I am taking out my citrus trees in Miami.

[SoFloGringo]

I had a minneola tangelo for 4 years in the ground which I bought in a 5 gallon pot from home depot. I watered it, fertilized it, sprayed it with neem oil and it showed multiple citrus problems. It flowered but never produced fruit.  I decided to take it out and replaced it with a Mamey tree.

I have another "dwarf" naval orange tree that I also purchased at home depot. It has been in the ground now for 5 years. It also is very high maintenance and not producing fruit well. I am planning on taking out the naval orange tree to make room for something that produces better.

I have a lakeland limequat in a pot which is producing well but showing signs of common citrus issues.

Does anyone have well producing tangelo or orange trees in Miami?

Should I take out the dwarf naval orange tree or keep trying?

[roblack]

They require substantial pesticide treatment to grow well and produce.

Need to dig up a Satsuma myself. Gets tore up by leaf miners and who knows what else. Has hardly grown after 2.5 years in ground, a few flowers, and no fruit. Leaves are scarce and do not look good.

Since I can get good citrus at the grocery anyway, want to grow something tasty and that's not readily available. 

[johnb51]

Citrus in South Florida just isn't worth the effort these days.

[Doug]

I discovered after two years with flowers but no fruit that my tangelo needed a pollinator. I planted a Temple orange, which was recommended as a good pollinator. The little Temple bloomed the first year, and I finally got some tangelos.

[palmcity]

They require substantial pesticide treatment to grow well and produce.

Need to dig up a Satsuma myself. Gets tore up by leaf miners and who knows what else. Has hardly grown after 2.5 years in ground,

Cookie has previously mentioned his success with some. I only have a few citrus trees left that I must fertilize frequently to keep them growing and try try try to outgrow the diseases/fungus/bugs/etc.

IMO if you should decide to try again,,, Do not not not get dwarf rootstock as it needs to outgrow the diseases etc..... you'll be lucky if it grows so don't get dwarf,,, it'll probably end up dwarf/dead anyway in a few years unless you frequent fertilize/insecticide/fungicide... Also systemic would help but I try to limit my consumption of those by avoiding use in my yard if I'm planning on eating it that year.

[Coach62]

Don’t give up. After years of frustration I seem to have finally found the answer to growing good citrus these days with all of the imported pests. Lowes is the best place to buy it they have it in stock and it is also the cheapest place to buy it. https://www.lowes.com/pd/BAYER-ADVANCED-32-fl-oz-Fruit-Citrus-and-Vegetable-Insect-Control/3170999?cm_mmc=SCE_PLA-_-LawnGarden-_-OutdoorPesticide-_-3170999:BAYER_ADVANCED&CAWELAID=&kpid=3170999&CAGPSPN=pla&store_code=613&k_clickID=cb6ffbc2-8cd3-4fb0-a90e-725d465d27ba&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI36Wf1cLR3QIVm0oNCh3ROgZDEAQYASABEgL5IPD_BwE

[Coach62]

You only have to apply it once a year. I would recommend doing it immediately after bloom. Reason is we don’t want honeybees to pick up any of the toxins. I can post some before and after pictures if you like. My growth from the spring before treatment is devastated. But after treatment all of my new growth looks excellent and I’m very encouraged.

[SoFloGringo]

Thanks for all your replies, everyone has helped me.
I will most likely take out the dwarf naval orange and replace it with either a soursop, white sapote or sopadilla variety which the tree grows small. It is a tight space close to my car port and fence. Can anyone recommend a sopadilla varierty which tastes good and I can keep relatively small?
Thanks.

[Coach62]

I have a Silus Woods (sp?) that stays pretty small.

[WGphil]

Key limes still do well

Lemons and limes are commercially planted now because they can outrun greening and give good crops early

Just bought a Bearss Lemon which is a true lemon created in Florida.

My seedling pineapple orange is having good crops again

[zands]

You only have to apply it once a year. I would recommend doing it immediately after bloom. Reason is we don’t want honeybees to pick up any of the toxins. I can post some before and after pictures if you like. My growth from the spring before treatment is devastated. But after treatment all of my new growth looks excellent and I’m very encouraged.

It would be great to see some photos....thanks.

[achetadomestica]

I started out with 12 citrus trees and am down to 6. I am considering removing 1-2
more also. Citrus gets it's sweetness from cool weather so most of the tangerines and
satsumas ripen before we have any cool weather. Most of the time my fruit is still green
when it ripens. The fruit is tangy but never sweet. I have a kishu that the fruit is barely turning
orange now, it is soft and already getting a little dry. It has 200+ little seedless fruit every year.
It's the same fruit that comes out of California and they call sweeties and are sweet and 100%
better. I am trying to grow a Temple and a Ortanique now, this is the first year the ortanique
has held fruit and there is only 2-3. Both the Temple and the Ortanique are suppose to ripen
around February or March. The temple has 6 fruit also so this year I can try them for the first time.
All the juice oranges ripen around February or later also.
As far as the pests the Bayer that Coach62 recommends has imidacloprid in a very small dosage.
I tried not to use it this year but the leaf minors were destroying the new growth. The imidacloprid
lasts for 90 days. A citrus tree can have 3-5 flushes a year. Usually the leaf minors psyllid is not active
the first Spring flush which coincides with the bees pollinating. I broke down an applied it last month and
my newest flush looks great! Now I can't wait until the torn up leaves shed out. I have found the Bayer to
be ineffective and too low of a dose. I use Macho or Nuprid when I apply. I live next to many orange groves
though.
I heard a new technique for fighting Citrus greening? Plant Asian Guava near the citrus. The psyllid that
carries the greening prefers guava and will lay it's eggs on the guava leaves and it doesn't effect the guava
tree? 
 

[Cookie Monster]

Miami soil is going to be tough on citrus. Most of it is marl, which is basically a high-ph clay. It lacks drainage, and it's essentially impossible to drop the pH. Horrible stuff to grow in, but makes a great base for footings, slabs, etc.

North of Miami-Dade generally has much better soil. With a good fertilization regimen and consistent treatment for insects, citrus is very viable.

I know a lot of the folks on this forum are afraid of systemics, but imidacloprid is a good option for keeping your citrus free of insect problems. All of the citrus trees for sale in the state of Florida are treated with imidacloprid (it's an ag regulation to prevent the spread of greening). That's why they look so nice for the first few months after you bring them home.

As far as I know, a high percentage of the conventionally grown produce is treated with imidacloprid. Moreover, it's the main ingredient in the more popular flea and tick products that we give our 4-legged pets. I don't think it's that big of a deal to use on your citrus trees, and it's certainly far less labor intensive.

[weiss613]

If you think it hurts to pull a Mineola try what I did.....I had to pull 200 citrus because of Greening in Kendall after having raised them for 14 years. I was the greatest citrus grower anywhere. I sprayed my trees every 2 weeks and yet all but 2 got the disease. Yes the Mineola needed a pollinator. Now I have 250 mango avocado and lychee. And 1 Temple that’s got Greening and this will be it’s last season then I’ll pull it out after 17 years. And 2 Yosemite Gold hybrids from California about 15 years old that are somehow still beautiful and green and healthy. If you saw my present trees you’d know how perfect I took care of my citrus. IN MY OPINION THE SALE OF CITRUS TREES TO THE PUBLIC SHOULD BE AGAINST THE LAW BECAUSE THEY ALL GET GREENING WITHIN 5 YEARS. SO WHY TRICK THE UNKNOWING PUBLIC INTO BUYING TREES THAT ARE DESTINED FOR A QUICK DEATH. THE ONLY WAY TO GROW CITRUS NOW IS UNDER NETTING.

[achetadomestica]

If you think it hurts to pull a Mineola try what I did.....I had to pull 200 citrus because of Greening in Kendall after having raised them for 14 years. I was the greatest citrus grower anywhere. I sprayed my trees every 2 weeks and yet all but 2 got the disease. Yes the Mineola needed a pollinator. Now I have 250 mango avocado and lychee. And 1 Temple that’s got Greening and this will be it’s last season then I’ll pull it out after 17 years. And 2 Yosemite Gold hybrids from California about 15 years old that are somehow still beautiful and green and healthy. If you saw my present trees you’d know how perfect I took care of my citrus. IN MY OPINION THE SALE OF CITRUS TREES TO THE PUBLIC SHOULD BE AGAINST THE LAW BECAUSE THEY ALL GET GREENING WITHIN 5 YEARS. SO WHY TRICK THE UNKNOWING PUBLIC INTO BUYING TREES THAT ARE DESTINED FOR A QUICK DEATH. THE ONLY WAY TO GROW CITRUS NOW IS UNDER NETTING.

In Florida 80% of the citrus or more has greening? Who's tricking anyone? The new regimen is to fertilize year round and
a expect a lighter crop. For private people you can get more then enough fruit for you and your family? If your temple is producing
why pull it? Fertilize the hell out of it and enjoy the fruit you get? You won't get 300 oranges from a mature tree but you should still
get 90.

[Cookie Monster]

+1

If you think it hurts to pull a Mineola try what I did.....I had to pull 200 citrus because of Greening in Kendall after having raised them for 14 years. I was the greatest citrus grower anywhere. I sprayed my trees every 2 weeks and yet all but 2 got the disease. Yes the Mineola needed a pollinator. Now I have 250 mango avocado and lychee. And 1 Temple that’s got Greening and this will be it’s last season then I’ll pull it out after 17 years. And 2 Yosemite Gold hybrids from California about 15 years old that are somehow still beautiful and green and healthy. If you saw my present trees you’d know how perfect I took care of my citrus. IN MY OPINION THE SALE OF CITRUS TREES TO THE PUBLIC SHOULD BE AGAINST THE LAW BECAUSE THEY ALL GET GREENING WITHIN 5 YEARS. SO WHY TRICK THE UNKNOWING PUBLIC INTO BUYING TREES THAT ARE DESTINED FOR A QUICK DEATH. THE ONLY WAY TO GROW CITRUS NOW IS UNDER NETTING.

In Florida 80% of the citrus or more has greening? Who's tricking anyone? The new regimen is to fertilize year round and
a expect a lighter crop. For private people you can get more then enough fruit for you and your family? If your temple is producing
why pull it? Fertilize the hell out of it and enjoy the fruit you get? You won't get 300 oranges from a mature tree but you should still
get 90.

[Coach62]

If you think it hurts to pull a Mineola try what I did.....I had to pull 200 citrus because of Greening in Kendall after having raised them for 14 years. I was the greatest citrus grower anywhere. I sprayed my trees every 2 weeks and yet all but 2 got the disease. Yes the Mineola needed a pollinator. Now I have 250 mango avocado and lychee. And 1 Temple that’s got Greening and this will be it’s last season then I’ll pull it out after 17 years. And 2 Yosemite Gold hybrids from California about 15 years old that are somehow still beautiful and green and healthy. If you saw my present trees you’d know how perfect I took care of my citrus. IN MY OPINION THE SALE OF CITRUS TREES TO THE PUBLIC SHOULD BE AGAINST THE LAW BECAUSE THEY ALL GET GREENING WITHIN 5 YEARS. SO WHY TRICK THE UNKNOWING PUBLIC INTO BUYING TREES THAT ARE DESTINED FOR A QUICK DEATH. THE ONLY WAY TO GROW CITRUS NOW IS UNDER NETTING.

Not true. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21061971

[Capt Ram]

What about nets or screens, how fine of a screen would work for protection, would commen window screen work?

[WGphil]

I have two seedling citrus,a key lime and a pineapple orange
 I cut the key lime back to knee high becuase I thought it was a goner due to greening

And left it for dead but it came back with new leaves and I just had a normal year crop

The orange is loaded this year as well as the Dancy tangerines

The citrus industry is running tests at the moment to see how much mandarin you can put in oj without changing the flavor

Becuase mandarins are easier to grow with all the problems citrus is having

[Ulfr]

I don’t know a lot about greening but do not all citrus get it? Mandarins less so?

[WGphil]

My info source for what’s new in citrus