I have 2 little pots of this tree in my greenhouse. It seems they defoliate each Winter and are not happy. I would like to leave them in the ground after this Spring. I don't know if they will tolerate my Winters. Can anyone help me?? Barb in Pa.
Are those thorns on the limb? Has it ever bloomed? If the tree is deciduous, it will lose it's leaves every winter and put out new growth in the spring. Did you possibly plant seeds from an orange or other citrus fruit to see if they would grow? The citrus trees you buy from a nursery are hybrids and have been bred to be thornless but when you plant a seed after eating the fruit the resulting tree will revert to it's natural state and have thorns.
Toni, No I didn't plant seeds from an orange. They ARE thorns on that branch. I know what deciduous is but my babies are 9 inches tall and in the greenhouse for the Winter. They have lost all the leaves in there. I have been told what this is but I forgot the what's or who's about it. I don't even know where I got these little things. My label is faded to nothing. Barb in Pa.
yYour little trees look a lot like my Japanese Quince (Chaenomeles) Barb. Mine dropped its leaves even when it was in the greenhouse during winter. It's now out in the garden and doing really well.
Thank you all so very much. You got us to thinking about it and my hubby found it. Poncirus trifoliata Hardy orange But not a citrus fruit. Now I can keep it in the conditions that it would like. Barb in Pa.
