Is dwarfing rootstock necessary?

[Vlad]

I am planning on getting some citrus cuttings and propagating them. I need to decide whether I should root them or graft them. They will be grown in containers. So, should I root or graft?

[poncirsguy]

I have never successfully rooted any citrus except poncirus hybrids  Graft them

[brian]

In containers you will likely be okay without dwarfing rootstock.  When I transplanted some container oranges and grapefruit into the ground they got huge quickly, though

[pagnr]

I am planning on getting some citrus cuttings and propagating them.

What Kind are you getting ? It could make a difference.

[citrange]

If you grow citrus in containers in a 'non-citrus' climate, the container size probably has a greater effect on plant-size than rootstock. Even so, with a short summer growing season, a vigorous rootstock may be better than a dwarfing one.
From the point of view of propagation, some varieties root much more readily than others. If you have enough cuttings, try both rooting and grafting!

[Vlad]

@poncirsguy I have successfully rooted a few (not trifoliate) but my success rate is very low. My success rate for (cleft) grafts is also very low.
@pagnr I have not yet decided what I want but it will probably be kumquats and/or mandarins.

[brian]

Kumquats and mandarins are both relatively compact growers compared to pummelos, oranges, lemons, grapefruit.  You should be fine.

[poncirsguy]

This is my Fukushu kumquat on Flying dragon at 2 year 2 months old from bud expansion.  The rootstock was 1.5 years old when grafted.
It is 54 inches tall from soil line and  3 foot diameter limb spread at its widest.

[pagnr]

Kumquats and Mandarins are probably the two I would keep on rootstocks. There are some Mandarins that are used as rootstocks themselves, but the seedlings I have grown from store bought Mandarin fruit are often some of the slower growers. Not sure how that would relate to cuttings of the same or similar Mandarin cultivars, but possibly similar at a guess. Mandarins are also a wide group of cultivars, and some ancestry types or hybrids, are much better growers than others.
Kumquats have more of a winter dormant stage than most other Citrus.
Rootstocks like Trifoliata can enhance that for extra  winter protection.
Rootstocks like Citrange can overcome that to some extent for better seasonal growth.