I have grown an orange plant from a pip. what sort of pot do i plant it in?

Question

it one and a half foot tall (90cm) at the moment its in a plastic pot 8" (20 cm)with holes in the bottom sitting on a plate.

i have been told to graft a difernt citrus onto it to get better results i thourght of kaffir lime so i can use it for cooking has anyone got any tips on grafting?

Answer 1

I know others have just suggested terracotta pots, but as a horticultural manager I would suggest that you stuck to plastic. Terracotta pots - although much nicer on the eye - wick moisture away from roots; citrus trees, even though they hate to "sit" in water, need plenty of moisture, and should never go completely dry , which a terracotta pot may halp to do especially in summer. Your plant will also be used to the insulating properties of the plastic pot it is in now.
Keep the pot size just larger than the rootball, and top dress - ie remove some of the old soil and replace with new - every year. You can buy citrus compost which has the right PH amount, and also citrus feed which will keep the glossy leaves coming!
Alas, if you leave your tree to grow and grow, that is just what it will do, and you won't get any fruit unless you graft another citrus to it.... you can get books on the subject, and no doubt theres pages on the web to help..

Good luck!

Answer 2

Any pot really, as long as its noit too big, r the soil will get sour before the roots get a chance to fill the pot.
Gently tip the plant out and if there's no sign of the tree being rootbound, leave it and just give it a feed.

Be prepared to not get much in the way of fruit though, seedling plants can be very fickle.
A cutting grafted or even struck with its own roots is much better if you want fruit.
Good luck.

Answer 3

OK, this is critical, it sounds like you have the potential for a nice dwarf orange tree, maybe some Banzai potential? Either way , you don't want to put it into to big of a pot for your 1st transplanting. Keep the root ball restricted to an area equal two twice the size of the existing root ball, or less. A terra cotta, or ceramic pot large drain hole, 25cent piece size.I'd go with a 10" pot for now, then to the 5-gal. size after that. You have grown it this far so you know the watering schedule that it likes, keep it the same. Hey, good luck.

Answer 4

You will grow a plant of no use. If you can take a bud cutting from any citrus fruit that you like, your plant will accept it. I have budded oranges of every description and lemons, grapefruit and limes, all on one tree, as long as it's citrus, you can. It is not easy to grow a citrus from a pip, you must have green fingers sir/madam. Keep re-potting it and water well in strong sunlight. If nothing else, you can deep fry the aromatic leaves and put them in Thai food or salads. The leaves can also freshen wardrobes, just break them and put them everywhere. Well done.

Answer 5

You clever thing! I've tried lots of times but have had limited success. Pot your plant on into a nice teracotta pot (it allows the roots to breathe) and use a John Innes compost. Don't forget to feed it occasionally.

P.S. Have you tried rubbing the leaves and smelling them? Gorgeous!