I would, but make sure ties are not too tight. The trunk will thicken up in a year or so. Will it eventually go in the ground?

Thank you @Dave in NoVA • N. Virginia • zone 7A! I was beginning to think this post would die a quiet and lonely death, very unlike my usual experiences on Houzz.

You said to make sure the ties are not too tight. When I got it from the store, it was tied flush against a stake in multiple spots, looked awful. I wonder if that's how it grew so tall so fast.

I put one stake in there and tied a ribbon in a loose figure-8, about 2/3 up the trunk. That has helped stabilize it a lot, but that other main branch likes to sag. It droops low enough that many of the main leaves get sun on their backs instead of their faces. Would it be appropriate to loosely support it, too, or will the branch naturally learn to lift to the sunshine? I don't want to handicap the tree, but I also want to give it some help if it needs it. I'm a real novice here, obviously.

I would love nothing more than to put that tree in the ground, but unfortunately it is destined to remain in a container. As you can see, there is no room in the side yard (that is artificial turf, not grass, and the garden areas are too close to the houses), and the dumb HOA prohibits citrus in the ground in the front (which is awful because I face south and east and get amazing sun there). So, I am developing my expertise in container growing.....

Loose support should be fine. Just watch it in high winds. You don't want the wind breaking it off at the tie. I would tie it up pretty high for now.

Most citrus have long arching branches, especially when laden with fruit. So that is normal. As the branches arch down, new branches will sprout and grow more upright. If you want, you can clip the ends of the longest branches 4 to 6" to encourage a bit of branching.

Your plant looks too close to the wall. Will it get some secondary burn from hot sun reflecting off the stucco? I would pull it away from the house a bit more -- especially when 90º+ weather arrives. Or, provided you haven't moved into your hot, hot weather yet, rotate your plant maybe 45 degrees each week or so, to encourage more symmetrical growth.

But in high summer, don't rotate, because that will burn leaves that aren't used to it. Even saguaros that have been transplanted and NOT oriented to the sun the way they were before digging, will burn!

Once again, thank you @Dave in NoVA • N. Virginia • zone 7A. I appreciate the information about arching being normal and new upright branches developing.

I wondered as well about the placement against the wall. So far, I have not detected much reflected heat, but I will watch for that. It's placed that close right now because I am trying to maximize sun exposure and the sunshine begins against that wall and gradually moves out. I'm trying to give the tree at least 6 hours of sunlight and it won't get that much (right now) if I push it away from the house. I'm hoping that as the season progresses there will be more sun exposure. You can kind of see in the first picture, there is another house 15 feet away from mine. My house is east facing and the tree is on the south side of my house. So there is potential for good sun as long as the sun runs along the strip of sky in between the two houses, but they also create a lot of shade depending on time of year and time of day.

We're not in the hot part of the season quite yet so maybe I will start rotating it. The tree definitely does not have a symmetrical growth pattern, which I also attribute to the stake placed by the nursery--there was no opportunity for limbs to emerge from the staked side. That also contributes to its top-heavy nature as it is unbalanced. That said, we are about 1 month away from consistent 90+ degree days, so should I be worried about encouraging new growth right now? I imagine tender leaves/limbs will get scorched.

Dave that would take care of the tree, too close to the wall, too much heat. It likes heat but not too much, especially where you are located.

Travis, your little tree will fill out over time. It will likely put out more branches up and down along the trunk, as long as the trunk gets some sun. My citrus trees only get from 4 to 6 hours of full sun a day and they do fine. Especially in a hot climate they may appreciate a bit more shade. I think yours will be fine.

Here's a mandarin I purchased a while ago. All the branches that are within the circle sprouted out within a year after I bought it. I am leaving most of them because I wanted a fuller plant. It would be a different story if I were planting it in the ground. In that case, I'd want more of a clean trunk look.

That's a great looking tree Dave, thanks for sharing! It looks very happy. How old is it? I'm encouraged that lower limbs will sprout within the next year.

I have a Meyer lemon and this Ruby Red grapefruit. Both are new to me this spring, so I've never enjoyed the eventual fruit crop. Everything I've read is that citrus love sun all day, especially if you want them to fruit, but Phoenix has brutal summers, so maybe less sun is okay? Then you add in the container factor, and I just don't know what to expect.

It's hard to tell from the pictures I posted, but my grapefruit has several large leaves attached directly to the trunk below the limbs. These are the largest leaves on the tree (so I assume they are the oldest). I've never seen leaves attached to the trunk instead of branches. They are also kind of droopy, which I initially attributed to "sulking" due to location change. But they haven't lifted up yet after a week, so maybe that's just how they are. Is it normal for the trunk to grow leaves?

Leaves on the trunk are likely the oldest, but they will eventually shed. I don't know exactly how many years a citrus will hold onto one leaf. Maybe 2 or 3. Or it may depend on how well it's growing and how much light that leaf is getting. Nothing to worry about.

In a container, you have to be really careful that the root ball does not overheat. Morning sun might be best in your area.

Thank you Dave! I made these wood planters for a few reasons, but one of the important ones is that they don't heat up like other materials. I'm hoping the combination of wood planter, mulch, and frequent watering in a well-draining mix will keep root temperature at a tolerable level. I've heard some people wrap their planters in tin foil to reflect the light, I don't know if that will have a measurable impact here. With my luck it'd probably reflect into the leaves and cook still cook the tree! The tree gets the majority of it's light before mid-afternoon, thankfully. I think one of the things I'll have to figure out is the balance between appropriate temperature and sufficient sunlight. I'm encouraged that your trees get 4-6 hours and do well.

Wow, what an amazing looking tree!

I would be thrilled if any of mine look that good :)

Thanks! I just love mandarins. This one's fruit were really good this year, getting ripe around November and into December.

What size container is that tree in? I'm still trying to learn appropriate sizes. Do you do root work periodically? The idea of trimming roots scares me!

Maybe 20” square. I’ll probably have to root prune pretty soon.