The Tropical Fruit Forum

Sorry for posting another potting mix thread....

I'm needing to make a change and am searching for alternatives. I have several trees in modified 5-1-1, but I need to do some up-potting and my source for the pine bark has turned to garbage.
I know I could use reptibark or Bonsai Jack but that becomes cost prohibitive for me in large quantities. I have all my trees on a drip system, so whatever I switch to will need to be comparable to 5-1-1 in terms of drainage so I don't run into issues. I have one tree in the 1:1 Turface MVP:MGGS and that seems to do well, but the resulting mix is HEAVY, and probably wouldn't be suitable to put in the ground later (which I hope to do once I get more property). I could do CHC, but I understand that tends to break down pretty quickly with how much watering I have to do here in Phoenix. So, besides pine bark, CHC, or Turface, are there really any other options?

I do have a distributor of EB Stone mixes. I've never used those but they look like good quality. I also have access to Sunshine Mix #4. I can get plenty of course (#3) perlite. Any ideas for a low-cost mix that might be comparable to 5-1-1, or negative experiences with EB Stone or Sunshine Mix #4?

Thanks in advance!

Will do, thank you!

I did a bunch of bud grafts in the early spring that are all doing really well. I have a few rootstock left over and would like to graft over more variety. I'm in Phoenix so it's hot right now, but just starting to come down. Our low to high temps are averaging upper 80s to low triple digits. We probably have a good 2-3 months left in the growing season before trees slow down for winter. Would it be okay to do a cleft graft now, or should I wait for spring?

I ordered DaisySL budwood from Arizona's budwood program. I don't know if they ship out of state like California does, but it couldn't hurt to ask. It was very affordable. The website is not super useful, but you can check it out here:
https://www.nationalcleanplantnetwork.org/copy-of-north-carolina-university
Dr. Glenn Wright has handled questions and ordering for me in the past. You can reach him at gwright@ag.arizona.edu

My local co-op doesn't say anything about citrus at all

Perks of living in a citrus state, I guess. Something to make up for the inability to order anything citrus related online.

Congratulations on a new, healthy tree! I've never ordered from them because I'm in a restricted state, but I've only heard good things about them. I wish I could replicate their potting mix. Last time I looked, it was over $70 just to ship. I can't justify that for all my trees.

Hi Travillion, here is a link I found that mentions folded leaves of the DaisySL Mandarin, with pictures of the foliage that show the leaves are somewhat folded. So, I wouldn't worry too much but it's a good idea that you moved it to a shady spot. Good luck!


https://citrusvariety.ucr.edu/crc4203

Wow, great find! I've actually read that page many times when I was deciding which mandarin variety to graft, but the appropriate sections didn't stand out to my inexperienced eyes. Thank you!

Curled up leaves usually stay that way no matter what you do. That's my experience on many fruits. But those trees still produce nice fruit and big yields. My persimmon always curls. Same for my Goldrush apple. Both produce every year and a big yield of full sized fruit.

Good to know, thank you! I'll look for other signs of recovery then, like trunk turgor and new growth, rather than leaves uncurling.

In March I grafted 5 varieties on to 10 sour orange seedlings. All of them succeeded, and most are going really well. My Rio Red grapefruit, navel orange, and valencia orange broke early and have taken off. My minneola tangelo and daisy seedless mandarins were the last to break and grow. As summer has started here in Phoenix, most of my young grafts are tolerating things okay, but my two daisy mandarin trees are really struggling. They are doing the taco curled leaves. At first I thought it must be a pest because they are getting watered daily and are in a fast draining mix. But the more time I've spent, the more I wonder if it's a watering issue. I pulled one of the mandarins out of its pot this morning. The mix is moist but was not soggy or clumpy. The roots looked good and their were several white tips, which I believe are new root growths. Are daisy mandarins just more heat sensitive than other varieties? Or perhaps since they broke last, they didn't harden off as well as their siblings? Or is this pest damage? The leaves aren't crispy and aren't falling off. Temps are hitting 100F daily and they are in morning sun and afternoon shade.
I'll post pics as soon as I can figure out how.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/9UkGmmqrqyjBUsvU6
https://photos.app.goo.gl/TGuNuNGhyetgwxDn6
https://photos.app.goo.gl/CcyTrj3oBm2ZBUnD8

I don't have much experience with notching. However, I tried it after watching some videos. My tree branched out just about everywhere except where I notched. So.... I don't put too much stock in notching.

My preliminary searches indicate probably no, but curious if it is possible ship cuttings from non-HLB states to California, or if the only honest legal way is through the CCPP. CCPP is sort of expensive and as a beginner with not a large budget I'm trying to figure out alternative methods of getting scion wood. Also as a beginner at grafting, I've failed quite a bit on citrus so need a little support from having extra.

I just ordered budwood through Arizona's certified program. It was much cheaper for me than CCPP, but I don't know CCPP's in-state cost. Arizona's program was $1/bud and no minimum bud requirement. They were generous with their bud count, too. I don't know if AZ ships out to CA (or other states, for that matter). Dr. Glenn Wright heads up the program in AZ. His contact info is gwright@ag.arizona.edu

Bergamot is the scent in Earl Grey Tea. Sour Orange, Citrus aurantium has quite strong scented leaves.
The fruit and seeds are fairly distinct, ( also the juice flavour ) if you look at the pics in the UC Riverside link.
https://citrusvariety.ucr.edu/citrus-varieties/category-or-type/sour-oranges
Overall your pics look like sour orange, but I would put all the info together.
There might be a few types and hybrids used as rootstock.

Thanks for the info! I'm pretty sure the parent tree was a type of sour orange. They are definitely ornamental (vs. edible) and are not trifoliate. I can't think of what else it would have been. I guess what worries me is when I hear that sour orange seeds are polyembryonic and produce multiple sprouts per seed. And that was not my experience at all. Perhaps I did not get true-to-type seedlings and my goal to have sour orange rootstock was thwarted.