Maximum Mandarins: The Best Mandarin Varieties From Fall to Spring

Mandarin oranges are a great option for home gardeners wating to grow their own citrus fruit. They are relatively easy to grow, in pots as well as in the ground, and produce delicious sweet fruit enjoyed by all ages. Choose the right mix of varieties and you can enjoy harvesting your own fresh mandarins for most of the year. Discover how to spread your mandarin harvest through the seasons with our favourite mandarin varieties.

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Why grow mandarin oranges?

Mandarin oranges are one of the most popular citrus fruits. They are almost the perfect snack, complete with their own organic packaging and easy to eat segments inside. Many mandarin types are easy to peel, sweet tasting and kid friendly.

With their attractive green leaves and dense foliage, mandarins make an ideal backyard or screening tree. They also grow very well in containers, making them suitable for small gardens or patios as well.

Mandarin tree tips

Growing your own mandarins is relatively easy too. Mandarins grow best in sunny, subtropical to warm temperate climates (USDA Zones 8–11). They do need a good amount of sun for good fruit production (at least 6 hours a day), so choosing the right spot for your tree is important. If you live in a cooler area, consider planting your mandarin trees in pots so they can stay in a sunny spot, and protect them from frost.

Mandarins thrive in good fertile soil that’s well draining and don’t like soggy roots. For pots and containers, a citrus potting mix or premium potting mix with added perlite, sand or bark mix will help the soil drain. Mandarins need regular watering in warm weather and fertiliser during the growing seasons.

Extending your mandarin harvest

A mature mandarin tree can produce a huge crop of fruit, and if you plant more than one you’ll be flush with fruit. Mandarins generally ripen from autumn/fall through to spring, but the exact time can depend on the variety and your climate.

For a long harvesting season, try planting a mix of early, mid and late ripening mandarin varieties. If you choose the right combination, you can be picking fresh mandarins for up to 8 months of the year. This “succession planting” strategy can also help avoid having an overload of mandarins that you might get if you have multiple trees of the same variety.

Early season mandarin varieties

These are some of the first mandarins of the season and some of the most popular varieties to grow:

• Imperial – Imperial mandarins appear early in the season with ripe fruit coming very early in autumn/fall. They have a great flavour without too many seeds and have easy to peel skin. When growing at home, the fruit doesn’t tend to hold very long on the tree after ripening. My potted Imperial mandarin still has fruit at the moment, but I need to watch it carefully and pick the ripe fruit it before it drops and splits. Some people report that their Imperial mandarin has a tendency for alternative bearing (only fruiting every second year), but mine definitely fruits annually.
• Clementine (Nules Clementine) – Clementine is a cross between a mandarin orange and a sweet orange. This hybrid is another favourite mandarin variety that tastes delicious and is virtually seedless (if there is no cross-pollination from other nearby trees). The fruit is small, sweet and easy to peel. Clementines grow well in the ground or in a pot.

Mid season mandarin varieties

The classic winter-fruiting mandarin orange varieties include these popular favourites:

• Emperor – Emperor mandarins are an Australian favourite for growing and eating. These large and very sweet mandarins have loose sking that’s very easy to peel and have a lovely sweet flavour. This is a variety that tends to appear in late autumn/fall through the winter months.
• Satsuma (Owari Satsuma) – This cold-hardy mandarin is a great option for coooler climates. Satsumas are winter fruiting, with delicious seedless fruit with a slightly tart flavour. They’re an excellent option for growing in a pot or container.
• Murcott (Honey Murcott) – We have family members who grow a number of Honey Murcott mandarin trees, so we have a steady supply of ripe fruit gifted to us through the mid-late season (winter). Honey Murcott are named for their rich, honeyed flavour which makes them a popular choice for home growers. The trade off is that they do have some seeds and can be a little hard to peel.

Late season mandarins

• Afourer (W. Murcott / Nadorcott) – Afourer mandarins are the ones we see in our local stores at the end of the season, from late winter heading into spring. They are very sweet and almost seedless. Alfourer mandarins hold well on the tree and are another great option for growing in a pot or container.
• Tango (Tangold) Mandarin – Marketed as Tangold in Australia, late season Tango mandarins are a tasty variety developed by the University of California. Tango is a smaller mandarin that’s very easy to peel, juicy and sweet with very few seeds,
• Daisy (Encore) Mandarin – This medium to large mandarin is a hybrid between Fortune clementine and Fremont mandarin. Daisy mandarins are sweet with few seeds. This variety fruits very late in the season, allowing you to extend your mandarin harvests well ito spring.

Guide to mandarin seasons in Australia and the US

The following table shows when different mandarin varieties are generally in season in Australia and the US (USDA Zones 8-11):

These seasons are an approximate guide only that will depend on your local climate and growing conditions.

By selecting an early, a mid and a late-season variety of mandarin to plant, you’ll be able to enjoy fresh mandarins for a good 6 months of the year.

More about growing citrus at home

For more about growing your own citrus trees at home, read our tips for autumn/fall citrus care and whether you need to thin citrus fruit crops . Or learn about different citrus pests and how to control them, like citrus bud mite or whiteflies.

If you’ve got a great crop of mandarins to use, check out some of our delicious citrus recipes including mandarin orange salad with turmeric dressing.

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