Ok so maybe it's not that pretty but it works great! It's an insulated tarp and we have it draped over 5 T bar stakes we pounded into the ground. The citrus are all under there up on pallets- all 38 of them! The tarp is great because it's white so on days when you don't feel like taking it off the light still shines through and it stays pretty bright under there.

Next season we will improve this set up by attaching PVC tubing to the stakes with arching PVC pipes connecting the stakes so the tarp will be easier to slide up and down as needed. This makes the terror of early and late frosts so much less daunting!

Here are some pics of my grow room everything seems to be doing really well!

Amazing, good work in zone 2b! For how many months your trees enjoyed the outdoors?

Hang on still posting pics, they take forever!

Hi sunshine, we have had pretty early springs the past couple of years so I am usually able to get them out in mid April or so, and then leave them out until about mid Sept. So 5 months? I guess I should be impressed with myself that they do so well considering so few outside months haha! I still kill my fair share, I'm hoping I have solved my problems with my above mentioned enhancements this season!

I noticed some spider mites starting up last week so I have been doing hort spray treatments. Of course they started on the gorgeous new growth on my Santa Theresa! I think I caught it in time before chaos ensues.

There seems to be tons of new growth and so many flowers- it smells heavenly in there! I also have a rack of greens that I started from seed under shop lights in my room, it is so nice to work in there with everything blooming! I'll take a pic of that tomorrow.

We’ve missed you Hobby! It’s nice to see pics of your trees looking so well! What fruit do you have coming soon? I picked my first rangpur lime today and was very pleased. I used it to make a Cuban dish called “arroz con pollo” (chicken and rice), along with half a baboon lemon. It was great and I think the subtle flavor of the citrus really added a lot to the dish.

I just found aphids in a Cara Cara in my son’s room and whiteflies on some new growth of my oroblanco (in my sunroom). I just finished a thorough spraying and will do it again in a couple of days. I feel your pain.

Hi Laura! I missed you too- I'll keep this thread updated throughout the winter... I'm starting to get into planning mode for the coming season! I always do my seed inventory over Xmas and order planning so I'll be thinking about citrus too of course lol.

I LOVE arroz con pollo... as you know I am super into peppers too so every season I grow the seasoning peppers and I also grow the culantro you need to make authentic recaito/sofrito! I have a ton of it frozen into cubes in my freezer for the winter. I still want a rangpur and am still fascinated by your baboon lemon, is it nice?

For near ripe/soonish to ripe fruit I have a bunch of calamondins, one meyer (lol), a smallish but growing sanguinelli blood orange, 2 delfino blood oranges, 1 valencia orange that I think will hang on, and quite a few others starting but are quite tiny still.

Over the past few months I got a handful of variegated calamondins, one kiyomi tangor, about 6 half mature NZ lemonades that I shouldn't have let the tree grow and finally decided to cut off, and about 5 makrut limes! I am making extract with the makrut limes since I don't think they are great to use fresh.

I have seen some of your posts and it looks like you have had tons of cool new fruit mature! What did you get?

Yes for the first time I think I have seen some whitefly around... don't recall seeing them before, it's strange. I'm sure you're on top of it!

Hello Hobby so nice to see you back I missed you lot's. So glad that you figured out a way to extend the short summer season and may I say that your tree's look terrific. So what what kind of new tree's are in your shopping cart ? Lol.

Brian

Hi Brian, I missed you too! Your amazing pics from the blustery north always give me strength in tough citrus times lol. I see you changed your avatar, good thing you told me it was you!

How is your new house and your collection? Did you add anything fun to your collection over the summer?

Well I have a master list of about 21 types I am very interested in, but I definitely won't be adding that many in one shot. I am going to try and keep to my theme of getting younger trees, less risk if they die and they seem to acclimatize better to my unique conditions. I would say the top contenders are:

genoa lemon

pomona sweet lemon

rangpur red lime

orangequat

indio mandarinquat

I would also like to replace some of the cool types I had that died, but it seems too depressing to think about :(.

Nice that's a great new addition list, I remember you posting about the gold nuggets. I also got a NZ lemonade last summer and it is doing great so far. Yes with Phoenix Perennials and Greenscape Gardens so many new varieties are available to us now it's crazy. I hope winter is kind in the citrus growing states so the quarantines won't be so harsh. I'll look back at some of your recent posts so I can see what you have been up to :).

Hi Hobby, your trees are beautiful and happy, I see that they're raised from the floor, what is the night time temperature in your grow room in December and January?

Hobby, that sounds like a nice short list...for now ;). Brian got some nice trees this summer... he may have to add to that greenhouse...lol. I have had lots of fruit and more ripening up. Key limes have been at the top...I am swamped with key limes. Every day I try to have at least two cups of tea so I can use one or two. I’ve given many away also. Lots of Persian limes also....getting near the end of those. I finally have a tree with about nine meyers ripening up. Alexander recovered well from last year’s mite attack and defoliation, but the many lemons he has growing are still small. I just noticed that a tangelo is ready to harvest (the tree has maybe seven?), and a dekopon is ready as well. I have four sanguinelli oranges also totally orange now. I tasted one of those and it was delicious, even though it did not color up much. I have maybe 4-5 ray ruby grapefruits that are nearly ready and a few oroblanco that I’m going to leave for a while yet. I have many rangpur limes pretty ripe and the tree is growing a bunch more. I like the baboon lemon, but after tasting the rangpur today, I’d take that one if I had to pick only one. I also have more sudachi almost ready...love those! I’ve been having a fun time experimenting with all these interesting varieties....quite enjoyable. In a few years, i am going to be completely overwhelmed with fruit...a good problem to have!

Hobby, how were the NZL fruits? I have some that should be ready soon...but am not sure when to harvest.

Thanks for the comments sunshine! I usually start to see some signs of trouble in late spring when the trees are getting desperate to get outside but I think I've got a good handle on things for this season- hopefully.

Yes the concrete floor can get quite cold so I decided to raise them up. My room has a big wall heater that I can set to automatic so it comes on and off and usually maintains about 14-18 C according to my thermometer in the corner. However, because of all the watering even with the floor drain I like my room to get some airflow so it dries out so I keep 2 opposing windows open a crack for air flow, so some pretty icy winds do blow through so I am sure the temps fluctuate a bit.

I have experimented with lower temps but it didn't seem to make much difference either way I don't think. This is my 3rd growing season in my room.

What's your set up again? I know I have seen your pics but can't recall where you keep them.

Whoa Laura that's crazy! I saw a post of yours awhile ago that had pics and I remember seeing a lot of orange in there- awesome! I am sure Alexander will come back with a vengeance, actually one huge RB meyer that I thought was lost came back pretty well this summer and is the bearer of my sole meyer, with another on the way!

I went against my plan to stay away from RB trees and bought a small limequat and a small key lime this summer since I am so jealous of all of yours! I probably use limes the most in my cooking so I am focused on getting there eventually lol! They are tiny though so I am sure it will eons before I get anywhere.

Your house must be stuffed this winter! Your trees are huge! How did your sun room fare after last summer, was it ok after spraying and watering in there all winter? Don't forget to post pic of Enzo for me :). I have to look back and catch up on your posts too.

Oh and Hobby, I’m especially excited bc I have six ST lemons yellow now! I can’t wait to try them, but have no idea where they will be utilized best.

Oh and my NZ is a decent size but I let it set way too many fruit... like 7! So I could see that it was holding back growth when they were about half grown so I cut them off and used the juice. So I can't advise you on those yet unfortunately.

Hobby, my sunroom has a tile floor and the one piece of furniture I covered with plastic, so everything is fine - the windows needed a good cleaning. Yeah, my house is totally stuffed! The trees spread into my bedroom, the upstairs hall, and my daughter’s room....lol

Here’s Enzo...he’s wonderful!

He's gorgeous- both of your subjects are lol! I just love their black eye liner against the white fur. He looks like he lucked out with his new family.

So jealous of the STs! My tree did really well this summer and has flowers on about 10 branch tips... hope some fruit will set. Glad to hear that your sunroom is fine, your house must smell amazing when everything is flowering.

Did you ever get any finger limes? I thought I saw a post of yours and one had set?

No finger limes, but I did get a blood lime that looks like a finger lime except the guts are not caviar-like....more elongated. Very strong flavor...would probably work well on fish...like smoked on a plank. Yeah, smells great in here. There’s not been a time yet since they’ve been in when there are no flowers from one tree or another. The BDF is now in bloom and smells amazing. I thought this tree was a goner, but it’s sprung to life. Oh and I have lots of calamondins, but I’m waiting to have a big batch of ripe ones to make marmalade. I’m amazed how much you know about arroz con pollo! I gave a Rangpur lime and half a baboon lemon to my uncle who is in charge of seasoning the pork for Noche Buena. They should work well for a marinade.

Hobby, my trees are in my sunroom and I have not provided them with supplemental light, they are getting whatever light they can get through sunroom windows, here it is:

Laura, those two are both beautiful :))

Welcome back Hobby! Been missing you and wondering how you were doing! :)

Great to hear your trees did great through the summer and wow, do they look great! Love your outdoor setup above!

I have been waiting to see pictures of the newly aquired citrus trees you got this spring! :)

Laura, cute picture of your daughter and Enzo. Wow he has really grown..

The dishes that you are creating with all of your citrus fruits sounds creative and delish! Lucky gals..So far the only fruit that has ripened for me are a few Calamondin and Kumquats but the Calamondin is loaded with more fruit that is turning and the Genoa Lemon has five fruit that are still growing. Tavares Limequat has a few fruit that are looking good. The Santa Teresa's have small fruit but they are not growing very fast. I will wait for you ladies to pick your ripe fruit to find out how you like them.

Lovely trees, sunshine! They look so green and healthy! :)

Hobby, your trees are amazing. I'm quite new to citrus and thought I was doing just ok indoors year round. Yours in 2b are a sight to behold. What a treasure.

Laura, Enzo grew up so quickly. What a handsome guy and looks like he's personality plus.

Laura, I forgot about the BDF! I am obsessed with that one too- it's on my master list so I may have to bump it up to this year's order list haha! My bergamot is doing great, it has tripled in size although it is a bit gangly, but my sudachi died... I think I potted it up into too big a pot. I also would like to replace it. So now I have pot sizes in 1, 2, 3 and 5 gallon to hopefully be able to step my trees up slowly as they grow. The blood lime looks amazing! I think I read somewhere that finger limes don't need much fertilizer and that too much may inhibit flowering so who knows as it gets the same treatment as my other trees. So what's on your list this year??? Or has hubby put his foot down yet lol?

I am saving all my kumquats, calamondins and other small sour types that I sporadically get in the freezer for marmalade too as none of my trees are big enough yet to produce enough all at once for a batch. I am probably about halfway there before I can make some! I can't remember how I stumbled into super authentic arroz con pollo, I think I was researching uses for culantro when I first started growing it and then came across the different types of sofrito online and got interested. I have to say, Puerto Rican sofrito hitting a hot pan has to be one the of the best cooking smells on earth. I swoon- literally!

Laura do you find that those CFLs we use burn out fast? Mine barely last a year, it's annoying because I have to special order them and it always takes forever for them to come in, where do you get yours again? Currently I only have half the bulbs I have for lamps as they all burned out. I wonder if I sprayed them with water by accident or something.

Sunshine that's a great set up, it looks like you get enough light, how do your trees do late in the season? Do they go out on the balcony in the summer?

Thanks Petuniafish, I have my fair share of tree disasters but I am always hopefully I will get my formula perfect at some point. Indoors year round, wow, can I see a pic of your set up when you get a moment?

Hi Jinny- nice to hear from you and I missed you too! Glad to hear you are getting some fruiting. I'll try and take some pics today for you of my arrivals from the summer, most of them are pretty tiny but the nz lemonade and ST are big and pretty gorgeous. How did your greenhouse fare last summer and what's on your list this year?

I missed you, Hobby. Hope all is well with you.Your trees look great!

I am pretty well maxed out with trees because of not enough room but I did get some red lemon seeds, two of which germinated, and some rough lemon
seeds which probably were killed by the cold but I planted them anyway. Also got a red lime tree from Record Buck even though I have had really bad luck with that company and a red clementine seedling from a friend.

Hey there V- nice to hear from you, I missed you too! How is the greenhouse going? I think this is your first winter so far right? What a project.

Lol about RB, yes we have the same opinion about their trees I think. I also got suckered into buying a few more this past summer and surprise! They look like hell while everything else I got new is doing great. Why do I keep doing this to myself... at least they were cheap and small... so the risk is less than the $100 RB trees I used to buy and watch die. I took some pics I will post in a sec so you can see what I am talking about.

One thing I notice with their trees is that they seem to be potted in super fine sawdust... not the proper wood fines or chunks like the reptibark we like to use. So I am assuming that is part of the problem. I only repotted one of the 3 that I got but I think I will tackle the last 2 over winter...

Hobby, I’ve not had any burn out yet this year, but maybe 3-4 last year. I wonder why yours went out so fast? How did you store them over winter? I wonder if that could have made a difference? I stored mine in a plastic storage bin...layers of bulbs and towels. I order mine from Amazon but a few weeks ago I saw them at Home Depot.

Hobby, the BDF smells incredible... not as sweet as pomelo, but very potent. I’m not going to let the tree keep any fruit though bc it has almost completely defoliated. It was very weak when it came from FW...I’m amazed it has lived. Thanks to Jinny ;), I got a Tahitian pomelo that is growing happily...buds about to open...can’t wait!

Hi Hobby, I enjoyed reading your update and seeing your trees. It is amazing how well your trees are doing in Zone 2b! Mine were doing great and had lots of fruit and suddenly in the past several weeks disaster struck in both the greenhouse and the basement grow room. I am experiencing similar leaf and fruit drop as Pac and also trying to find out what is going on. I think it is that my 5-1-1 got too dry and it had dry areas that I didn't realize at first. They seem to need a lot more watering this year. I thought I was watering enough but I think they dry faster this year as I have 2 additional HO T5 lights in the basement and our weather fluctuates every other week from cold and dark to hot and sunny for them hose in them hose he greenhouse. It is hard to keep the grenhouse sealed up from the cold and than realize it is overheating. I have been trying to make sure that the 5-1-1 is kept evenly moist throughout the pot and fortunately most trees are sprouting new growth again, but I may have lost 2 or 3 of them. I haven't given up on them yet. I think I worried too much about overwatering and that caused the dry parts even though I watered until the excess flows out. They are just too large for me to lift them all into a tub to let them soak though. It is discouraging when these disasters occur when you think you have finally figured out how to care for your plants. Hobby, you have a nice selection of trees for being so north. Your friends and neighbors must be amazed with your northern citrus orchard. Keep posting about your progress. Your trees and setup look beautiful.

Cory

The good:

4 minis

castello lime (variety of key)

fukushu kumquat

minneola tangelo

eustis limequat

The ugly (all RB):

Looking great Hobby! Cory, I almost had a disaster with my thornless key lime..I did not water enough for all the same fears. Not too much damage though and it has recuperated well. Close call though...I hope your trees pull through.

Ugh sorry Hobby! I have a Meyer from RB that I adopted from my neighbor fall 2016 which looks like your key lime...only flowers. It was a cocktail tree that I separated this summer...both are alive, but looking pathetic.

Hobby, I too noticed that RB uses what looks like sawdust. The red lime a got recently is still in that mix because it seems OK for now and I am reluctant to repot this time of year. I might change my mind, though.

This is my second winter with the greenhouse. I have added some weather stripping between the sliding doors and the walls. Also realized that I made a mistake relying on one $350, 240V heater as a main heater because I have had to replace its thermostat twice and it still is not working right. I have been relying on one $20 milk house heater with a second one as back up and it has worked fine. Temps have gotten down to 12 F (-11 C) and have not had a problem. I put up two shelves for my 1 and 2 gallon trees. I am still learning.

Hi Cory, so nice to hear from you! I'm sorry about your trees, I bet it is the watering issue, that has happened to me before too. That's the problem with my tall pots, if the root system isn't big enough the top dries out while the bottom is wet and you can't win! So now I stick to the 2.5 gallons unless the root ball is truly huge and developed. I'm sure they will bounce back but I know it's hard to lose the fruit. I'm rooting for you! One tip I remember us discussing a while back was to put some wet coir on the top of the pots to keep the tops wetter? Not sure if that would work but maybe it would help the top layer of medium from totally drying out. See that's what Greenscape Gardens did with my tiny 4 trees in the pic above? You can see the coir matting? Keep us updated, I know your collection is gorgeous!

Yeah Laura, the cocktail tree that I separated died as well... I think one of the halves was doing ok and then maybe I dried it out too much or something, I can't recall, but it's a goner! I hope yours rebound, you have the knack!

Wow Vladimir the greenhouse sounds awesome! I'll have to snoop at your past posts to look for pics. Yeah the sawdust seems like a brutal idea, that's the one I think I want to repot sooner rather than later.

Hobby do you have an actual Soil thermometer If so stick it in the root one of the trees and tell us what the temperature is. It probably will don't be the same as the room temperature. Do you water your trees with warm water?

Hobby, yes my trees go out on the open balcony in the summer, it is windy there at times but the trees enjoy the sun. In the winter time inside they lose some leaves but have not gotten defoliated completely. I keep them off the floor sitting on windowsill and benches.

Hi Silica, thanks for the note, do I don't have one. That would be interesting to check for sure, but not sure if I could change the conditions much in my room anyway even if I wanted to, unless you have an idea? The water in my room is not cold, I would say a little colder than room temperature. That's ok right?

It's super windy here too sunshine, I think it does sap some of my trees' growing energy for sure. I have them in a pretty protected place but coming from certain directions it can really rip!

Your Nordmann Nagami looks *beautiful*!

For your CFL, I do think they should last longer. I use a different brand (GE), and even have them over my fish/shrimp/plant tanks. But they have all lasted several years. I don't know what the ballast is like, perhaps getting knocked around in shipping damages them? (Thank you, Laura, for mentioning seeing them at Home Depot, as they were not there previously. )

You might try one fixture plugged into a surge protector to see if that helps.