Fresh mandarins are easy to grow with a little know how, and are excellent for salads, desserts and kids lunch boxes.
Planting Calendar
Mandarins are best planted from March right through until November.
Harvest In
2 - 3 Years
Mandarins will be ready to harvest after 2 to 3 years from planting. Most mandarin varieties will produce fruit in winter.
Prepare
Position
Mandarins require a warm, sunny position with at least six hours of direct sunlight daily. Protect from cold, harsh winds. Make sure there is a good amount of airflow in the area.
Soil
When planted into the ground Mandarins like a free draining soil that is rich in organic matter. To improve the organic content in your soil, break up the soil and add Kings Compost and Kings Sheep Pellets then mix together well. When growing in containers, plant into Kings Container mix. This mix contains added water storage crystals and Saturaid, two products that help maintain moisture in the soil.
Pollination
Mandarins are self fertile so do not need a pollinator.
Plant
Gently tap the plant out of its pot. Dig a hole twice the depth and width of the plants root ball. Mix Kings Compost into your existing soil at a 50/50 ratio, add Sheep Pellets and Kings Citrus & Fruit Tree Fertiliser, then mix together. Back fill the hole with this soil, so that when planted the top of the plant’s roots sit level with the surrounding ground. Firm the soil down gently and water in well with Aquaticus Organic Garden Booster. In heavier clay soils, where drainage is likely to be an issue, plant onto a raised mound and sprinkle Gypsum Clay Breaker into the bottom of the hole, this helps slowly condition the soil and help to break down the clay.
Care
Beginner Tip
Yellow leaves most often mean that young trees require Magnesium or other Trace Elements. Apply Yates Liquid Trace Element as per the instructions on the packet.
Expert Tip
Mandarins are either grafted onto Dwarf root stock (Flying Dragon). If not grafted they are either grown by seed or leaf cuttings. Grafted Varieties are known to be more resilient to disease and grow faster and at maturity are smaller than other types only growing to 2-2.5m
Tip
We suggest removing all fruit in the first year to assist your young tree in establishing a good root and branch structure. Mandarins are heavy croppers, often setting more fruit than they can sustain. Early removal of approximately 1/3 of the crop will result in improved fruit quality, and help to prevent biennial bearing (setting fruit only once every two years).
Top Varieties
What you need to grow well
Frequently Asked Questions
I want and easy peel seedless mandarin, what is the best one?
The Satsuma types of mandarin are both easy peel and seedless. There is many types of satsuma types, pick two different varieties to get a longer fruiting season.
My mandarin tree has crinkly leaves and bumps on its fruit, what should I do?
This is most likely citrus scab/verrucosis. Spray with Copper Oxychloride after petal fall, and at 3 to 4 weekly intervals until harvest to help with control and prevention.
There are tiny grubs in my mandarins, what is it?
The small grubs in your fruit are the larvae of Guava Moth. To keep infestations under control place a Guava Moth Trap in your trees. Remember to replace the pheromone refill every 6 weeks.
