Plant Library

Other Names:  Pixie Tangerine

Description:

A vigorous, upright selection that bears small, sweet orange fruit that is seedless and easy to peel; spring flowers are quite fragrant; a nice landscape plant, as a hedge or screen; great container plant for the patio, or indoors in colder climates

Edible Qualities

Pixie Mandarin is a large shrub that is typically grown for its edible qualities. It produces small orange fruit which are typically harvested when mature. The seedlessfruits have a sweet taste and a juicy texture.

The fruit are most often used in the following ways:

• Fresh Eating
• Cooking
• Baking
• Preserves
• Juice-Making
• Sauces

Features & Attributes

Pixie Mandarin features showy clusters of fragrant white star-shaped flowers at the ends of the branches from mid to late spring. It has dark green foliage with grayish green undersides and tinges of bluish-green. The glossy pointy leaves remain dark green throughout the winter. It features an abundance of magnificent orange berries from late fall to late winter.

This is a multi-stemmed evergreen shrub with an upright spreading habit of growth. Its average texture blends into the landscape, but can be balanced by one or two finer or coarser trees or shrubs for an effective composition. This is a relatively low maintenance plant, and is best pruned in late winter once the threat of extreme cold has passed. It is a good choice for attracting birds, bees and butterflies to your yard. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Aside from its primary use as an edible, Pixie Mandarin is sutiable for the following landscape applications;

• Accent
• Hedges/Screening
• Orchard/Edible Landscaping
• Container Planting

Planting & Growing

Pixie Mandarin will grow to be about 15 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 15 feet. It has a low canopy with a typical clearance of 1 foot from the ground, and is suitable for planting under power lines. It grows at a medium rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for 50 years or more. This is a self-pollinating variety, so it doesn't require a second plant nearby to set fruit.

This shrub is typically grown in a designated area of the yard because of its mature size and spread. It does best in full sun to partial shade. It prefers to grow in average to moist conditions, and shouldn't be allowed to dry out. It may require supplemental watering during periods of drought or extended heat. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. This is a selected variety of a species not originally from North America.

Pixie Mandarin is a good choice for the edible garden, but it is also well-suited for use in outdoor pots and containers. Its large size and upright habit of growth lend it for use as a solitary accent, or in a composition surrounded by smaller plants around the base and those that spill over the edges. It is even sizeable enough that it can be grown alone in a suitable container. Note that when grown in a container, it may not perform exactly as indicated on the tag - this is to be expected. Also note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.