What do oranges grow on? Do oranges come from trees? These problems are so common that no one can ignore them when learning how to grow citrus plants, especially oranges.
My blog will help you get the right answer and all the necessary information if you plan to grow orange tree fruit.
The fruit production of any type of orange also requires you to know various things; therefore, you should take useful advice to increase crop efficiency. Let’s check more differences in the content below.
What Do Oranges Grow On?
Sweet oranges or blood oranges usually grow on healthy trees without experiencing serious negative damage from the external environment.
They can increase from four to twenty-five feet, depending on how to grow an orange tree and weather impact.
For example, when you live in Florida, you must find a detailed guide about how to take care of orange varieties in Florida.
This will surely offer proper care for your oranges, producing high harvesting efficiency.
Most types of oranges have white flowers with a sweet fragrance. You can see the full-blossoming phenomenon in the spring, bringing impressive scenery to your garden.
The abundant crop of popular varieties of oranges lasts from fall to summer, providing people with many good products, such as citrus fruits or oils.
Oranges benefit your health because they can provide a good source of nutrition ranging from fiber to protein.
If you enjoy frozen orange juice or a mixture of juice, you almost get a similar amount of food as when you eat fresh oranges.
How Big Do Orange Trees Grow?
Most orange trees can grow on average about 25 to 30 feet tall; however, these values also depend on the temperature variation, how to take care of, and distinctive types of oranges.
Therefore, if you have good solutions to prevent the attacks of orange tree diseases, your trees can reach the best feet tall and attain healthy growth.
When to tell about growth levels: how big do orange trees grow? Below are three main mature sizes of orange trees that you should consider when producing oranges.
- The standard height is between 18 and 25 feet tall.
- The semi-dwarf height is between 12 and 18 feet tall.
- The dwarf height is between 4 and 8 feet tall (preferred to grow in the containers under the colder climate).
Most citrus species need from 10 to 15 years to reach the fully matured shape. Therefore, you must be patient while caring for them, especially potted orange trees.
This can be explained by the requirements to grow oranges in pots are stricter than normal approaches, like well-draining soil, proper sunlight exposure, and mild temperatures.
You will have opportunities to witness the giant development of your orange, like other plants growing on the vines, and have a wonderful harvest.
Which Necessary Conditions Of Growing Oranges?
When you want to know how to grow orange, you must get enough information about growth conditions, including air temperatures, direct sunlight, water resources, and the proper type of soil.
In particular:
Temperature
Oranges prefer warm climates and develop strongly under the consistent temperature between 12.8°C to 37.8°C to bring delicious fruits to users.
You can find the best orange color if all the development time is under this condition.
Some orange citrus trees also adopt the moderate temperature range, ranging from 1.7°C to 10°C. At that time, you need better orange tree care to provide enough nutrition in a mild winter.
When the temperature during winter is under -1.1 °C, your orange will freeze, leading to serious damage to crops.
If kept in this situation for several days, these evergreen leaves will change into other colors, indicating the risk of dead orange trees.
You can prefer to grow the orange tree from seed when living in Florida, Brazil, California, and Spain.
Sun and Rain
Another striking feature about growing oranges is keeping them under the proper impacts of sun and rain. The ideal amount of sunlight is at least eight to twelve hours.
Without enough sunlight, the orange plants tend to be under poor quality development, such as poor growth of oranges and the susceptibility to scale insects on orange citrus trees.
Oranges also need enough water to produce flavorful and juicy fruits. Most water from rainfall or watering systems should be provided during the growing season, from spring to fall.
About 90 percent of the annual water requirement can satisfy the standard conditions during this period. Natural rainfall would be preferred in areas with dry and sunny weather.
Irrigation Amounts
When the weather is hot and dry, orange trees need more water to prevent wilting and stress. A mature orange plant with a large size of 6 meters in diameter can consume up to 227 liters of water daily.
This amount of water should be delivered slowly to the tree’s roots using a drip irrigation system.
The watering frequency may vary depending on the soil type and drainage, but generally, once a week or every 10 days is sufficient.
When the weather is cooler, oranges need less water to avoid root rot and unexpected diseases. With the same size above, the tree may only require 28 to 41.5 liters of water per day.
You should put your trees under slight sunlight, not too much, to ensure that the trees can become dehydrated.
Soil
There are some standards about soil to grow orange trees that you should take care of, including:
- Have good drainage, ensuring to prevent waterlogging and root rot.
- Adopt a slight acidity, ensuring the pH ranges from 6.5 to 7.0.
- Have a deep root system, allowing the trees to get enough minerals and water effectively.
How To Grow Orange Correctly
To have a good harvest when planting oranges, you must follow the right steps on how to grow orange tree. Our guide will help you to have a direction about this problem.
The Drainage Test
You can get this step with another name, “the soil drainage examination.” It helps you test the soil’s ability to allow water to move through it and prevent waterlogging. Here is how you can do it:
- Step 1: Dig a hole at least 12 inches deep to observe the water movement in the soil.
- Step 2: Fill the hole with a certain amount of water and let it drain completely.
- Step 3: Refill the hole with water and keep your monitoring for 24 hours. If the spot is empty or gets some inches of water, the soil adopts the standard to grow oranges. By contrast, it is not ideal for citrus trees to develop.
Essential Steps
There are six main steps to grow oranges from seed; you can take note of all below:
- Step 1: Choose a favorite type of orange and collect seeds to soak all in the warm water overnight. One trick to detect the type of citrus fruit here is monitoring its leaves or shape.
- Step 2: Have a drainage test above to test the quality of the soil
- Step 3: Put seeds into pots and cover them with proper soil. Remember to put the pots in sunlight and wait for the seed to sprout.
- Step 4: Once the seeds emerge, continue fertilizing and water them with a balance.
- Step 5: Monitor the oranges’ growth and collect them in the harvest.
FAQs
When Should You Grow Orange?
The best time to grow orange trees depends on the climate and variety.
However, orange plants prefer to be planted in spring or summer, and you can grow them all year round if you live in California or Hawaii.
How Should You Grow Orange Trees Outdoors?
You should focus on providing sunny pots, well-draining soil, regular watering, and citrus fertilizer. Also, remember to protect them from the risks of frost and pests.
What Are Orange Trees Used For?
You can use orange trees for different purposes, such as food, medicine, honey, and perfume.
All parts of the orange plants can become useful products in your life, including fruits, juices, leaves, flowers, and wood.
Conclusion
After having a deep understanding of the problem: what do oranges grow on, you should update enough knowledge about their growth conditions such as moderate temperature, a minimum of eight sunlight hours, and healthy soil.
This can help you have a colorful harvest with your orange trees and improve your living standards!
