Saturday, July 8, 2017

Oranges & oranges

Our two orange trees have been in the ground, since July 2008. So they're 9 years old. Would you believe, it's taken that long to get a decent harvest?


 Citrus tree, horde - 2008


Of course, I planted those trees, before I stumbled upon permaculture. So they were planted in isolation, from most other living things. A companion tree for each, came later, and once the nearby passionfruit vine took over, it helped cool the temperatures a little more. Happy accidents, but I wouldn't treat a fruit tree now, like how those oranges began.


Leng Navel tree - last year


What I believe made a difference this year, was how I mulched the trees. It's an above ground, hugelkultur method, where a lot of woody material, and some finner ones, are placed underneath. I did it last winter (2016) so it's had a full season to breed mycelium - or the keys for tree roots, unlocking nutrients quicker.

You can see the mulching process here, with the Navel Orange, and then, with the Leng Navel. Simply, I threw a lot of different organic matter, under the trees, like a forest. The woody material, specifically plays host to a plethora of fungi, which benefits surface roots, like the citrus have. In just one year, I got a bumper crop of citrus.


Washington Navel tree - today


So much so, a lot of fruit are falling to the ground. We're eating them of course, and I even picked a bag to give our new neighbours, next door. They were the sweet Washington Navel's, which are simply divine! There can be no better tasting orange than this sweet Navel. It's supreme in my book.


Inside Washington Navel orange


The Leng Navel, was a little more tart. Maybe why it's recommended, more as a juicing orange. It's definitely got juice! Boy, do they have juice. But not as sweet as the Washington Navel. I've been eating a lot of oranges lately, and everyone in the family agrees, they were definitely worth the wait.

If you have any kind of fruit bearing tree, I would recommend this mulching strategy. The payoff for us, happened in just one year.

Are you eating any home grown fruit, this time of year?


14 comments:

  1. The oranges look delicious, Chris. Our mandarin didn't bear fruit for 7years! It's a healthy looking tree and when the fruit did come, they were lovely and juicy and sweet. I have lavender growing under part of the mandarin and I'm trying brazilian spinach there too now (read about that on Morag Gamble's blog). Meg:)

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    1. Edible ground-cover, sounds great. Do you plan to chop and drop it, to feed the tree as well?

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  2. All I'm eating at the moment are mandarins from a variety called Japanese Seedless. The Washington Navel and the Valencia haven't set much fruit this year, I don't know why as they flowered well enough. I've been layering woody and other material around all my fruit trees like you do. Maybe the benefits are yet to show up.

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    1. I noticed you had a pretty wet, warm season, this year. So the bees probably weren't able to get out to pollinate the flowers. I've had that happen to me in previous years too. Also, you need that heat of the growing season, to trigger the mycelium growth. If I'm remembering correctly, once the rains arrived, you had quite a cool summer. Successive cloudy days, doesn't allow the sunlight to warm the soil.

      So maybe if the conditions change next growing season, the mycelium will kick into overdrive? I notice my garden dawdles between drinks, and when the soil isn't warm enough too. Enjoy your mandarins. :)

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  3. We have heaps of mandarins as usual but this year the old Joppa orange tree has been very bountiful for some reason. I should try that mulching method too, Chris. Thanks for the tip.

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    1. You always have such a variety of fruit trees, I love hearing about them. Joppa is an old variety, originating from Israel. So I imagine, perfect for Mediterranean (like) climates as mine can be. Enjoy your mandarins.

      My mandarins bore fruit this year too, but they were tiny. I haven't given them the same treatment as the orange trees. Which will change very soon. :)

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  4. This looks just what I need to do Chris. You even managed to get those sticks under the Leng Navel to look very artistic. All the citrus that I've planted have really struggled, and only in the past couple of years I put large flat rocks on top of the mulch under a couple of the trees, improved them enormously. I'm going to use your method this week on the other citrus trees, just as soon as B is out of the way, back to work and can't argue that it looks untidy. By the time I've finished he will have to see the art involved! ;)

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    1. I've always thought our native trees, were rather artistic looking. Even under an orange tree. ;)

      It's funny you should mention rocks, as I've had good experience with them under citrus trees too. I have a post meant for the end of this month (planned, for a special occasion) which shares some of that experience. It's all about regulating the temps of the roots, as citrus don't like to have their fine surface roots, dry out. It's never dry under a rock though.

      Enjoy your day of relaxation, breaking up branches and twigs. I personally, love it.

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  5. We haven't planted any fruit trees yet, so I'll keep this on mind. You come up with so many clever ideas! Thanks for sharing them :)

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    1. I take my inspiration from nature. ;)

      I look forward to seeing your new property develop. It's hard to start all over again, but at least you have more experience under your belt. So it will grow much quicker. It will be interesting to learn if the climate is different from your 8 acres.

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  6. Thats so amazing! I actually remember first meeting you around the time you planted these so its nice to see such a bonanza of a crop for you! Are you going to make marmelade?

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    1. Sorry for the long time in replying. I was seriously contemplating your question. Because I normally make a kumquat marmalade, if we have enough fruit, so didn't consider the orange.

      I've looked up a recipe and know it's doable. The question remains, will we actually eat it? I've still got a couple of jars of berry jam from last year, which I can't see us getting through. We just don't eat as much toast as we used to. But I'm sure marmalade must store an awfully long time.

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    2. Chris, sorry...I replied to this too but it disappeared. I was saying that marmelade stores a long time if you water bath can it. When I was well, I'd make a years worth of a variety of jams. Nowadays, eeking out a batch here and there is lucky. We gift it when we have alot on hand and everybody else eats it daily if they can. I don't eat it much anymore because of my low sugar diet. It comes down to how much energy you want to invest in making something you really don't use alot.

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    3. I was contemplating gift giving, and know a few older folks who still like marmalade on toast, for breakfast. ;)

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