Author Topic: Sour Orange seeds  (Read 1497 times)

JJROSS54

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Sour Orange seeds
« on: March 02, 2017, 09:51:22 PM »
I recently picked some sour oranges for the seeds from an old tree that had not been taken care of very well, when I opened up the fruit to harvest the seeds most of them were shriveled with hardly any size to the embryo but I did find a few that were normal size.
My question are the smaller seeds viable ?  I am trying to start a few to see but I don't think they will grow. Just wondering what your experience has been.
I suspect the poor care of the tree contributed to the poor seed development.

Millet

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Re: Sour Orange seeds
« Reply #1 on: March 03, 2017, 11:07:59 AM »
I had the exact same experience as you describe in the above post with Sour orange seed. On July 14,2006 (I still remember the date)  I received several Saint Dominic Sour Orange seeds from Sister Mary Catherine, a Dominican nun from the Monastery Of Our Lady Of The Rosary in Summit, NJ.   These seeds originally came from the famous St. Dominic Sour Orange tree growing in Rome, Italy,  which was planted from a seed by Saint Dominic in the year 1200. You can read about this tree, which is still alive today, in the book "The Citrus Industry" printed by the University of California Riverside (UCR) Volume One, of a 6 volume set. The actual tree that my seeds came from is growing in New Jersey (a rooted cutting of the Rome tree).  When I opened the letter from Sister Mary Catherine, I found three very desiccated, shriveled,and dry looking seeds that seemed to have no embryo.  Needless to say, I was discouraged that they would never germinate.   Still they were the only seed I had to work with.  I planted them and low and behold they came up. In 2015 the tree produced its first couple fruit, and in 2016 it set a good crop.  Presently the tree is in full bloom.  It took 9 years from seed to fruit.  Today the tree is 7 feet tall and providing me with me plenty fruit. 
« Last Edit: March 03, 2017, 07:53:03 PM by Millet »

JJROSS54

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Re: Sour Orange seeds
« Reply #2 on: March 03, 2017, 06:55:49 PM »
Thanks Millet
I did get enough of the larger seeds to meet my needs this year but I do have a few of the small ones in a seed starter to see if they work.
Its good to hear you had some success with yours, I'll keep my fingers crossed.
Thanks

Citradia

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Re: Sour Orange seeds
« Reply #3 on: March 03, 2017, 08:03:28 PM »
Millet, is your tree in a pot? 7 ft tall in 9 years sounds like dwarfed in pot, but must have still reached required node count to bloom. Very interesting.

Millet

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Re: Sour Orange seeds
« Reply #4 on: March 03, 2017, 08:55:56 PM »
Citradia. the answer to your question is yes, and no.  The tree was planted in a 15 gallon RootMaker air root pruning container, with a plastic 55-gallon lid as its bottom.   I drilled a dozen holes in the plastic bottom for drainage.  Over the years the tree's root system passed through the holes in its bottom and has grown into the ground.  Therefore, is is both partially inside a container and in the soil.  By the way, did you go to last years Citrus Expo?  If so, was it well attended, and how high would you rate the program?

Citradia

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Re: Sour Orange seeds
« Reply #5 on: March 04, 2017, 09:48:33 PM »
Millet, I did not go to expo last year as it was in GA where I could not bring any citrus home to NC dt GA quarantine rules. I went to the one the year before in SC near Charleston, and actually showed some of my fruit, but felt like l didn't learn to much new info from the speakers. Most of the conversation there was about quarantine rules for the coastal SC counties. I asked a question of one of the UF speakers about the Native American toothache tree which is in the rue family and ranges from FL to Canada, but they couldn't tell me if toothache tree cold be a vector for spreading greening to the northern climes where some of us are experimenting with cold hardy citrus.