Beautiful! I hope one of those found a good home in your garden ;-). You know I would not have been able to leave without one. That variegated calamondin looks great!

Niiice. If I was there and had an extra $100 bucks that tree would have come home with me.

looks like in Hawaii like Canada citrus is an expensive hobby. I have seen similar or larger trees priced much lower in mainland US

Yeah, I've never paid that much for a tree, but they do look nice!

I'm not sure why, but those on the table were all much more expensive than all the other citrus. They had several different lemon and lime varieties in 5 gal, and even the 7 gal citrus including the grapefruit and oranges for much less than that. I'm thinking the table trees are considered specialty citrus and they ship them in, so we absorb some of the shipping costs.

Are you guys familiar with all those varieties that I pictured above? They caught my attention because they are pretty and some sound so neat like the Indio Mandarinquat and the ones labeled as true dwarf.

Well, I didn't buy a new citrus but I didn't leave my "window shopping" excursion empty-handed! I bought a gorgeous avocado : ) I'm still a bit intimidated by citrus. I've done pretty well so far with my mangos and avocados... I couldn't pass up the one below.

It's a beauty all right.

I never seen a centennial kumquat for sale around here, but everyone I've seen online has such a nice shape. I would pay extra for one if I ever found one for sale.

ya other than the variegated calamondin n variegated kumquat I have the rest n both those variegated r on my list they would make beautiful ornamentals.

I just googled what the ripe fruit looks like on a fruiting Centennial var kumquat- it is so pretty!

Well, this price is more like it. I went to Home Depot tonight and their variegated calamondins are only $22. Granted, HD's trees are not as big and lush as the ones from the local nursery in the pics above, but they're still very nice- especially if one picks up a pair.

Beautiful but to far away for me to drive.

Great find!!! If you plant those in the ground they will soon be larger and more lush than the ones you showed in your pics above. Hopefully you picked one up, those are very nice trees for the price. And don't be afraid of citrus, you live in paradise and a great climate to grow citrus, plus we are all here to help with problems as they pop up.

Evan

Steve, that is really funny : )

Laura and Evan, thank you for the support!! You guys are all really great. No, I didn't pick one up. I think that once I'm comfortable with the basic knowledge of citrus, such as fertilizers, required nutrients, pest control, etc., then I'll go ahead and take the plunge for another citrus.

Actually, I do want a lime to pair up with my lemon, but three local folks here with knowledge (three different nursery managers at different locations) have all advised me to get a Tahitian/Bearss lime instead of a Mexican lime, which is the one I wanted. According to them, the Mexican lime does not thrive here because it doesn't agree with our humidity levels whereas the Tahitian does much better. I was surprised to hear this because it is not *that* humid here (really, Mexican lime? You finicky thing you.). I'm just a bit up in elevation and the humidity is not bad. Long story short, I may end up with a Tahitian lime next.

I'd get the Mexican lime, it is much more prolific. Mine seems to like humidity so not sure what the other folks were talking about. Maybe the amount of rain you get is what they don't agree with? How much rain do you get?

Evan

I never heard about humidity problems, just that Key Limes are not very cold tolerant.

Cory

What Cory said

Evan, Cory, and Vladimir. I'd much rather have a Mexican one. Regarding the rainfall, I looked at a few websites and they weren't consistent with each other. Some said about 41 inches and one said 59 (this is not Hawaii-wide, but for my town only). Since my post yesterday, I've asked one more person. Here's what everyone here on the island has said.

Customer service manager for wholesale distributor that supplies big box stores and local nurseries on the island: They don't even sell Mexican key limes. They only offer the best 3 lime varieties for our climate and the Mexican is too susceptible to viruses here. The photo attached is their top 3 recommended limes for the island.

Manager at local nursery: For in ground, long-term, a Tahitian lime because it will last. If I *must* have a Mexican, I should get one and keep it in a pot since it is probably going to die in less than 3 years. The humidity will eventually kill it. I should not put it in the ground as it will be short lived.

Owner of the local nursery where I got my Meyer lemon: They only have one Mexican lime, a 7 gal. When I asked about the rootstock, they said they they've had it for so long that they couldn't even find the paperwork to track down the rootstock. It just hasn't sold.

Home Depot garden store worker: No, but we have a bunch of Tahitian limes over there.

Wow, crazy, huh? I'm thinking about buying a Mexican for a container and a Tahitian for in-ground. I'd much rather have the Mexican in the ground, but I can't imagine having to replace it and take it out of the ground if it dies.

I have a question: Should I only be buying grafted citrus trees? That is the general rule for mangos and avocados (fruit grown from seed are essentially junk) but I don't know if citrus is the same. I noticed that the trunk (on the pair of the Home Depot little variegated calomondins, pic above) was so skinny and I didn't see a graft line.

I often find that lemons and limes are rooted cuttings but you can get them grafted. I would have thought Key Limes would prefer more humidity as they grow in the Florida Keys, Mexico, and other tropical places where it is warm and humid. Maybe they are susceptible to a virus though and should be grown on a rootstock that is more compatible with your soil. How cool does it get in your mountains where you live? Maybe that is part of the problem. Maybe a virus sets in with coolness and the type of soil? I find I need to fertilize my Persian/Tahitian Lime at a higher rate than most of my other citrus. More like a Meyer Lemon which John says 1.5 times, or its leaves are a yellowish green and growth is stunted. Maybe the soil where you live is more fertile and the Persian Limes do better there.

Cory