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When your oranges are splitting

Sacramento Digs Gardening
BY Kathy Morrison PUBLISHED OCT 24, 2019

Sigh, another nice big navel orange splits. (Photos: Kathy Morrison)

Note to self: Try to prevent this next year.

But now four of them have split, and we could lose the rest if these temperature spikes keep up. When I lived in Fullerton a few decades ago, we saw fruit splitting fairly often on our full-size navel orange tree, but this year is the first I can remember the current tree having this problem.

Citrus splitting is not from disease or pests, as UC Cooperative Extension experts have explained. The exact cause is unknown, but often it involves a combination of weather and situational issues, such as stressed trees and hot, dry winds. (Sound familiar?) Fluctuations in soil moisture and fertilizer also can bring it on. Oranges are the most susceptible, but mandarins and tangelos apparently can split, too.

Basically the stressed tree takes moisture from the fruit, which softens. If the tree is then irrigated heavily, or gets a lot of rainfall in a short time (remember the rainstorms in late September?), the fruit swells and cracks. The thinner rind is not able to expand enough to hold the extra moisture.

If your fruit is splitting from navel to stem, pull it off the tree and discard it. It won’t ripen properly, and the exposed flesh will attract pests. Keep your fingers crossed that the rest of the oranges will be able to grow to full sweetness.

Then next year:

-- Pay attention to the National Weather Service forecasts, especially in summer and early fall, and water your orange tree a few days before hot, windy weather is expected. After the hot spell ends, irrigate lightly, then resume the regular watering schedule.
-- Spread out feeding the tree through the year. Give it small monthly feedings rather than a single large application. A slow-release organic fertilizer is preferred.

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UCCE master gardeners UCANR gardening Sacramento oranges wind damage oranges splitting citrus problems citrus trees home orchard weather

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Garden Checklist for week of April 21

This week there’s plenty to keep gardeners busy. With no rain in the immediate forecast, remember to irrigate any new transplants.

* Weed, weed, weed! Get them before they flower and go to seed.

* April is the last chance to plant citrus trees such as dwarf orange, lemon and kumquat. These trees also look good in landscaping and provide fresh fruit in winter.

* Smell orange blossoms? Feed citrus trees with a low dose of balanced fertilizer (such as 10-10-10) during bloom to help set fruit. Keep an eye out for ants.

* Apply slow-release fertilizer to the lawn.

* Thoroughly clean debris from the bottom of outdoor ponds or fountains.

* Spring brings a flush of rapid growth, and that means your garden is really hungry. Feed shrubs and trees with a slow-release fertilizer. Or mulch with a 1-inch layer of compost.

* Azaleas and camellias looking a little yellow? If leaves are turning yellow between the veins, give them a boost with chelated iron.

* Trim dead flowers but not leaves from spring-flowering bulbs such as daffodils and tulips. Those leaves gather energy to create next year's flowers. Also, give the bulbs a fertilizer boost after bloom.

* Pinch chrysanthemums back to 12 inches for fall flowers. Cut old stems to the ground.

* Mulch around plants to conserve moisture and control weeds.

* From seed, plant beans, beets, cantaloupes, carrots, corn, cucumbers, melons, radishes and squash.

* Plant onion sets.

* In the flower garden, plant seeds for asters, cosmos, celosia, marigolds, salvia, sunflowers and zinnias.

* Transplant petunias, zinnias, geraniums and other summer bloomers.

* Plant perennials and dahlia tubers for summer bloom.

* Mid to late April is about the last chance to plant summer bulbs, such as gladiolus and tuberous begonias.

* Transplant lettuce seedlings. Choose varieties that mature quickly such as loose leaf.

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