Oranges, lemons, tangerines, limes, and grapefruits are just some members of the citrus family. These are evergreen trees with fruits that are tasty and high in vitamin C. They are some of the most popular fruit trees grown in warm winter climates. They certainly offer attractive shaped trees that produce fruits that are nourishing, are flavorful when eaten fresh, can be squeezed for juices, are used in cooking, make great snacks and even look great as garnishes. Citrus trees grow in size from small dwarfs of 3 -4 feet tall to medium-sized shade trees. They have handsome, glossy, deep green leaves and flower with pretty white blossoms that fill the air with perfume.

Citrus trees are decorative and can be used in many ways in landscape design. Dwarf varieties are ideal to grow in pots. These can not only be ornamental but allow the pots to be moved to more protected quarters should cold weather threaten. Most varieties of citrus fruit trees can  handle light frost, but they will not survive hard frosts or lengthy periods of cold. Winter cold snaps can damage developing fruit.

Grow citrus trees near seating areas, on patios or balconies or around windows and doors. The sweet fragrance of the flowers will fill the air. Use the plants as shade trees, decorative shrubs or plant them in groups to form screens. Citrus trees can be planted in home orchards, too.

If you don’t have a large piece of property for planting whatever varieties of citrus you want to grow, you will need to choose which kind of citrus tree is best your you to grow in your garden. So which is better, orange, lemon, kumquat, tangerine, grapefruit or lime? There are some things to consider when you decide on what kind of citrus tree to plant in your garden. They may help you select the best citrus tree for your landscape.

Frost-free locals will allow you to grow almost any of the citrus fruits. Give them full sun, rich, well-drained soil and occasional deep watering that will penetrate to the bottom of the root system. For cooler areas you will want to choose the more hardy varieties of citrus. The most frost tolerant citrus plants are the kumquats. Most tangerine varieties are quite cold tolerant. Lemons bear colder temperatures than oranges and the least frost tolerant citrus trees are the limes and grapefruits.

Also consider your soil. Citrus prefer a slightly acid soil with plenty of organics. You can amend your soil to make them happier. Sometimes you will notice the leaves yellowing on plants that are not able to take up iron sufficiently. If adding iron to your soil doesn’t help, try some iron sulfate to help acidify the soil so the iron can be absorbed.

Make sure you have a space where your tree will get plenty of sun. Citrus trees will tolerate a little shade, but they need at least some direct sun, too.

If you have limited space or simply can’t decide which kind of citrus you want for your garden, you might want to spend a little extra and buy a ‘citrus salad’ tree — a single stemmed tree with grafted branches from several different varieties. The ‘citrus salad’ tree will allow you to grow from three to five different types of fruit all on one tree.

Whether you want a specimen tree, a potted tree, a shade tree or a well-behaved, small evergreen tree, consider planting a citrus tree. If you choose the right variety for your garden, you will get wonderful fruit — oranges, lemons, grapefruits, tangerines, limes, kumquats, etc. — and sweet, fragrant flowers for much of the year as well as a decorative tree that will enhance the look of your landscape.