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Cut off unripe fruit?

5 years ago

I have a mandarin tree which has lost its fruiting cycle, if that makes sense. For years it flowered in spring and fruit ripened in winter. However last year it flowered almost at random, with the result that I've been picking ripe fruit since June (southern hemisphere) but there are still green fruit on the tree ranging from starting-to-change-colour to small-hard-as-rocks. And now it's beginning to flower again!

Question: if I cut off all the unripe fruit will that force it to 'reset' into a regular cycle? Or will I just be wasting mandarins?

Featured Answer

Denise Becker

5 years ago

I agree with sunshine, leave it be and enjoy the fruits.

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Comments (7)

dbarron
5 years ago
Well, if you remove the ripe fruit, you will start over again with blossoms...but I doubt it will convince the tree of a cycle. It is showing you it's happy enough to over perform, be happy for it, I would think.
sunshine (zone 6a, Ontario,Canada)
5 years ago
Let it be, the tree knows what to do, you just feed, give water and watch for pests. Is it growing in a container? Any pictures?
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I have thought long and hard about an answer to your original question . One thing I have learned on these forums is that gardening in general is an intensely personal undertaking and what works for one person can be quite offensive to another . Try what your instinct tells you and what makes you happy . I leave the fruit on my 24 mature citrus trees until I can get around to picking it . When I pick seems irrelevant to the tree blossoms or amount of future fruit production . The longer the fruit stays on the trees - the riper it becomes - up to a point . After that - it goes to the cows . I have so much fruit this year that I can't give it away . All my neighbors have an abundance of fruit . The local produce stands don't want any even for free since no one will buy it ! So this year I am not worried about how much fruit I will have next sesason . It only makes sense that to pick the fruit would aid in blossoms and new fruit setting . I would say - go for it . Pick all the fruit , juice away and freeze it for later . Can't hurt !
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You could bring the tree inside during the next few nights when it is expected to freeze, and move it back outside during the day to try to maximize your season. Based on the thread about horse manure, I told my nephew in Austin to gather some manure from the pasture, spread it around the base of his tree, gather the limbs together with rope and turn a trash can over it during the cold nights. His tree is in the ground though. Being yours is in a pot gives you a bit more flexibility (assuming you can move it.) ~james
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My apple tree is bearing some translucent apples that are meaty and good. I probably should have trimmed it but i did it 1.5 years ago and i planned to do it in the fall of this year. Anyway the neighbors tell me the branch broke (from the weight of the apples) and they partially cut through it to move from a raised garden. I plan to cut the branch off, even though it seems to still be feeding the other broken side. How should i prepare the branch before i cut it off?
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Hard to tell from the photos, it could just be sun scald, ie cosmetic. If you could post a better picture we could probably help more. In any case, I think that your tree is too small to let the fruits mature. Pinch them off to allow the tree to focus on growing the first year. Just a recommendation.
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HU-322757621
Original Author
5 years ago
I didn't explain my question clearly enough. If the tree is simultaneously trying to ripen fruit and produce blossom, might it end up not doing either very well? This year's crop is definitely smaller and the fruit poorer quality than when the tree had a clear seasonal cycle.
sunshine (zone 6a, Ontario,Canada)
5 years ago
You can always thin the crop to get larger size fruit.
Denise Becker
5 years ago
The information given is too vague. I think your environment plays a big part in the life cycle of the tree. If your tree is happy with its conditions, it is going to bloom whenever it wants and set fruit. You don't specify which type of mandarin you are referring to, the country you are in or which type of fertilizer you use. Maybe something you have done to the tree has caused the tree to change it's growing habits.
Ike Stewart
5 years ago
Keep in mind color change has more to do with the temperature than ripeness.

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