Well, that's because there are no Cocktails in that bowl, mrtexas :-) You're looking at Bearrs limes, Moro oranges and Dekopon mandarins. Yes, the Dekopons do resemble a Minneola a bit due to the neck. The Dekopon is a cross between a Kiyomi tangor (which is a cross of orange and satsuma mandarin) and a ponkan (hence the neck). They are not available for us in tree-form, yet, due to the very strict patent regulations. They are being grown by just a handful of growers in the Central Valley in California, and are being marketed as Sumo mandarins due to the extremely large size (as large or larger than a Minneola.) We are all anxiously awaiting budwood from UCR CCPP to be able to graft and grow, or for growers to do so, and provide trees for those who would like a backyard Dekopon. But, that's going to be a few years out, still. Definitely NOT a Minneola :-) I don't care for Minneolas as they're a wee bit too tart for my liking. Which is odd, because I love grapefruit and pommelo hybrids due to their sweeter taste. But for me, the Minneola just tastes like a tart orange, and not a sweet grapefruit :-) The Cocktails, which are most definitely Cocktails, are LONG gone, as they are my most favorite citrus in my yard. I squeeze two every morning, so I blew through them on my young tree in short time. Going to the Farmer's Market tomorrow to try to find some. Boo. But, I am now enjoying the few Melogolds I have. The Oro Blancos are also gone, too. But, everything is getting ready to bloom, so hoping for bigger crops this year! Patty S.

I can Orange Juice, Grapefruit Juice and Sectionized Grapefruit every year. I would strongly discourage you to use a pressure canner as the excessive heat would change the flavor considerably. Besides, the waterbath is really QUICK! To do the juice, simply juice the fruit, put in jar and waterbath for 10 minutes for pints and 15 minutes for quarts. If you will add a tiny amount of sugar, maybe 1 cup sugar to 12-15 cups juice (or even less) it will help. The sugar helps to remove some of the canned effect. The flavor DOES change, but it tastes very similar to the majority of the frozen/bottled citrus juices at the grocery store. The trick is to chill the juice, shaking a couple of times. Then it truly taste better if you add a little ice water right when you are going to drink it. For the sections -- using a very sharp knife, cut the skin and membrane off the entire fruit. Make sure all the membrane is off as it will make it easier to sectionize and also it is bitter after heated. Then, using a plate knife (dinner knife) and starting at one end, choose an area where there are several larger sections together and start at the left side of the farthest left of the grouping. Slip the knife in with the cutting edge (even though it is the dull kind of knife) up. Push all the way through the fruit and lift up so the knife slides up besides the membrane upward to remove the knife. Then put the knife back in the same section on the right hand side of the section and repeat the process. The section of fruit will fall out. Then, using the knife, flip the membrane over to the left and continue around the entire fruit. After you are sick of sectionizing, go back and remove the seeds. Gently lay the sections in a wide mouth jar. Fill with a very light sugar/water syrup. We do not like sugar, so I use about 1 cup sugar to 12-15 cups water. Even that tiny amount really keeps the fruit from tasting so canned. Jar, seal and waterbath for 10 minutes for pints and 15 minutes for quarts. I am known to push the sections in pints to 15 minutes, just being careful.

A good tip to avoid wasting your time is to just put any dry seed or indeed fresh seed into a small glass of water and leave it to stand in a warm sunny place for a day. As a rule of thumb any seed still floating on the surface after that time are not viable and should be discarded. All the sinkers should have a fair chance of coming up. As Patsy says almost whatever you do to them if they are ready they will come up. Some species are very very difficult however as they may have germination inhibitors that need to be washed out. For an in depth look see link below. Myles Here is a link that might be useful: Seed germination

I had a large Valencia orange tree in Venice, but now I only have a small one and will probably not get oranges for a couple of years yet. The previous owners' dogs kept the orange tree from growing and they completely killed another orange tree - the only trees that I liked in my new back yard. I now have Meyer lemon and Bearss lime trees growing in wine barrel planters, where they can live fine for a couple of years before I plant them in the ground. In Venice I had mature lemon, lime, mango, and fig trees, and I did not wash the fruit unless it looked dirty. I certainly never washed any of the figs. I never sprayed any of the trees, and I used natural methods for keeping pests under control, such as worm casings spread around the tree. When I did wash citrus or mangoes, I used only water. However, I never had my soil tested, and I don't know that much about the soil in my back yard now, but the lemon and lime trees are growing in potting soil, which I guess is okay. I'm concerned that parts of the yard may have had bad things dumped on them. There is one corner of the yard where grass will not grow, and so I put the bird bath over it. Lars