Mandarin: how and how many years it grows, how it blooms, is it a fruit or vegetable, tree or shrub

Tangerines are evergreen low-growing trees that grow in the Mediterranean countries, Southeast Asia, Argentina and Brazil. In Our Country, they are found only in the Krasnodar Territory and the North Caucasus. You can grow them not only in open ground, but also at home.

Where did tangerines come from

The provinces of southern China and Cochin China are considered the birthplace of tangerine trees, i.e. southeastern part of Indochina (southern Vietnam). They grew there for tens of centuries, and only came to Europe at the beginning of the XNUMXth century.

Wild tangerine trees are no longer found. Only cultural varieties are known. There are more than 200 species, varieties and hybrids of the plant. They differ in various parameters: in taste, appearance and shape of the fruit.

What does a tangerine tree look like?

Mandarin is an evergreen tree belonging to the genus Citrus (family Rutaceae). In Latin, its name sounds like this: Citrus reticulata. The tree on which tangerines grow is called exactly the same as its fruit.

The culture is a low tree that reaches a height of only 4–5 m. Young layers are dark green in color, over time they become covered with bark. The leaves are small, oval or ovoid. The flowers are white, with elongated petals (five pieces on each inflorescence). The tangerine tree looks quite beautiful, especially during the fruiting period, which lasts 7–9 months. Harvesting ends by early December.

An adult tree produces 5-7 thousand fruits per season

Mandarin: is it a fruit, berry or vegetable

Along with the question of which tree tangerines grow on, it is not entirely clear what category they fall into. According to the scientific classification, the culture belongs to a category such as orange or hesperidium. This is a kind of berry – a juicy multi-seeded fruit. The peculiarity of the orange is that its pulp is divided into several bags of the same size (10–12 slices each). Seeds are formed only in some. There are also varieties in which they do not exist at all. Thus, mandarin is precisely a berry. Although from a household point of view, it is a fruit (sweet, juicy). That’s why it’s called like that.

The size of the fruit is small (compared to other citrus fruits). In diameter, they reach 4–6 cm, the average weight is 60–80 g, although there are also larger varieties (depending on the variety). The color is orange, yellow, greenish and even red-orange. The taste is pleasant, sweet, often sour. The aroma of zest is pronounced, citrus.

Mandarin: is it a tree or shrub

From a botanical point of view, the mandarin is precisely a tree. It reaches a height of 4–5 meters, after which it grows only due to lateral branches. Like a classic tree, the mandarin has a main trunk, skeletal branches, as well as shoots of the third, fourth and subsequent orders. For comparison: shrubs can have several trunks, and their height rarely exceeds three meters.

In which country do tangerines grow?

In nature, the tangerine tree grows in tropical and subtropical climate zones. These are India, the countries of Indochina, southern China. South Korea and Japan. The second region of cultivation is the Mediterranean, including Italy (especially Sicily), France, Greece, Spain, Algeria, Morocco, Egypt.

Also, tangerine trees are grown in the countries of the Black Sea coast and the Caucasus – these are Turkey, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Abkhazia. In America, these plants are also quite common, for example, in Florida (USA), Argentina and Brazil.

In Our Country, heat-loving tangerine trees are often grown in greenhouses.

Where do tangerines grow in Our Country

In Our Country, tangerines grow only on the territory of the Black Sea coast – this is the south of the Krasnodar Territory and the regions of the North Caucasus. Plantations here are small, so the main volumes are supplied from Turkey, China, Abkhazia, Morocco and other countries.

How and on what tangerines grow

Mandarin fruits grow on stalks – petioles on the shoot. They appear in groups of 5-6 pieces, in the same amount in which the flowers were formed.

How tangerines grow in nature

Under natural growing conditions (open ground), these plants prefer light, fertile and well-moistened soils. The place should be open and sunny, without stagnant moisture. All varieties are thermophilic and do not tolerate even short-term frosts. In countries with a hot climate (Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia) they can bear fruit all year round.

How does tangerine grow at home

At home, the plant is grown in heated greenhouses or in a room (in a large container, bucket). For planting, hybrid seeds are chosen, which are distinguished by good germination and grow much faster. It is quite simple to distinguish them from varietal varieties: varieties do not have seeds in the fruit, while hybrids always have them.

Seeds are selected of a normal type (not very thin), and you need to take at least 5 pieces. In March, they are planted in a pot with soddy soil, humus and sand (2: 1: 1). You don’t need to take peat, because it acidifies the soil, and mandarin loves a neutral reaction (pH from 6,5 to 7,0).

Initially, ordinary 200 ml cups with holes for moisture removal can be used as a container. Seeds are planted to a depth of 4 cm and watered. If you have time, you can first put them in a damp cloth and put in a warm place.

At home, it is quite possible to get a crop of tangerines

Seedlings are grown at room temperature (20-25 degrees). Under such conditions, the first shoots appear in the period from 15 to 30 days. As soon as four leaves appear, they are transplanted into a pot.

The root neck should not be buried – it should remain on the surface. Old plants can not be transplanted.

A culture may not bloom on its own. To stimulate this process, act as follows:

1. The base of the trunk is tightly wrapped with wire and the structure is left for six months. After that, the wound is treated with garden pitch. The method works only after the plant has branches not lower than the fourth order, and the plant itself has passed at least one winter.
2. Also, seedlings can be grafted by making a T-shaped incision on the trunk at a height of 7 cm (length 2,5 cm, width of the upper jumper 1 cm). The bark is folded over and the scion is inserted. Then they cover it with a bag, water it, create greenhouse conditions. The vaccine should take root in a month, if this does not happen, you will have to make another graft.

All tips of leaf blades are removed after 4–5 leaves. Also remove the shoots that grow inside the crown. The most important stage for formation is the first four years of life.

How long does a tangerine tree grow

This plant lives for a very long time – in warm countries, the age reaches 65-70 years. Moreover, during the period of maximum fruiting, the tree enters 30 years. Although at home, greenhouse conditions, the duration is much shorter, but the figure is still quite large – from 10 to 20 years. Even when grown indoors, you can harvest your own fruits.

When and how does the tangerine tree bloom

The flowering of the tangerine tree begins, depending on the variety, from 3-5 years. Flowers appear in May, they cover the entire crown. Inflorescences are painted in pure white. Petals oblong, collected in pairs or 4-6 pieces. The aroma is delicate, floral, not like the smell of citrus. It has delicate jasmine tones.

Tangerines (pictured) bloom very beautifully, almost all flowers form ovaries. Therefore, the yield of mature plants is very high.

The main flowering period of the tangerine tree is in May

Interesting facts about tangerines

Tangerines have been known for many centuries, but they appeared in Europe only 200 years ago. Despite this, quite a lot of interesting facts are known about them – here are some of them:

1. The word “mandarin” once denoted high-ranking Chinese officials (their clothes were bright orange). It means “Minister” in Portuguese.
2. In the USSR, the first tangerine trees began to be grown in Abkhazia.
3. The Krasnodar Territory and the Caucasus are the northernmost regions in the world where tangerine trees are grown.
4. The tradition of buying tangerines for the New Year exists not only in Our Country, but also in China. Here it is customary to give fruits to your relatives and friends. They are believed to bring wealth, prosperity and happiness.
5. In terms of sales (among citrus fruits), tangerines are second only to oranges.
6. Tangerine juice is not stored for a long time, and when boiled, it loses its beneficial properties. Therefore, it is almost impossible to find this drink on sale.
7. Different varieties of tangerines are crossed with lemon, grapefruit, orange and kumquat. Therefore, there are both sour fruits and very sweet ones.
8. One of the woodland ducks is named the mandarin because its feathers are bright orange. Only males can boast of an unusual color. Females are inconspicuous, they have a grayish plumage.

Conclusion

Tangerines are one of the most famous citrus fruits along with oranges and lemons. Plants live a very long time – up to 70 years. They bloom profusely and annually give a large harvest of up to 500–600 kg per tree.