Citrus > Cold Hardy Citrus

Experience with Ichangponsuma

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Mirage:
Hi everyone,

I was originally planning to plant two Satsumas (one early-ripening and one mid-to-late variety) in my garden, but then I came across a variety called Ichangponsuma — a cross between Citrus ichangensis and (Poncirus trifoliata × Citrus unshiu).

According to the seller, the fruits are “easy to peel, contain few seeds, and have a pleasantly mild, tart flavor with a slightly wild, refreshing undertone.” However, there seems to be very little information available about this hybrid (possibly also known as “Japan Hybrid” or “I×PS”) beyond the description on the Lubera website.

Has anyone here grown this variety or a similar cross? I’d be very interested to hear about your experiences.

Full information from the seller:

--- Quote ---Advantages

Hardy (-15 °C)

Aromatic fruit with a slightly bitter sharpness.

Blooms in spring with white, fragrant flowers.

Beautiful citrus tree with high ornamental value

Profile Switrus® Satsuma mandarin 'Ichangponsuma'

Hybrid formula: Citrus Ichangensis x (Poncirus trifoliata x Citrus unshiu)

Flowers: white, fragrant

Fruit appearance: similar to a mandarin, slightly flattened.

Taste: mildly sour, slightly bitter.

Fruit peel: thin, easy to peel, bitter

Ripening period: October to January

Growth: upright growth, very attractive medium-sized tree, up to 4 m tall.

Leaves: single-lobed, shed in heavy frost.

Thorns: 2 cm long thorns

Winter hardiness: -15 °C

Origin: Unknown.

Description

The ‘Ichangponsuma’ satsuma mandarin is an exceptionally frost-hardy citrus variety with a genetic mix of Ichang papeda (Citrus ichangensis), trifoliate orange (Poncirus trifoliata), and Citrus unshiu (satsuma mandarin). It combines the fruit quality of mild satsuma mandarins with the winter hardiness of Ichang papeda and trifoliate orange.

How does the satsuma mandarin ‘Ichangponsuma’ grow?

The satsuma mandarin ‘Ichangponsuma’ is a robust and productive citrus tree that can grow to a height of 3 to 4 meters under ideal conditions. The branches have a few thorns about 2 cm long. The leaves are light green, smooth, and bilobed. The flowers are white and have a very pleasant fragrance. They appear in spring from March to April.

This citrus plant is a perfect ornamental plant, medium-growing, and beautiful to look at.  Appearance and taste of the fruit of the ‘Ichangponsuma’ satsuma mandarin. The fruit is reminiscent of classic satsumas in shape and color: round to slightly flattened, orange with a thin skin. They are easy to peel, contain few seeds, and have a pleasantly mild, tart aroma – with a slightly wild, refreshing undertone.

How hardy is the ‘Ichangponsuma’ satsuma mandarin citrus plant?

Depending on the location and conditions, the ‘Ichangponsuma’ satsuma mandarin can withstand temperatures down to -15 °C. However, adequate winter protection should be provided even at temperatures of -8 °C. Incidentally, potted plants are much more sensitive to frost and should definitely be brought indoors during severe frosts and kept frost-free and in a bright place during the winter.

 
--- End quote ---

mikkel:
This description of Lubera has simply been copied from elsewhere. Lubera does not grow anything itself, but only sells goods from other nurseries, mainly Tintori, but recently also varieties of Eisenhut (although it is unclear where they get these plants from).
In any case, the name Ichangponsuma is a creation by Lubera....

I x P x S can be found at
Eisenhut
https://www.eisenhut.ch/en/product/18773
Tintori:
https://www.oscartintori.it/en/prodotto/c-ichangensis-x-poncirus-x-satzuma/
Lari
https://www.floricolturalari.com/prodotto/ichangensis-x-poncirus-x-satsuma-citrus-ichangensis-x-poncirus-trifoliata-x-citrus-unshiu/?v=5f02f0889301

There are some promising reports about IxPxS, so I think you simply have to give it a try.

Florian:
Always be wary of Lubera's plant descriptions. They promise a lot and then let people find out if it is true.

That said, I have Eisenhut's ichangensis x Poncirus x Satsuma (Nr. 416) and it is currently holding on to its very first few fruits. Since planting it out in 2022, we have not seen anything below -10 C and it has not been impressed by those kind of temperatures.

usirius:

--- Quote from: mikkel on November 11, 2025, 12:41:21 PM ---This description of Lubera has simply been copied from elsewhere. Lubera does not grow anything itself, but only sells goods from other nurseries, mainly Tintori, but recently also varieties of Eisenhut (although it is unclear where they get these plants from).
In any case, the name Ichangponsuma is a creation by Lubera....

I x P x S can be found at
Eisenhut
https://www.eisenhut.ch/en/product/18773
Tintori:
https://www.oscartintori.it/en/prodotto/c-ichangensis-x-poncirus-x-satzuma/
Lari
https://www.floricolturalari.com/prodotto/ichangensis-x-poncirus-x-satsuma-citrus-ichangensis-x-poncirus-trifoliata-x-citrus-unshiu/?v=5f02f0889301

There are some promising reports about IxPxS, so I think you simply have to give it a try.

--- End quote ---

That is not correct. Because Lubera wrote the following to me in response to my inquiry:

"We propagate and cultivate our citrus plants ourselves.

A bit more in detail: In our production and breeding center in Switzerland, there is a dedicated citrus department. We grow Poncirus trifoliata as rootstock and graft using chip budding. We then cultivate the grafted young plants in our Swiss nursery as well as in our German nursery in northern Germany until they are ready for sale."

mikkel:
I’ve heard and seen otherwise. The plants, especially in the northern german stock, still had Tintori labels on them. Those Tahizu from Tintori were then resold there as Yuzu.
It may be that Lubera is building up its own propagation, but that is currently not yet the case everywhere. Be that as it may, reselling is not a bad thing – it’s actually quite common. It only gets annoying when plants are sold under the wrong name, but that does happen.

My point is that Lubera has no first-hand experience with winter hardiness, cultivation and so on; they’ve simply copied this information.

And in my quick Google search I couldn’t find any minimum temperatures of -15 °C for IxPxS as stated by Lubera. It’s possible that someone reported this once, but without knowing the exact circumstances it’s quite bold to adopt such (maximum) figures when the general reports tend towards lower frost hardiness (in the sense of warmer degrees) . But Lubera is not alone in this either – Quissac is also at the very top when it comes to minimum temperature claims…

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