I have a miniature tangerine tree or I guess you could call it a dwarf tree, I have grown it inside the house for about 20 years, and put it out in the summer. My question is, it's suppose to produce fruit and it doesn't. Does anyone know why? I was at one forum that said there has to be a certain number of leaves on it, well I have well surpassed that years ago, and it still won't fruit. I got to thinking that maybe it's like an apple tree you need 2 of them to cross pollinate? I don't have room in my house for 2 plants this size, so is there anything I can do to make it fruit?
Did you grow your tree from a seed or was it purchased from a nursery (ie. a specific variety grafted onto a rootstock)? Seed grown citrus can take an extremely long time (if ever) to produce fruit and it’s even harder to reach that point when it’s grown in a pot.
Agree with @KevyWestside, it would be useful to know whether this is a seedling tree. The tree has not produced fruit but does it produce flowers? Your question regarding pollination suggests it does. Also, do you know which variety of mandarin it is? Many but not all citrus varieties do not require pollination to produce fruit. Perhaps you were referring to the 'node count' theory as it applies to tree maturity: Question for Dr. Manners re node count. If the tree has reached maturity it could be encouraged to develop flower buds by exposing it to 600 hours of temperatures below 20C/68F during fall and winter. Alternatively, according to the article, Calamondin - The Most Versatile Citrus: Although the article is on calamondins this method can be used for other varieties of citrus.
