All Things Citrus, Michael Saalfeld. August's meeting

 

At the August meeting Michael Saalfeld provided a fascinating introduction to all things citrus. He grows over 100 plants in his greenhouses and poly-tunnels back in Buckinghamshire. But beware - as the plants cannot have a minimum temperature below 4^o in the winter this requires lots of expensive electric heating! There is only one variety of citrus that is winter hardy in the UK, Citrus Trifoliata (Flying Dragon), though it’s very bitter fruits cannot be eaten and it is used mainly as rootstock for growing other citrus. Michael told us that you can see one at Middleton House Gardens, but be careful it has very vicious thorns!

Genetics have shown all citrus fruit can be traced back to 3 original varieties – the mandarin, the pomelo and the citron – originally growing in southeast Asia. Varieties now encompass everything from the common oranges, lemons and grapefruit to the less familiar kumquat  and Bergamot Citron, which is used to flavour Earl Grey tea.  Citrus can also be easily hybridised, creating all sorts of crosses such as Ugli fruit and tangelos.  Michael brought some tasters of a variety called ‘Yuzu’ which is widely used in Japanese food and comes in various forms including sweets and candied.

Michael’s talk touched on the mystery of how citrus ended up growing in Australia, which has its own 6 native varieties. He told tales of his sometimes hazardous trips to Australia to track down, photograph and help map the locations of these plants.

Finally, don’t expect quick results if trying to grow your own citrus plants from seed – they will grow easily  but may take up to 20 years to fruit! And a top tip is to repot any citrus plants bought from the garden centre as these have a tendency to die. Change to a very free draining soil and water frequently, though never leave the plant standing in water.