poncirusguy, In regards to your question about the kumquats, My favorite is meiwa then close second fukishu then nippon. One of my favorite things abut them is the summer flowering. Meiwa is simply the best tasting. They can be very sweet and somewhat tart at the same time, a very nice combination they also have a nice texture. The downside is of course they have a few seeds and sometimes they can have a bit of a bitter aftertaste from the oils in the rind. letting them hang into January or later seems to almost eliminate this. Fukishu is very good tasting. Sweet and juicy but not as sweet and a little more sour then meiwa. Its large which is nice but has (its hard to identify exactly) but maybe a slightly musky aroma. seedy. The growth characteristics of the tree are great for containers, short bushy and productive. Nippon is not as good for fresh eating but I do eat them out of hand. Nippon seems to be more of an ornamental or can be used to make awesome marmalade. Large fruit that are sour with some sweetness and can have a bitter aftertaste. They get sweeter but they have to hang on the tree for a while, into March or later - they will never get as sweet as meiwa or fukishu. They are seedy. People who prefer mostly sour with some sweetness may like nippon as much or more then Meiwa, My nippon is one of the most visually appealing trees I have, loaded but still somewhat upright with dark orange almost red fruit and long broad dark green leaves is simply strikingly beautiful in the winter, ill send you a picture later this season.

Cold weather citrus info- http://www.justfruitsandexotics.com/Citrus.htm Kumquat- http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/morton/kumquat.html Kumquat- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kumquat Satsuma Mandarin- http://plantanswers.tamu.edu/fruit/satsuma.html Satsuma Mandarin- http://www.floridata.com/ref/C/citr_ret.cfm Calamondin- http://www.geocities.com/verymad_scientist/ Calamondin- http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/morton/calamondin.html FRUITING SCHEDULE-http://www.growquest.com/Fruit%20trees%20-20better%20plant/citrus%20harvest%20times.htm I also grow persimmons, pomegranate, strawberries, Rhubarb, Avacado's, a dwarf banana tee, and a dwarft apple tree I got from Michigan bulb(5th yr )and I aso do patio blueberries, and a American Hazelnut tree.

I feel a list coming on (they are all in the ground): Citrus: Blood Orange - from seed to 2ft in three years, no complaints Meyer Lemon - one gallon gift has yielded lemons all three years, thriving Palms: Canary Island Date Palm - from three gallon to monster, if you have the room this is your palm Silver Date Palm - Seedling is adjusting but putting out new fronds, so far so good Bismarkia nobilis - Seedling is sulking, I hope that it is establishing its roots and puts out some growth this summer or I think that winter will kill it Chinese Fan Palm - Establishing itself, so far so good Foxtail Palm - Seedling in sun scorched to death, seedling in shade putting out new growth, three gallon in semi-sun recovering nicely from a nursery- induced spider mite infestation Pygmy Date Palm - growing as fast as these little guys do Mexican Fan Palm - Until Tropical Storm Cindy this was a big success, now it is looking really stressed, I think the roots were disturbed by the wind Queen Palms - Coming along a little more slowly than I expected, next year will tell Sabal Palm - This was a gift of a bird to the yard and is probably ten years old, it is finally developing some trunk Gingers: five species all thriving (except for the ones that the yard guy weed eats) Cassias: alata and one other whose name escapes me, too successful, want some? Cannas: at least five cultivars, Wyoming looks the best, all have leaf roller issues Alocasia: thriving in shade and sun Colocasia: sulking, too much shade, not enough water Bananas: ornata, rojo, and one that I rustled from a construction site are all thriving, they are a maintenance chore, but when kept in check nothing beats them Firespike: perfect for deep shade Tree Fern: I would not trade my Australian Tree Ferns for anything, one has more than three feet of trunk, this is the first year for the Tasmanian Tree Fern, they are all planted under trees to protect from radiational cooling Rice Paper Plant: thriving, which is both good (they resemble gunnera which we can't grow here) and bad (they pop up everywhere) Root Beer Plant: piper auretum (or something like that), it is thriving, Cindy's winds made me cut it way back, it runs like bamboo, sometimes I love it, sometimes I hate it, to do over I would have put it in an area that I could control better, it has a great leaf shape if you are into that sort of thing Cuphias: I have five species of these "cigar" plants, beetles have really chewed them up this year and I have tried unsuccessfully to control them, it is an off year Castor Bean: I grow it, but not with much enthusiasm, they grow tall quickly and flop over just as quickly Clerendum uganese: An off year, I suspect some root rot Bottle brush: If you don't have one you should, great screening plant that attracts hummers, blooms heavily in spring and sporatically during the rest of the year (like now), from ten inch plant to small tree in six years Nigh blooming jasmine: you either love it or hate it Brugmansia: I don't know what cultivar it is, it was sold to me as a "white" one, but it is more of a "salmon/peach", I grow it in part sun rather than full sun, I think you get a better canopy of leaves this way, this is the best smelling flower that I have ever encountered, it can freeze to the ground and become a small tree in one season Lantana: I grow an orange and a white one, they come from an era when I wanted bulletproof plants, overrated as butterfly plants Justicas: I grow shrimp (red bracts), flamingo (pink) and hummingbird (orange) plants, these are somewhat too successful Morning Glory Tree: I don't know what to do with this because of it unusual form, it blooms when nothing else does, however, it is an awkward plant (to 20ft high) I know that I am forgetting a few like the monkey face and a few tender salvias, but it is a start.

Hey yellow thumb, where do you put your Michelia Alba in the winter? In a sunny room??? Do you have to watch for spider mites? I hear they love that plant. I will give you my address if you don't have it. How is the jade doing? So good to see you. You have to make the time. You are so missed here and have so much to offer along with your beautiful plants. As for your trees, if you don't mind them slowing down or loosing their rich green color, those temps will be fine as long as you know you watch your watering and I already know you use very ood mixes. In fact, it's much better than being in a dry heated house this early...Just make sure to acclimate them indoors if that is what you plan to do. Are you going to put them in a heated home in a sunny window, or a cool place? If a cool place you will not have to acclimate them...