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Variety of trees will be available at sale
February 15, 2019
By Helen Collins - Victoria County Master Gardener
Edited by Charla Borchers Leon
PHOTO CONTRIBUTED BY PIXABAY.COM
Of the three avocado varieties at the upcoming citrus sale Feb. 23, 'Lila' is likely the most cold hardy to 15 degrees. A medium-sized, 6- to 10-ounce pear-shaped fruit, it blooms in spring and ripens in July through August. It remains green with a smooth, textured flesh that has a rich, nutty flavor and high oil content.
PHOTO CONTRIBUTED BY SHUTTERSTOCK.COM
A citron, the Buddha's Hand citrus resembles a closed hand with fingers pointing down. When it matures, its fingers begin to spread and move outward like shown here. It has mostly a lemony-flavored pith and yellow rind with no juice or pulp. It is often used in candied fruit and in any baking/cooking that calls for lemon zest. It is one of the most unusual citrus planned to be available at the sale.
PHOTO CONTRIBUTED SHUTTERSTOCK.COM
A microcitrus rather than a lemon or lime, the Australian Lime exists in a variety of colors with seed pearls of tangy juice that are also varied from green, like shown here, to a pink/coral and actual pearl-like color. The pearl-shaped pulp or flesh of the finger fruit resembles fish roe which lends it being called Citrus Caviar. Considered rather out-of-the-ordinary, it is highly sought after by chefs for use in foods and as garnishes. As understory trees, they require a shaded location.
WHEN: 9 a.m. -1 p.m. Feb. 23
WHERE: Victoria Educational Gardens Pavilion, 333 Bachelor Drive, Victoria Regional Airport (across from airport control tower)
WHAT: 3 avocado/22 citrus cultivars
Come make your tree selections next Saturday.
Avocado
Grapefruit
Lemons
Limes
Unusual
Other cultivars highlighted in next week’s article.
The Gardeners’ Dirt is written by members of the Victoria County Master Gardener Association, an educational outreach of Texas A&M AgriLife Extension – Victoria County. Mail your questions in care of the Advocate, P.O. Box 1518, Victoria, TX 77901; or vcmga@vicad.com, or comment on this column at VictoriaAdvocate.com
PHOTO CONTRIBUTED BY PINTEREST.COM
Known as the Pink Lemonade Tree, the fruit of the Variegated Pink Eureka has very acidic, light-pink flesh with a low seed count at maturity. The leaves are variegated with mottled green and white, while the fruit is green and yellow cream-striped as shown here maturing. It changes to all yellow when fully ripe. With the right conditions, the tree can have ripened fruit almost year round.
Saturday, Feb. 23 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., the Victoria County Master Gardeners will hold their first citrus tree sale in the Victoria Educational Gardens Pavilion, 333 Bachelor Drive, diagonally across from the Regional Airport control tower. With three avocados and 22 citrus cultivars, there will be a wide variety of trees to choose from.
Three avocado varieties
The avocados that will be available are Joey, Lila and Mexicola Grande. These self-pollinating, thin-skinned fruit have different colors – Lila being green and Joey and Mexicola Grande being purple/black. They have a rich, creamy texture with a nutty flavor. The nutrients of these lovely jewels include an assortment of vitamins, minerals and healthy oil.
They are cold-hardy from the lower 20s to the mid-teens once they are well-established. But the green bark on their trunks and branches and their shallow roots needs to be protected from sunburn in summer and freeze in winter for the first one to two years after planting.
Representing the grapefruits are Bloomsweet, Cocktail and Rio Red.
Bloomsweet grows in clusters similar to grapes and has a thin skin that is easy to peel and easily segmented pulp. The white flesh is very juicy with a sweet, mild taste without the acidity of most grapefruit.
Cocktail, a cross between a mandarin and pummelo, is sweet and juicy but is very seedy. With its orangey-grapefruit flavor, Cocktail grapefruit are very good for juicing and making beverages, jams and frozen desserts.
Rio Red lives up to its name with a deep red flesh that is juicy with few seeds. The rind of Rio Red is smooth, thin and yellow taking on a red blush at maturity.
Frost Eureka, Improved Meyer and Variegated Pink Eureka lemons will be available for purchase. Frost Eureka is a medium-sized yellow fruit when it matures. The green-yellow flesh is very acidic. It fruits most of the year being most productive during winter, spring and early summer.
Improved Meyer, a hybrid between a lemon and an orange, first matures in October. It has a tart taste that gets sweeter as it matures into January.
Variegated Pink Eureka, sometimes called the pink lemonade tree, has very acidic, light-pink flesh with a low seed count when it is mature. With mottled green and white leaves; the fruit itself is green- and cream-striped. It changes to all yellow when fully ripe. Under good conditions, the tree can have ripened fruit almost year round.
The limes available will be Kaffir, Persian and Key (thornless Mexican) lime. Like most citrus, the Kaffir can be cold-sensitive until it is well established. Being grown as a container plant allows it to be moved inside in colder weather.
The tree needs well-drained acidic soil because wet feet can cause root rot and death to the tree. It has an aromatic peel and double-lobed leaves that are used in Asian cooking. The leaves can be used fresh or dried or frozen for future use.
The Persian is the lime most often seen in grocery stores.
It is self-pollinating and can be harvested when the fruit gets to be about 1 3/4 inches; smaller fruit lacks sufficient juice.
The Key is actually a Mexican variety lime that is (nearly) thornless – good when harvesting the fruit.
The matured fruit is small and green or yellow-green, which turns full yellow when completely ripe, resembling a lemon.
The most unusual trees are the Australian Finger lime and Buddha’s Hand.
The Australian lime is a microcitrus rather than a lemon or lime. It comes in a variety of colors and the seed pearls of tangy juice are also varied.
The pearls of lime-flavored juice constitute the pulp or flesh of the fruit and are sometimes called citrus caviar as they resemble fish roe. The fruit is much sought after by chefs, being used in foods and as garnishes. These trees are understory plants needing to be grown in shaded areas.
The Buddha’s Hand is a citron resembling a closed hand with the fingers pointing down. As it matures, the finger segments begin to spread and move outward. There is no juice or pulp to the fruit; it has mostly a deeply lemony flavored pith with a thin core and the thick yellow rind. It can be used for making candied fruit and in any baking/cooking that calls for lemon zest.
Imagine the joy of walking outside to your patio or yard and picking your home-grown, naturally tree-ripened fruit from your very own trees.
Next week’s article will highlight other trees that will be offered for sale.
ph: 361-935-1556
nancyk