I'm looking for a dwarf citrus that I had many years ago which had very fragrent flowers and 1 - 1.5 inch oblong fruit that you could eat skin and all. I thought it was called a cumquat (not loquat). Anyone have an idea what this plant was and where I might locate it? Nurseries outside of TX can't ship citrus or citrus relatives here so that makes it harder to find this plant. I'm open to suggestions for other citrus varieties as long as they are dwarf or can be maintained that way. Thanks.
Looking for dwarf citrus
Well, I just did a little more web searching and found the spelling is 'kumquat' for the plant I'm looking for (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kumquat). Now to search DG and elsewhere to locate one. Unfortunately, only one nursery in TX that I've found so far offers the nagami variety I'm looking for, but they are out of stock. Bummer.
This message was edited Dec 6, 2009 9:51 AM
Yes, Kumquat is correct. I had seen them earlier in the year at Lowes, Home Depot and some of the Ace garden centers. I liked eating them but when it came to buying one, I picked a Miho satsuma instead. I might still get a Kumquat too.
I think this being the time of year the fruit is ready, you probably won't find one in stock.
Dwarf citrus are difficult to find here in Texas. The only grower/nursery I know of is Acorn Springs Farms, located north of Kilgore. Their mail order plants are small compared to the price, but they are healthy. I've bought several trees from them. They do sell Nagami. If you might be able to find larger trees if you could go to their nursery to pick one up.
I know there is at least another dwarf citrus grower, but I don't have any idea where they are located. I bought a dwarf Meiwa last year from Caldwell Nursery in Rosenberg. They don't purchase their dwarf trees from Acorn Springs Farms.
http://www.acornsprings.com/index.php?mod=category&id_ctg=106
Dwarf citrus are easier to keep in a pot.
I'll check Lowe's and Home Depot. Maybe since kumquat fruits this time of year, they may have some in stock for Christmas gifts. I did find the Acorn Springs website and they were out of stock. I emailed them requesting they notify me when they would have more available. I'll just wait and keep watching.
You will be able to get one if you are around Houston. Try JRN or Enchanted Gardens.
I agree with everyone else about Home Depot and Lowes. I saw Kumquats popping up in multiple locations this year. The prices are high compared to Satsumas but that is because they are not established in the Texas Citrus growers yet. It also seems that many of them are carrying the Meiwa instead of Nagami since it is sweet on sweet instead of sweet on sour.
I ended up getting some Mandarinquats the other day from the grocery store. It is a satsuma/kumquat mix. Similar in taste to Nagami but much larger.
I had to go to a nursery in north Houston to get my Meiwa Kumquat 3 years ago. It's been in-ground for two full summers now and doing very well. But I never could find a nursery that sold them in north Texas.
Carla
We just made a flying trip to a building center in a larger town. I always go thru the garden center which was sad after the hard freeze but they had a large selection of citrus. They had two types of Kumquat ~ Nagami and Meiwa if I recall. The price was $ 24.99. Not sure if either would be considered dwarf.
The citrus growers listed on these trees were Thompson Nursery in Weslaco, TX and Joe Smith Farms in Jacksonville, TX.
I've spoken to someone at Thompsom Nursery. All their citrus trees are standards. I don't know anything Joe Smith Farms other than what I found on the Internet. Here's thei contact information:
http://joesmithfarms.com/preview_005.htm
Thanks. Good leads to follow up on. Is there a difference in seed size between the nagami and meiwa? I wasn't aware that the meiwa had a sweet rind and sweet insides, so now I'm interested in both varieties. Also sounds like these aren't true dwarfs, so I may get both and just keep them carefully pruned to a small size.
Caldwell Nursery does sell both varieties in the grafted dwarf versions, but doesn't always have them in stock. Also they are not mail order, but if you are ever down in Houston, Rosenberg is not that far away. Early in the years would be your best bet to getting some.
There is an advantage to trying to locate or to wait for the dwarf varieties. When we lived in San Jose, CA, I had both varieties in 30" pots and currently have a Meiwa that I purchased from Caldwell. Kumquats are slower growing than regular citrus, but are still capable of getting rather large. They still need to be re-potted or potted up to a larger pot every few years. If you have ever handled and re-potted a citrus tree, it's not fun. Those thorns can really tear you up so the longer you can leave them in the same potting soil and pot, the more you will enjoy having them. Dwarf citrus can be kept in a large pot for up to 5 years whereas, standard citrus need re-potting more frequently since their root size is also larger and can quickly outgrow their pot. Another thing to remember is that the more you have to prune to keep the tree down to size, the less fruit you will have. Since they slow growers, it is worth the extra expense to get the largest size you can afford or get in your vehicle.