I wish you luck with your debate. I wish I could contribute, but cannot much. I have a Gold Nugget (not a hardy tree at all, must be a rare weakling from FW), Shiranui (this tree is awesome and has grown quite well. The fruit are delicious also), xie-Shan (have one too but have only tasted one fruit, which was ok but nothing to write home about. I suspect the fruit quality will improve with the age of the tree), pixie (have one too, but it’s s tiny), and Miho wase (have one too, but have only tasted two fruits...pretty good, but again, I suspect they will improve as the tree grows up). So far, Shiranui is my favorite.

Wow, Laura in a few years you’ll be our resident expert on varieties. How do you manage to take care of them all?

It’s not easy....lol...that’s why I’m going crazy wanting them to go back outside. I currently have lemons coming out my ears! I am looking for creative recipes to use them up. It is interesting getting to taste them. Next year I will have an ever better sampling because I have a couple more that I’ve not tasted yet.

Alanna - Check through this thread - https://www.gardenweb.com/discussions/4492982/best-seedless-mandarin-varieties

That was the thread that helped me to decide to go on and get a Tango and a Kishu (you don't list Kishu on your current list but you did mention it in that above thread)! I think the one other that I plan to try to get is the Shiranui (aka "Sumo" aka "Dekopan").

I believe the Kishu is a peak December - February bearer.

I have had a fruiting Tango for two years and like it very much. I have a premium Gold Nugget from FW, purchased last year, and have found it to be a slow grower. It is just now showing new growth and has some blossoms.

Jenny - thanks for the link. I’ve read through it a couple of times (plus all of the other mandarin threads - I’m a bit obsessive). I hadn’t read it in a while and it was funny to see that I choose all of the same varieties as Badfish, except for the kishu, as you pointed out. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve reworked my list. Unfortunately, I can’t have every variety out there! Kishu has to go; I discriminated because they're the tiniest. Maybe if I had kids, but I’m a childless spinster, with limited space.

Hey Alannna - You probably have more space than me (and I am also w/o kids... :-D). My little patio is 10ft deep by 17ft wide (total square footage is actually less than the hi-rise balcony I used to garden on before I moved). But I get trying to juggle container plants - which also includes taking into account positioning them to try to maximize the type of sun that they need. I mostly have hardy (and some tender) container shrubs/perennials/bulbs/herbs that have to share space with the citrus and my tropicals. It literally requires a couple months of planning how I anticipate arranging things out there so I can still have some room to add a chair and little table and not block my little bbq grill. LOL

Great thread Alanna! I also plan to grow in containers as I live in the same state but I have such a hard time deciding too! I don't want to waste precious growing time on varieties I'm not absolutely certain about. All I know is that I've never seen anyone say or type anything negative (or even neutral) about the Gold Nugget flavor! Hope to see more experienced growers give hints about the different flavors of the varieties :)

I plan to get 1-2 more trees this spring and I'm considering the Gold nugget -- Shiranui -- Ponkan -- Xie Shan -- Okitsu (or dobashi beni supposed to taste similar). They are ordered from how likely I am to purchase the variety and how sure I am about its lauded greatness! Good luck on your decision!

//edit// Page is also on that list but it's said to be a bit difficult to peel and considered more for its great juice. It's still a candidate on my list though!

I only have one tree and I got it locally from a garden shop. But I hope to buy from McKenzie or Harris to support the smaller growers that send out quality trees. I'll try to find the threads where I read about those varieties. The Ponkan is a parent of the Shiranui though so I trust all the positive things I've read about it :)

Jenny, I'm fortunate enough that I do have a yard, so summer time is great. We don't have a fence, so the deer destroy my garden and I live in fear that they'll start nibbling my citrus. That is why I bring them inside at night. I'm planning to put up a temp fence this summer, so I'll be able to relax a bit. Inside is a different story, I only have 2 windows that get direct morning sunlight all winter. Just this past month, the light has changed and I now have 2 windows that get afternoon light again. I literally can not fit one more tree inside without a lot more lights. I'm kind of going on faith, that where ever I end up moving too this fall, will have enough window space for my beloved trees. I'm definitely anxious about it and a rational person would stop adding to their collection. My father just moved last year and I was really hoping to get him into a condo with a tiny patio like you described, so I'd at least have a backup, but no luck. He loves his new place, but his one complaint is no outdoor space. He loves the sun as much as my citrus!

I have a young Pixie Tangerine tree that provided 5 fruits this winter. They were all very tasty, it peeled easily, and had very few seeds - important with picky kids. I am greatly anticipating future growth in this tree so it'll give me more fruit!

I wish I could help, but they all sound good

Kishu is a very easy peel mandarin. They are small, but I had over 100 on my tiny tree which is less than 3 feet tall (in the ground).

I will always vote for Tango, I have personally picked fruit from the trees at the Citrus Variety Collection at the UCR campus where they developed this variety. It happened to be peak ripeness the day I was on site (mid February) and I enjoyed the sweetest, best tasting tart/ perfectly balanced mandarins I have ever had in my life. I say you can’t go wrong with a tango, they are what most of the Halos and Cuties are today that are sold in stores.

Evan

Evan - I already have a Tango, but I'm definitely thinking about getting another. What it's going to come down to in choosing which mandarins to get is: how crazy am I? I don't think I should expand at all in my currently living situation, but is that going to stop me? Probably not...

I have a question about "seedless" mandarins. I know that many of the seedless actually have a few seeds and the seediness depends on cross pollination. But the variety that are seedless through irradiation or gene manipulation, like the Tango, are those ones always seedless, regardless of cross pollination? If so, which ones are guaranteed to be seedless? Clearly, I don't have the capability to keep my trees but being cross pollinated.

Alanna, I will vote for golden nugget mandarins! I just ate three and they had the right balance of sugar and acid for my taste.

Second runner up will be the shiranui. Just love the bell shape!

I vote for you to get the Shiranui. I have spent a fortune at the store for the fruit. They are delicious, sweet, easy to peel and no seeds. It's rare to find a seed. Before purchasing a tree, try to sample it's fruit, otherwise you spent a lot of money on something you don't like.

Sorry Alanna, I wasn't able to find the exact threads where I first read about those varieties but I've found some using the search bar on gardenweb. I also have some outside links for them too.

Ponkan is described by jadegarden & Silica in this old thread https://www.gardenweb.com/discussions/4850719/my-first-kishu?n=27 

Okitsu taste mentioned by hoosierquilt in this old thread around Nov27 https://www.gardenweb.com/discussions/1847984/first-satsumas-of-the-season?n=49

Fruitmentor held a taste test in the past and Okitsu ranked 1st among 18 satsuma varities, Xie Shan ranked 3rd http://www.fruitmentor.com/okitsu-wase-satsuma  -- http://www.fruitmentor.com/owari-satsuma-mandarin-orange

Alot of info on citrus varieties on this site. You can find Dobashi Beni on the next table under "Later ripening" http://citruspages.free.fr/mandarins.html#okitsu

A good thread for reading about other varieties and the reasons people love them https://www.gardenweb.com/discussions/1832973/top-5-citrus-you-cant-live-without?n=48

Unfortunately doing all that research has made me consider a few more alternate varieties :(! It is now:

• Gold Nugget
• Sugarbelle (Minneola x Clementine cross, sweeter than Minneola but also more tart)
• Page (also Minneola x Celmentine cross)
• Shiranui/Ponkan
• Xie Shan
• Okitsu/Browns select (Browns select is supposed to be less weepy and more upright/compact)
• Lee x Nova/Daisy (SL version is the Daisy but irradiated)

My boyfriend is demanding I choose which tree to receive as a birthday gift but I can't possibly choose from the list!! I'm putting off the decision for as long as I can. Let us know which ones you go for to help those of us also unable to decide lol!

Thanks so much for all of those links - i just read through everything!

I've read such great things about some of those varieties, but I hesitate on several for a bunch of reasons. Please correct me if I'm worng:

Page - seedy/hard to peel

Ponkan - seedy

Sugarbelle - tart

Does anybody have a sugarbelle? I've never tasted one. Are they significantly more tart than a mandarin?

Daisy - seedy

I am actually still considering a few extras. Here is my current list:

Definite: GN, Shiraniu, Xei Shan, Lee X Nova

Maybe: Yosemite, Pixie, Kishu, Brown Select, a 2nd Tango, a 2nd GN

Please try to convince me to change my mind. If space wasn't an issue, I would literally buy them all, plus more!

Lemons I'm considering:

Bearrs, 2nd Meyer, Lisbon, Eureka, Harvey, 2nd NZL

http://www.justfruitsandexotics.com/JFE/product/ponkan-tangerine-tree/  It says few seeds.

UCRiverside described it as seedy, but everyone describes it's flavor as fantastic

I read that the Sugarbelle although more tart than the Honeybell(Minneola), they are also sweeter so I assume it's still balanced. Probably just more intense in both regards

The original Daisy is seedy but they irradiated some Daisy budwood to become seedless. The seedless version is called DaisySL

In terms of seediness in my citrus, I don't mind because I tend to eat my fruit really slow anyways so I like to focus more on taste and flavor. I think having one each of the "Gold" series would be good if you're a maybe on the Yosemite. Since the Pixie is on the smallish side, you could prob get the Kishu over the Pixie. There's too many great things being said about the Kishu flavor despite its size so if you're short on space, go for the tiny Kishu instead of the small Pixie. You probably won't need a 2nd Tango if you do decide on a second "Gold" whether it is the Yosemite or a 2nd GN. I hear the GN has a strong flavor and so does the Tango, so you might as well get a different flavor/taste or a mandarin with a different ripening period.

Technically there are alot of diferent types of 'Ponkans.' There's a common plain Ponkan, and there other Ponkans with varietal names attached to them. So depending on which type of Ponkan you get, the seediness will probably vary too. Actually I'm a bit surprised UCRiverside would describe it as seedy since the Shiranui comes from the Ponkan and very few people have found seeds in their Sumos

I'm definitely ordering a Shiranui and Xie Shan. I can't wait to get them. I'm nearly certain I'll order a Golden Nugget and Lee x Nova when they become available again from FW (then I need to decide if I should just get these 2 or go ham at FW and got a whole bunch of others - I suppose it depends on what's in stock when they ones I want finally become available). I'm still on the fence about the kishu. I'm actually thinking about it because it's a heavy bearer and will be a good tree to have to give away. When people hear I have citrus, everyone always wants me to bring in some to share. This may be selfish, but I'd rather bring in some kishus than my shiranuis or golden nuggets! Is it ridiculous to buy a tree for the sole purpose of giving to fruit to others, so I don't have to share the fruit I enjoy more??

It sounds like as good of reason as any, My 3 mature in ground Satsuma trees already produced far more fruit than my family can consume when I started planted other varieties of citrus a few years ago. I now have 7 varieties of Satsuma, the latest being Miho, as well as a Cara Cara Orange and a Meyer's Lemon. I am trying to limit myself to planting 1 or maybe 2 new citrus trees each year, in order to limit the number of smaller trees that I must protect from all hard freezes each winter (The larger Satsuma trees only have to be protected from particularly hard freezes every 3-4 years).

Wow Ike, they must taste so good to plant 7 varieties worth! Would it be an inconvenience to ask which of the 7 satsumas you have and the major differences between them? Or if you could name 3 favorite satsumas, which ones would they be? I've been doing research on the satsuma varieties and the Brix/acid ratios. They all seem so close in terms of numbers especially the Miho, Okitsu, and Miyagawa. I'm planning to get 1 or 2 satsuma varieties and can't decide between those three!