Q. Can we grow Kumquats in our area? Are they water
intensive?
A. Kumquats are a good choice in citrus if you want a low
maintenance container plant and had had poor luck with citrus in the past. They
use the same amount of water as other small citrus trees. Their mature size
determines their water use. Kumquats are frequently more cold hardy than other
types of citrus and provide some edible fruit that can be eaten directly from
the tree.
During
very cold winters it might be deciduous but generally consider the tree to be evergreen
and range in height from 6 feet to 20 feet depending on which variety you
choose, with a width equal to its height. Unlike Meyers lemon that flowers
usually during our coldest spring weather, it flowers and produces fruit
throughout the year.
When to Pick the Fruit
Pick and
eat the fruit when it’s bright orange because, unlike peaches and apricots but
more like figs and grapes, it won’t get any sweeter after you’ve picked it. Since
the peel is not bitter, just pop the whole fruit in your mouth and eat it. It
does however get sweeter as the fruit gets brighter in its orange color.
Kumquat
is not a desert plant, so it appreciates a reprieve from intense sunlight in
the afternoon. In other words, don’t plant it where it will be in full sun or
in a hot part of the landscape and don’t cover the soil in rock. Because it
produces fruit and flowers, it won’t like a lot of shade either. East or North
facing microclimates out of the wind are usually best.
Which Kumquat to Get
Three
varieties of Kumquat are popular for home landscapes and containers; ‘Meiwa”, ‘Nagami’,
and ‘Fukushu’ which is a bit less cold hardy than the other two. There are some
seedless selections available so look for those.