Rules for breeding mandarin by cuttings at home

Mandarin is one of the most beautiful citrus trees. It usually takes less time from planting to fruiting than when growing a lemon. Even at home, the adult plant blooms profusely and is covered with many bright, round fruits.

The cultivation of a tangerine presents a number of difficulties. Seedless fruits are often sold in the store, so many growers propagate the plant in a vegetative way. In this case, the branches are difficult to root. About the intricacies of tangerine propagation by cuttings at home - further in the article.

Features of the reproduction of tangerines

Mandarin, like other citrus fruits, propagates by seed and vegetative means.

Citrus seeds are usually obtained from fruits that are bought in grocery stores. But the fruit of the seedless hybrids is often on the shelves. This makes it difficult to obtain planting material.

Most gardeners propagate tangerines vegetatively. Obtaining air layers is a laborious process that is possible only if there is an adult tree suitable for this procedure.

You can get a cutting from a plant that bears fruit. However, it is difficult to root a mandarin. Often, the formation of roots in a seedling does not occur, but experienced flower growers say that successful plantings also happen.

The most common tangerine breeding method is graft cutting to the stock of a lemon or orange. This is not a lemon tree with only one branch with orange fruits. In this case, the trunk of the mother plant is used, on which a tangerine cutting is grafted. A plant grafted in this way becomes a full-fledged tangerine.

Rooting the cutting

Despite the fact that the rooting of a mandarin, even with proper planting, has a low chance, many growers prefer to propagate the tree by this method. Subject to all the rules, there is little chance that this breeding method will be successful.

Note! Mandarin is rooted at a temperature of + 24 ... + 26 ° C.

Receiving planting material

To grow a tangerine from a branch, it is important to choose the right planting material. In stores, ready-made tangerine seedlings are not sold, but you can find cuttings for grafting on the shelves.

A suitable planting material has the following characteristics:

• dense, dark, elastic and not dry bark;
• length from 8 to 15 cm;
• the presence of 3 developed buds without peeling;
• absence of traces of diseases.

To get a cutting on your own, you will need an adult tree that has already borne fruit. It must be healthy and free from traces of disease.

Important! Before the procedure, the tool is disinfected with which the cutting will be cut: rubbed with alcohol or ignited on fire.

For cutting tangerine, choose a branch 1 year old. 8-15 cm recede from its top. There should be at least 3 live buds on this segment. The shoot is cut at an angle of 45 °. The place of the cut on the mother tree is treated with garden pitch.

Cutting preparation

Before you start grow a houseplant, the planting material is being prepared. This process includes the following steps:

1. On the cutting, all the lower leaves are cut off, leaving 2 to 4 on top. Small leaves are not touched, large ones are cut in half, and small ones - by a third.
2. A cut of a seedling is soaked for half an hour in a light pink solution of potassium permanganate.
3. Stimulates root formation by soaking the lower part of the branch in Kornevin solution.

If the cutting is not planted immediately after cutting, the cut is updated at the same angle.

Landing time and technology

It is recommended to root the seedling in the spring (in March or June), when the sap flow is active.

To plant a seedling, you need a soil mixture. To prepare it, mix 1 part of sand, leafy earth and humus with 2 parts of garden soil. The resulting mixture is disinfected in one of the following ways:

• watering with a dark pink solution of potassium permanganate;
• calcination for 30 minutes at a temperature of + 100 ° C;
• watering with a solution prepared from 1 tbsp. l. copper sulfate and 1 bucket of water;
• watering with boiling water.

For 5 kg of the resulting mixture, take 25 g of superphosphate, 0.5 tbsp. ash and 15 g of potash fertilizer. All ingredients are mixed.

To grow a tangerine tree from a twig at home, you will need drainage. It is disinfected in the same way as soil.

Plant the cutting in a cut bottle, plastic cup or special pot. There should be drain holes at the bottom of the container. The containers are disinfected by soaking in boiling water or in a dark pink solution of potassium permanganate.

How to plant a mandarin stalk:

1. A drainage layer is poured onto the bottom of the container. The rest of the volume is filled with earth. The soil is moistened with warm water.
2. The stalk is planted in the ground with a cut down. The depth should be such that the seedling can stand unsupported.
3. The soil is moistened abundantly with warm water. The seedling is covered with the cut-off top of the bottle if it is planted in the bottom of the bottle, or with a film or bag in other cases. This will create a humid tropical microclimate that is optimal for rooting.

Before rooting, the mandarin should be in such a greenhouse. During this time, the seedling is watered and sprayed with wet water daily. The film is removed every day for 15-30 minutes.

Swelling and expanding buds will indicate that the seedling has taken root. Mandarin is transplanted no earlier than a month after rooting.

When the mandarin takes root, the ventilation time is increased. After a while, the film is removed.

How to increase the chances of rooting

Will a tangerine sprig give roots? In most cases, the cutting does not take root, but dries up. We offer advice from gardeners who still have a mandarin seedling:

1. Hybrid mandarins root better than varietal ones.
2. To create a comfortable temperature, an electric heating pad is placed under the pot with the handle.
3. In order for the cuttings to root better, the mother tree is not watered before cutting the planting material. It is advisable to dry an adult tangerine for a few days. Cuttings cut from a watered plant tend to rot.

Grafting a cutting

The most successful way of vegetative propagation of a tangerine is by grafting a cuttings onto a lemon or orange stock. In this case, the chances that the planting material will take root are high.

It is best to graft tangerine on seed-grown lemon. Such a plant is characterized by increased endurance and resistance to negative environmental factors.

Note! Mandarin is slower to adapt to the stock than other citrus plants. This process takes up to 2 months.

Scion and rootstock preparation

An orange or lemon is used as a stock. The tree must be at least a year old. Plants that are too mature (over 2 years old) are not suitable for this procedure. They have a separate branch as a stock.

The stock is watered and feed 3 days before the procedure. 2 months before grafting, the plant is transplanted into a new pot with nutritious soil.

For the scion, they choose last year's branch on a tree that has already borne fruit.There should be no traces of disease or damage on it. The bark is firm but not dry.

5-8 cm recede from the top of the branch. 2-3 live branches should remain on this segment. The desired part is cut off at an angle of 45 °. The cut on the mother plant is smeared with garden pitch.

Tangerine is planted in March or April. During this period, active sap flow is observed, which increases the chances that the stalk will take root.

Vaccination procedure

It is easiest to graft the stalk into the cleft. This method is called copulation.

Step-by-step instructions for grafting a mandarin cuttings:

1. Rootstock (young lemon grown from seed) cut off by 1/3. Only the trunk should remain without leaves and buds. The cut is made at an angle of 45 °.
2. In the center of the stock, a cut is made from top to bottom (split) with a depth of 1.5-2 cm. The cut is made carefully, with a sharp knife, so that the stock does not crack.
3. All leaves are removed from the scion, buds are left. From the side of the cut, the cutting is grinded on both sides at an angle. You should get a thin wedge that matches the length of the split on the scion.
4. The scion wedge is inserted into the rootstock split to the maximum depth. The sides of the stock are widened with a thin blade to push the cutting deeper.
5. The junction of the scion with the stock is tightly wrapped with a special garden tape or electrical tape. There should be no open areas. It is important not to overtighten the trunk in order not to disrupt the sap flow.
6. The tree is watered and sprayed abundantly. Wet cotton wool is placed at the bottom of the pot, which is moistened as needed.
7. The grafted mandarin is covered with a bag and placed in a place protected from direct sunlight.

The fact that the cutting has taken root will be evidenced by the swelling of the buds and the appearance of shoot rudiments. After that, the film is removed, the tangerine is rearranged on the windowsill.

Basic rules of care

After the mandarin has taken root, it is important to provide it with proper care. Otherwise, the plant will be sick and will not survive the winter.

Temperature

After the tangerine takes root, the temperature in the room where it grows is maintained within + 16 ... + 20 ° С. When the tree blooms, the temperature is raised to + 25 ° C. In winter, choose a room with indicators of + 10 ... + 12 ° C.

Lighting

In the warm season, tangerines are placed on the east or west windowsill. In winter, it is recommended to rearrange the plant to the south window.

Humidity

Tangerine is sprayed daily with warm, settled water. In winter, if the plant is near a battery, a humidifier or a container of water is placed next to it.

Watering

In summer, tangerine is watered as the topsoil dries out (every day). In winter, one watering per week is sufficient. Use warm, settled water.

Top dressing

Tangerines are fed from spring to autumn twice a week. Mineral and organic dressings alternate. As fertilizers, use special mixtures for citrus fruits or folk remedies. Popular home dressings include tea and coffee, chicken manure diluted 1:10 with water, infusion of vegetable peelings, fish broth, ash infusion.

Bloom

In the first flowering, all inflorescences are removed. Otherwise, the plant will spend all its strength on them and die. Further, the buds are not plucked. This tree does not need artificial pollination.

Fruiting

In the first fruiting, 2-3 ovaries are left on the tree. The next year, tangerines are not picked.

Dust cleaning

Once a week, tangerine leaves are wiped with a damp cloth to remove dust. Every month the plant is washed under the shower with warm water.

Transfer

Before the first fruiting, the tangerine is transplanted once a year. It is transferred into a pot along with an earthen lump. Each new container should be 5 cm larger than the previous one. The free space is covered with soil (the same as for rooting the cutting). Add 1 part more garden soil to the soil mixture.

Plants that bear fruit are transplanted once every 2-3 years. When transplanting, the roots are cleared of the earth and old shoots are removed.

Formation

Formation is necessary in order for the tangerine to bear fruit and have a neat appearance. Also, this procedure reduces the risk of plant infection.

There are two types of pruning - formative and sanitary. Sanitation involves the annual removal of dry, broken and diseased branches.

Formation is carried out as follows:

1. When the plant reaches a height of 40-60 cm, pinch its top. This is necessary to form first-order branches and limit growth in height.
2. The branches of the first order are cut after 4-5 leaves. It is recommended to leave no more than 3-4 branches of the same order, directed in different directions.
3. Do the same with the branches of the 2nd, 3rd and 4th orders. This stimulates the growth of shoots of the next order.

The cut sites are covered with garden varnish to reduce the risk of plant diseases.

Reference. Mandarin fruits appear on the branches of the 4th and 5th order.

Conclusion

Rooting a mandarin stalk is rarely successful. The shoots of this plant rarely give roots. And even if the stalk does take root, there is no guarantee that it will survive the winter.

Tangerine cuttings at home are not recommended to be rooted, but to be grafted onto the stock of another citrus fruit grown from the seed. Despite the fact that the mandarin takes root to other trees slowly, the chances of successful reproduction in this case are greater.