I have heard of a mature fruiting Satsuma orange in Wilmington, NC. So I set out to find it.
I found an old fellow that was reportedly was holding the knowledge. He said that the Satsuma came from him. He owned a commercial greenhouse until a few years ago. He said get into the car
and we'll go see it. It was only about a mile away.
The tree is about 7 years old. I asked what kind of Satsuma it
was and he said a Satsuma that's all. He wasn't aware of there being
different kinds.
The tree is over grown quite a bit by the trifoliate rootstock. No, the trifoliate had taken over.
The person who has it now isn't taking care of it. My new friend said that the owner had tried to sell it to him.
Now, Would it be worth my time to move this tree to my yard? Or should I be happy with cuttings?
The tree is about 15 to 20 feet high. That's the trifoliate. In the pic you can see the Satsuma limbs on the lower parts and about 6 or 7 feet high. In the north and west pics it show dead limbs that are Satsuma.
Evidently, the Satsuma matured quite a bit before the trifoliate took over. The Satsuma branches are as big as my forearm at the base. In the close up pics the trifoliate is marked with “T” and the Satsuma with a “S”.
Has its environment helped the tree so survive? The Satsuma has tree break 50ft on the to the East and 50ft to the South. This didn't let the morning sun hit the tree after a hard frost. But, interesting enough, there are dead limbs only on the north side of the tree. I wish I knew what that tells me.
I’ve now talked to the owner. He’s an older fellow living alone and he said that he isn’t in good health. He said that for several years people have come up and taken pics of it and he would just like to sell it. How much? He said as much as he can get.
Here’s my plan. I’m going to buy it. Cut out the trifoliate. Wait till spring to move it. I have cuttings and bud wood to start just in case it doesn’t survive the move.
Considering how over grown it is… what’s it worth?
Any suggestions?
Terry
P.S. The older fellow (he’s 85) that showed me the tree said that there is another Satsuma near Greenfield Lake in a woman’s yard and that at one time there were several Satsumas’ in downtown Wilmington.

How do you plan to transplant the tree? I'd assume that you'll enlist a "tree spade" or mechanical digger. The cost of the moving machine is only one issue to investigate as you consider the transplant. Access to the tree, using the appropiate sized spade: 10" of root ball to each 1" of trunk diameter, under ground utilites, overhead wires, etc. We move dozens of trees each year with various sized tree spades ranging to the 90" ball size. If used correctly they are a wonderful tool but just because a spade can dig a tree from the ground and transport it to it's new home doesn't mean it will be a sucessful transplant. After care or "post planting care" is also very important. You can visit our website www.greeleyforestry. org and click on "donations"..there are two sizes of tree spades shown. Good luck. Feel free to e-mail if you have questions....tree care and tree transplanting is what I do for a living.

Good question joencolo about moving the tree. A tree spade was my first thought. I had some trees moved a few years ago. It was a great way to move trees.
I’ve got to go back tomorrow and look again. First, there is an overhead wire that you can see from the pics. If I cut out the trifoliate part the Satsuma will only be about 6 ft tall.
The other problem is the water ditch beside the road. I can’t remember well but I think the bridge was makeshift and may not carry a tree spade truck.
Third, who know what utilities are under the tree. I can call “No Cuts”
These are things that I didn’t think about till after I left. Right now I’m thinking that I may have to dig it by hand. I’m not an expert but it seems to me that digging by hand would give me a much lower percentage toward success. I think I should find a local concern that is experienced in hand tree moving.
Terry

I'd sure try to go with the spade if you can. Hand digs can be sucessful but with the size ball you'll need with this girl....WOW, you're talking about a lot of weight and bulk...plus if the ball gets cracked or dropped during transport or re-planting..well you might as well take it to the dump. About overhead height....maybe the wire can be dropped for the move. Most utility companies will do this...sometimes for free, sometimes for a fee. When the spade lifts the tree from the hole (even when it's angled) the top of the tree is raised a significant amount until the frame is back in the cradle. Maybe you can bridge the ditch or come in through a neighbors? The extra work to get a spade in for this move would be worth it....I'd say your sucess ratio should be pretty much guaranteed with the spade.

Since the Satsuma limbs are leaning outwards because of the trifoliate, how about air layering the 3 Satsuma limbs? I would get 3 smaller trees. I say that knowing that I have never air layered anything. What percentage of success is there with air layering?
Terry

If the satsuma fruit is of good quality the best way would be to take scions in late februaru or early March just before bud break. Graft a couple of understocks. ave budwood until the bark starts slipping and then t-bud.

Satsumas and kumquats are difficult to air layer.

If you want to invest the time and effort to move the tree. Decide the size of root ball you sant to move. Use a good spade, the longer the better. Dig straight down skip a spade width and do this completely aroung the tree. Wait 6 weeks to 2 months and cut the rest of the roots. I have moved several trees using this method and had them survive.
Sold one to a lanscaper in Houston Tx several years ago. He sat the tree on concrete and covered the root ball with p[ine bark and had fruit on the tree before it was planted.

By cutting stright down with a spade in a circle around the tree, then leaving the tree in place for two months, like Buddinman said is a good method. This causes the tree to put out many small new rootlets, which greatly helps the tree to survive when you take it out completely two months later. Good sugestion Buddinman. - Millet

Buddinman’s technique would work best in this situation. I would have too many hoops to jump through for a tree spade. Besides a power line above and possible power and cable line underground, making a bridge to the tree, He told me that he thinks the tree survived winter because his water line is running by it.
Using the “Buddinman technique” do I need to wait till the temperature is above 50degs before I start?
Terry

Pruning out the Trifoliate water sprouts or sucker growth prior to any root work on the tree would seem to be a good first step. Then...on to root pruning. Root pruning stimulates the developing of new and more dense roots at the cut ends and behind those ends. The longer you can wait, within reason, (3-6 months) the better. Cuts should be made clean with no "ragged" ends and root ends not allowed to dry out. Just be sure to dig outside of the area where root pruning occured when you dig and "harvest" the tree, otherwise you could destroy the many new roots that developed as a result of the root pruning. After root pruning the tree should be watched pretty close. Watch for stress or unusual wilting....if that occurs...selective thinning would help compensate for root loss and moisture transpiration through a canopy that the remaining roots cannot support. At transplanting time...you might want to consider the use of an anti-dessicant such as "Leaf-Shield" or "Wilt-Pruf" and a good root stimulator into the planting pit.

I don't want to seem contrarian, but wouldn't be it be a lot simpler to drive to a nursery in Charleston, SC, and pick one up? Considering its present condition it appears to be fighting a losing battle with it's rootstock, the trifoliate. This is probably due to it being in a very marginal climate, even for satsumas.....and the dead limbs on the north and west may be due to Old Man Winter....all of the really nasty cold-fronts we get in the SE always have a NW or NNW wind. This tree is out in the open, but a PROPERLY sited sastsuma in Wilmington ought to reward you with many years of delicious fruit. Glad to see this new forum!

You sure could be right but only Terry can make the decision as to whether it's worth the time, effort and $$$'s to move this tree. Other folks and myself were just trying to provide the best advise and guidance for a successful move....based on the assumtion that he had already decided that he wanted to transplant the tree to his place.

The value of the tree is no more than what the
owner originally paid for it. If the tree was free
to him then you can offer $50 to take it off his
hands. The tree is no longer a Mandarin, it is
now overgrown rootstock so the value of it
being a Mandarin is zero. Essentially what you
would be doing is trying your best through time,
your work and expense to reclaim this tree in
hope of it becoming a Mandarin again.

There are a few questions you need to ask and the
first one I would ask is, is the fruit any good? The
second question is after you have cut away all of
the trifoliate rootstock limbs, all of them, what
do you have left for a Mandarin tree? Then of
what is left of the Mandarin are their disease and
insect factors that may prevent this tree from a
decent recovery? What you do not want is to go
to the trouble of preparing this tree to be saved
and then lose it.

The whole procedure of freeing the tree from
the ground, then either using a spade to hold
and haul the tree for transport or using a Bobcat
to place the tree on a flatbed and haul it (we've
done the Bobcat bit for a 50 year old Trident
Maple that was in the ground for 40 years and
we set the tree right into a 36" box on a flatbed
and then transported the tree in box right to its
destination and then used a forklift to lift it off
the flatbed and placed the box right on the ground
where we wanted it to go). You have two options
as you can either plant the tree back in the ground
or you can baby it for about three or more years in
a large wooden box. Based on what I am seeing
from the roots in the photos I think you can get by
placing this tree in a box with about 50% soil and
50% forest humus (pine and/or fir bark as we did
for the Maple) for a few years and then when and
if you have a tree again plant it where you want it
to go.

The hard issue to overcome is that for a collector
this tree does have a value if the fruit is worth
eating but as is this is a reclamation project. The
cost factor in time, energy and in money alone
just to prepare and transport this tree is all that
you should pay. How a collector handles a tree
essentially found in the wild, as this is no longer
a cultivated or manicured garden tree any more
or a Citrus specimen is one thing but the owner
has to know that you are doing what you can not
for the aesthetics of the tree as there is no value
there any more from a Citrus standpoint but to
save and restore what the original tree was at the
expense of you still losing this tree. Left right
where it is the graft will die in time and then what
is the trifoliate tree worth? Look at the whole
situation this way, how many people are going to
go out and spend $200-500 just to transplant a tree
like this for a landscape and grow it on as an
ornamental? This tree should be looked at in the
big picture as being a landscape tree you have
interest in, not as being a Citrus collection tree.
If the owner values the tree and what it once was
he would give the tree to you just so you can try
to reclaim this tree and later call it an heirloom tree
if you want.

Snickles

The important thing is that I got help. Where else could I find someone to help me with this unusual request? This is a great Citrus Forum isn’t it!
You know humans have a great diversity. I remember when you listened to music on the radio. Then you had Pop and Country stations. Then Soul, Techno, Rap and etc.
Some people buy a house in a new development, some well established developments. Some in town, some an old farmhouse or a fixer-upper.
I have several Satsuma orange trees. Lowe’s and Home Depot get in nice size trees each spring at a good price.
But, I like things with character. I like things with a story behind it. That’s all.
I own a 1929 Depression Model Gibson Guitar. It’s the same kind that Woody Guthrie played. It was in a flood in Huntington, WV in 1937, It set in the owners house till he gave it to me in 19 64. He thought I could make it play again. I glued it back together the best I could. In 1966 I played it in Coffee Houses on several college campus. I played it in a summer stock show called Honey In The Rock in Beckley, WV. Recently my son became Luthier and the Ol’ Gibson was finally restored the way it should be. And now at night before we go to bed I play a few songs for my wife.
So, in a few years, ask me about my Wilmington Satsuma.