Here's a picture of my Ichang lemon (Citrus × wilsonii) growing outside. It was not covered this winter, but is growing in a more protected location, up against the wall of the house. Olympia, WA, climate zone 8a (about an hour south of Seattle, although Olympia does usually get just a tad bit colder in winter compared to Seattle) I am pleasantly surprised it has been surviving and appears to be doing as well as it has. You can see that some of the newer leaves on the exterior tips of the branches, that are smaller, never had a chance to grow much last year before winter came, and are now pale white-yellow-green in color, probably will not survive. But most of the leaves do not look bad and look like they will probably gradually turn a healthier hue of green as temperatures begin to warm up. The plant is about one and a half feet high (46 cm). I do not think Ichang lemon is really very cold hardy, but surprisingly this plant has been growing acceptably well here. But it is in a very optimal spot, protected from wind. If you look closely in the picture, in the upper left, you can see an osmanthus plant, which has also kept its leaves throughout the winter. (Osmanthus is related to lilac, but like citrus can also be a little difficult to grow in this climate) This plant has survived outside through two winters, and the winter before that it survived outside in a container. I do not think it is very cold tolerant but it seems to be able to recover from damage well. But it does not really put on growth until temperatures become very warm. Ichang lemon is probably not a hardy citrus variety that should be recommended for this climate, and it probably will not be able to survive for you, but I am just amazed that I am able to get it to grow here, this far north. (Any further north and I do not think it would be able to get enough heat to grow well, since it has pomelo-type ancestry) It's probably the least hardy of the hardy citrus varieties I have succeeded in being able to grow outside here. ("Ichang lemon" should not be confused with Ichang papeda. And indeed I had tried planting two small Ichang papeda plants but they were unable to survive outside here) Here is a picture of my Dunstan Citrumelo just beginning to bud out new little leaflets. It has kept all its leaves from last year and they all look a very healthy hue of green now. The plant is doing very well and is 83 inches high now (211 cm, almost 7 feet). Most of the leaves on it are trifoliate, but there's a few regular citrus shaped leaves. (Dunstan citrumelo is a hybrid between Duncan white grapefruit and Poncirus trifoliata) I also have a Changsha mandarin plant which is doing very well, the leaves all look a decently healthy hue of green. It is 55 inches high (140 cm), planted in a protected spot on the south-facing side of the house, and surrounded by a big escallonia bush, which helps provide some protection. April 23, 2025
