Inside My Citrus Greenhouse
I am so happy I can grow lots of juicy, nutrient-rich citrus fruits right here at my Bedford, New York farm.
Citrus fruits come in various colors, flavors, shapes, and sizes. Among the most recognizable are oranges and lemons. Less known, the smallest member of the citrus family is the kumquat. I love them all and I find it so satisfying to walk into my greenhouse and see them thriving. During this time of year, all my potted citrus trees are kept in one of my hoop houses at the farm. It is actually quite easy to grow citrus indoors as long as it can be kept in a sunny windowsill or in a bright corner of a room.
Here are some photos.
-
- This year, my designated citrus hoop house is located between my large Equipment Barn and my vegetable greenhouse. My gardeners check the citrus house every day to look at the plants, water them if needed, and pick any delicious, juicy fruits when they’re ready.
-
- Here is a view from the side of the hoop house. It is built in a Gothic style with tall ceilings in the center to accommodate the larger specimens. The entire structure is built using heavy gauge American made, triple-galvanized steel tubing and two layers of fabric – one is a heavy-duty, woven polyethylene that features an anti-condensate additive to reduce moisture buildup and dripping. The other side contains UV additives that allow the fabric to maintain its strength through the seasons. The plants kept here will stay indoors for a total of about seven months.
-
- I keep the pots on long greenhouse tables specifically built to accommodate heavy containers. The tabletops are also made with industrial durable plastic that is smooth, non-porous and allows trays, flats, and pots to slide across the surface without snagging.
-
- We also take advantage of the vertical space and place pots at different heights using stumps from felled trees here at the farm. It’s important to store the plants so none of them touch. This prevents a lot of diseases from being transferred specimen to specimen.
-
- Citrus plants dislike abrupt temperature shifts and need to be protected from chilly drafts and blazing heaters. Dwarf citrus trees require at least eight to 12 hours of full sunshine and good air circulation to thrive.
-
- I have many lemon trees. The Meyer lemon was first introduced to the United States in 1908 by the agricultural explorer, Frank Nicholas Meyer, an employee of the United States Department of Agriculture who collected a sample of the plant on a trip to China. Citrus limon ‘Meyer’ is my favorite lemon because this thin-skinned fruit is much more flavorful than the ordinary store-bought. I love to use them for baking and cooking.
-
- Meyer lemons are also smaller and more round than their regular store-bought cousins. And they are deeper yellow with a slight orange tint when ripe.
-
- This is a Nagami kumquat, Fortunella margarita – the most commonly grown type of kumquat. The tree is small to medium in size with a dense and fine texture. These trees are quite cold-hardy because of their tendency to go semi-dormant from late fall to early spring. Unlike other citrus fruits, which have thick, pithy rinds, kumquat peel is thin and soft, and perfectly edible.
-
- Similar in size, but more round is the calamondin. Calamondin, Citrus mitis, is an acid citrus fruit originating in China. Calamondin is called by many names, including calamondin orange, calamansi, calamandarin, golden lime, and musk orange.
-
- The fruits of the calamondin are small and thin skinned. Its juice can be used like lemon or lime to make refreshing beverages, or to flavor fish and various soups.
-
- These are blood oranges. Blood oranges are known for the deep blood-red color of their flesh. The fruit gets its pigment from the antioxidant anthocyanin, which is also found in raspberries and cherries. Depending on the variety, the blood orange can be sweet or tart, but are ripe when their flesh turns a blush-red.
-
- Citrus flowers are either solitary or clustered – and one can practically smell their beautiful aroma. A general rule of thumb is the smaller the fruit, the more often the tree blooms.
-
- All citrus fruits are members of the genus Citrus and many of them have thorns on their trees. Some of the most common citrus trees to sport thorns are Meyer lemons, most grapefruits, and key limes. Thorns provide protection from predators, specifically hungry animals that want to nibble away at the tender leaves and fruit.
-
- Another citrus bearing fruit right now is the Citrus australasica, the Australian finger lime or caviar lime. Australian limes are a species of the plant genus Citrus that are native to Australia and Papua New Guinea. They have a minty, citrus aroma with a tangy, sweet, and slightly sour, floral, lemon-lime flavor.
-
- And this is my beautiful Citrus limon ‘Ponderosa’ or ‘The American Wonder Lemon’ – this plant produces a thick mass of highly fragrant flowers, which become tiny lemons. Those lemons get bigger and bigger, often up to five pounds! This ‘Ponderosa’ citrus tree is pretty large, so it is always stored in the front just behind the doors of the hoop house.
-
- Here’s a closeup of one of its fruits – it is bigger than the palm of one’s hand.
-
- A variety of other tropical plants are also kept in this hoop house. I am so fortunate to have these structures where these specimens can develop and thrive year-round.
-
- This foxtail agave has light, bluish-green, smooth, pliable foliage that forms a rosette and can grow to five feet tall and wide. It has arching leaves and does not produce spines.
-
- Here is another agave – a black-spined agave with pale blue-green leaves armed with small dark teeth along the edges.
-
- Here is the Chinese fan palm with its wide-spreading crown and drooping fan leaves that have a layered “weeping” appearance when mature.
-
- On this side of the house are my Cymbidium orchids. Cymbidium, or boat orchid, is a genus of more than 50-evergreen species in the orchid family Orchidaceae. The best place to grow cymbidium orchids indoors in on an east facing windowsill, although a shaded south facing window will also work. Cymbidiums need medium to bright light intensity in order to thrive, and do best with as much light as possible. With the right light, the leaves will be apple green not dark green.
-
- And in winter, when they bloom, they explode with lovely sprays of flowers – each plant can have up to 15 or more. Here are just a few. Walking through my greenhouses on any given day is so refreshing, especially on the most gloomy winter days.
Martha Pins
Martha Tweets
