The Tropical Fruit Forum

Fruits in November 2017:

Thank you for posting pictures of the "false Yuko".

It definitely looks like it has ichangensis in it, perhaps citron also (those ends are pretty pointy, but ichangensis can also have that to a lesser extent).

related past thread:
Sudachi cold hardiness
http://tropicalfruitforum.com/index.php?topic=30707.0

It seems like no body have heard of Harvey Lemon. There were also very limited info about this variety. Some one claimed that it is far more cold hardy than meyer lemon, but why and how??? Did the normal lemon tree mutate its own gene by chance to tolerate colder climate?

Harvey lemons look a little like Meyer lemons to me. They might have something else in their ancestry.

It is deffinitely not a trifoliate hybrid nor Ichangensis papeda hybrid.

I could throw out guesses, but it would just be uninformed speculation.
(white grapefruit, maybe one of the parents were Meyer lemon? maybe a hardy sour orange cross with citron? maybe the parent lemon had recessive hardy genes that did not get to express themselves until the F2 generation?)

I highly doubt it is anything so exotic as having trifoliate or ichangensis in its ancestry.

In the Olympia-Tacoma-Seattle area in WA state there are many anecdotal reports about Meyer lemon trees in containers up against a house being able to survive some Winters.
A typical Winter will get down to about 15F for just two nights, and it might be one or two degrees warmer in a specific area or near a house, so interrpret that however you will.
Protection from wind might be a factor as well.

Just to point out, many of these Japanese citruses are complex hybrids (but not intentional hybrids) between Kunenbo (a type of tangor-like fruit, basically almost mandarin with some pomelo in its ancestry, probably came from China), Kishu (very small but great quality mandarin, also probably came from China), Tachibana (a mandarin sub-species, only citrus native to the Japanese islands, not that good eating equality), and to a lesser extent Yuzu (also came from China, the Japanese named it after the Chinese word for pomelo, since it was sour).

Shikuwasa may have come from Taiwan or the Ryukyu islands, and appears to share close common ancestry with Tachibana but not directly descended from it. Shikuwasa also appears to have some distant ancestry from Yuzu.

Keraji originated from Shikuwasa that apparently got backcrossed three times over the years with Kunenbo. It's also very hardy, down to 8b, probably could survive 8a in certain conditions. Supposedly great flavor and easy to peel, but very small and seedy.

Kabosu is apparently a cross between Yuzu and Kunenbo.

I'd like to point out that many of these unique citruses are very regional and traditional, and their use in modern Japan had mostly died out, especially due to large-scale commodity imports of citrus from the United States, since the high cost of living makes commodity agriculture prohibitively expensive in Japan. Native-grown Japanese citrus is considered a more expensive delicacy in typical Japanese supermarkets. Probably much of the Japanese public has no idea what these citrus even are.
Yuzu though has seen a popular resurgence in Japan, with Yuzu extract being sold in markets, and Yuzu flavored alcohol commonly being available in establishments. Satsuma has been the most popular mandarin in Japan for a couple hundred years, the word mikan has almost become synonymous with the Satsuma variety in modern Japan, and most people will buy them in the supermarkets when in season. Sudachi and Kabosu are basically known as the two less common "forms" of Yuzu by the ordinary public in Japan, they are not as often seen but can usually be found for sale in the large fish markets.

Yuzu has its own unique flavor and fragrance. If you've never tasted it before, it really is unique from other citrus types. It's almost like a very fragrant - almost floral - sour orange (marmalade orange), but with a pungently deep spiciness, but also like lemon as well, mixed with perhaps some Satsuma mandarin and regular mandarin, and for the most discerning, perhaps the tiniest sweet top note of artificial grapefruit and guava.

None of the hardy citrus have leaves you are going to want to eat or taste...

Haha, probably very true.

However, C. ichangensis leaves are not bad, although they don't have very much flavor either.

The grocery  stores rarely sell lemon leaves

The only citrus leaves that I am aware of that are appropriate for culinary uses are citron and kaffir lime.

I am currently aiming for yuzu because I guess its leaves would taste and smell similar to lemon leaves.

It doesn't smell like lemon, but smells as good as lemon, just in its own unique way.
I like to compare it to a mix of fragrant sour orange, lemon, Satsuma mandarin, and maybe even a tiny hint of grapefruit all mixed together, but it's also uniquely deep and spicy in its own unique way.

Satsuma might be borderline for zone 8a in your climate in the South, and would benefit from just a tiny bit of protection, or an optimal spot where it doesn't get so cold, but it's definitely not going to survive in 7b.

You might also look into orangequat. That's just a tiny bit hardier than Satsuma.
(Petals from the Past nursery in Jemison, Alabama carries it, but it shouldn't be too hard to find in Georgia)

Also take a look at this thread for further information:
Orange tree in zone 8
http://tropicalfruitforum.com/index.php?topic=29551.0

Though be aware, where you live is colder than those places in Texas cited in the link. Even kumquat trees with light protection won't survive outside in Atlanta. Atlanta is definitely not the same zone 8a that Dallas is. And Smyrna, where you live, is just a bit slightly colder than Atlanta. I don't know if anything that tastes really good can survive where you are.

" Swingle and Reece (1967) noted that: […] hybrids that show astonishing similarity to the Yuzu have now been produced in this country between the Ichang papeda and the satsuma orange (a form of C. reticulata ). "

https://idtools.org/id/citrus/citrusid/factsheet.php?name=Yuzu

I read everywhere about this plant as a very common parent for a variety of citrus, but i never have seen it offered for sale or in a collection.

There's a good reason for that. It's supposed to be sweet but not the most flavor, in part due to lack of acidity.

The standard Chandler pomelo that's usually sold in the US is a hybrid of Siamese Sweet, and so is Oroblanco grapefruit.

Here's the citrumelo:


It's looking good, has put on a lot more leaf growth.


The Ten Degree was never able to leaf out. The tiny little green buds shriveled up, as if the plant just didn't have enough energy to grow them out. A bout of colder weather for a week probably didn't help either.
The plant still appears to be alive though, and the stems are green, though a lot of damage from the Winter is vissible on the trunk and stems.