spraying the leaves, using a weakly concentrated composition for this.- Plants grown at home can be fed with any complex mineral fertilizers rich in phosphorus, nitrogen and potassium. It is these elements that plants first of all need.
- To prepare the mixture, use soft or settled water at room temperature. It is very important to maintain the optimal dose. To do this, you need to follow the instructions for the drug exactly: usually 1 cap is enough for 1 liter of water.It is a misconception that increasing the dose to two caps will be of great benefit to the plant. Such a violation will only harm the mandarin tree, since it can lead to chemical burns or toxic poisoning.
Conclusion
Mandarin is an exotic plant for our country, but many owners have long learned to grow it at home. Many people are attracted by these evergreens not only with orange-red fruits, but also fragrant aromathat comes from flowers. Growing a decorative mandarin indoors is not such a difficult task as it might seem at first glance. The main thing that needs to be taken care of is to create optimal conditions for normal growth and development. With proper care, very soon the mandarin will delight you with bright and beautiful fruits.
