Growing Cara Cara Oranges in AZ

[@xavierxrc]

The part where you eat the orange is the same type of reaction I had when I first tired one. It is 1000x better than any other orange I have tasted. Probably my favorite fruit too.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Glad to hear we're not the only ones who love the taste of this fruit. It really is amazing how sweet and juicy they are. Much better than a regular naval orange!

[@thatchicksavage3165]

We just planted a CaraCara yesterday. This video made me super excited for the harvest season😍🥳

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

You're going to love those oranges!!

[@thatchicksavage3165]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm thank you, can't wait!💜🙏

[@valm124]

I just bought one from a local AZ guy. I'm very excited to get it in the dirt! I was going to go Valencia - but when I read about the wonderful benefits and how unique they are, definitely set my heart on it. And I'm Always so thrilled whenever I look for a video on a plant and I find that y'all have it. Just got my Pakistani mulberry and Panache fig too! Thank you both for doing what you do.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey Valerie! Great choice on the Cara Cara. It's a FANTASTIC tasting citrus and very hard to beat. You're going to love the mulberry and fig too! Be careful, you'll wind up running out of space and have fruit overflowing from your yard in no time! ;)

[@fCLEF007]

This is the first time I have even heard of them! I definitely will be keeping an eye out for one in the future and hoping they come here!

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

I hope so too. I would imagine you guys would have a few areas where it would do well down under. I'm not sure if it's something that a grower can ship to you or not. I know the US has restrictions on certain trees crossing state lines, but I have not idea if they can ship internationally.

[@fCLEF007]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm Quarantine would prevent importation almost certainly! I might have a sniff around in winter and see if I can find one from a non-mainstream nursery, though :)

[@katiep6752]

Cara Cara’s are the best! You have great taste in citrus! No pun intended. 😉

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Katie, we agree...and that was good, LOL!!

[@momcatx2]

Cara Caras are the JUCIEST variety. They get sweeter if they stay on a little longer. We absolutely love our little tree.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

They really are hard to beat. We've always been partial to the flavor of the AZ Sweet varieties, but a seedless Cara Cara trumps just about every other citrus out there!

[@roadrash904]

Looks and sounds delicious 🤤

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

They really were very good. I was expecting a little more bitter, but boy was that pleasantly incorrect!

[@vnxettitw4879]

Yay I just got a cara cara too! I haven't checked your profile yet but would love to see you do Moro & other blood oranges. They have great benefits too.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Cara cara is REALLY hard to beat. We have the Sanguinelli Blood Orange and they are really good. We actually cut one open on our livestream this past weekend and you can really see just how dark the flesh is inside. But, the cara cara still takes the prize!!

[@Jindsing]

I just had my very first Cara. I can't believe i didnt know about them sooner

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

They are really one of the better tasting pieces of citrus. It's probably the best tasting naval type orange out there!

[@michaelagibbs9695]

I'm jelly 😍 that looked so juicy... I bought a 5 gallon Cara Cara from Reid in the spring and it's only a foot tall, can't wait until it fruits in a few years. What is the watering schedule for this tree? It may not be very tall but looks very green and healthy.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey Michaela. For the last few weeks we haven't watered it at all. It would be fine to give it some water probably every other week if it doesn't rain. Any rain and you can skip it completely.

[@brentbiel5425]

Great vid! I just just got one of these in a pot. Hopefully it grows ok in Melbourne Australia. Never tasted one but it looks delicious!

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey Brent! These are really good oranges and a great twist on your traditional naval orange. Hoping it does well for you in Melbourne!

[@sighfoo]

I live in in Mesa and my Cara Cara is 3 years old. I amended the soil when I planted, but it still has been a slow grower compared to my other citrus. I only got 1 fruit off of it. I love the fruit. Hopefully it will do better. Thanks for the great videos.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey Jennifer! As long as she's growing (and fruiting) you should be in good shape. They sure are yummy!

[@fernandovelasco3006]

I recommend removing the fruit when it’s very small at least for 1-2 years and you’ll see the tree grow fast. The small trees will spend most of the energy in growing 1 fruit and will not grow much branches.

[@gardenofluma9697]

Is that in full sun? Looks like a great tree! Mine was planted winter 2016 and still waiting for it to fruit and the trees around it are giving it too much shade. Love both the Cara Cara and AZ Sweet.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Yes, full sun on these guys. In fact the front of the farmhouse faces South and this is right in front of the entrance, so it really gets blasted with sun all year. Agreed with you on the AZ sweet along with this variety. Not sure you can find better oranges anywhere!

[@randomguy2246]

i have this variety grafted onto another tree. our cara cara's are reddish/orange and have an intoxicating vanilla+citrus aroma. And yes, i share the same reaction you have when i taste my cara caras lol

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

They are one of our favorite citrus varieties we have growing, so I'm glad to hear we're not the only ones who find them incredible!

[@cluck3627]

You're the best Dwayne

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Ahh, shucks. Thanks for that. This is one of our videos from the old farm which is always cool to see.

[@cluck3627]

After every tree we have planted here in the valley we end up googling more about them and then find your videos ...you have grown every tree we have haha.....Thanks guys!

[@jamestropicals8262]

I Really love cara cara oranges!

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Glad to hear it James. We're big fans of it also!

[@yolacintia]

When do you harvest in the season? Would you say this is your favorite? We have space for only one tree and are debating between trovita, cara cara, or ruby red grapefruit.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Oh wow, that's a good selection to choose from. If you're looking for a sweet citrus it would be a toss up between the Trovita and Cara Cara. They are both harvested in the winter and hold on the tree fairly well. The Trovita is really hard to beat and has a larger harvest than the Cara Cara, so I would probably sway that way with it. However, the Cara Cara is a very good option as well and more unique than the Trovita. Tough choice between those 2.

[@danielfisch655]

We love them too and planted one two years ago. It's a great producer and the fruit is delicious. We are planning on doing a Fedge (food hedge) this year and the Cara Cara is on the list with a Ruby red grapefruit and Meyer lemon tree. We plan on using Whitfill Nursery after we saw them at the Home and Garden show on Sunday.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey Daniel! I think a citrus hedge with these guys included would be a great idea. We were very pleased with the taste on these!

[@danielfisch655]

Edge of Nowhere Farm 🍊 🍋 🍊👌🏽👍🏽

[@gardenofthegeeks8277]

Daniel.. If you arte local to the valley look into these guys he great trees and good prices!. Also food hedge is great idea We are planning one as hedge slash windbreak when if ever we got onto our land.

[@danielfisch655]

Garden of The Geeks we are in the Scottsdale area, who are you recommending. I was going to buy from Whitfill Nursery in Phoenix on Glendale.

[@gardenofthegeeks8277]

@@danielfisch655 Sorry forgot to include link Oops rsigrowers.com/index.html Rsigrowers

[@AyZeD]

Ive seen these trees for sale at bunnings (big hardware store chain in Australia) and was curious to try one, I haven't bought a tree though but might in the future.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

I would say if you're thinking of putting in some type of naval orange, this may be your best bet. Great flavor and fruit size.

[@azalison317]

Hello! Thank you so much for all your informative videos. I have a cara cara here in the Phoenix area and the small green baby oranges keep dropping off the tree. The tree is 2 years old so I'm not sure if it is because the tree is still a baby or if I'm not watering it enough or what. Have you ever experienced citrus dropping? Any suggestions how to stop it? We had probably about 30 baby oranges on the small tree and now we only have 5-10 (if we are lucky).

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey azalison. I'm guessing on this, but chances are pretty good it's the age of the tree. Citrus usually takes a few years before they start to produce (IE set and mature fruit). They will also drop fruit if there is an issue with water, so make sure you mulch the tree well to keep a more consistent moisture content in the soil. One of the most critical times for ensuring moisture content is when the tree is setting fruit. But be careful not to overwater as this stresses the tree and can cause it to drop fruit. It's a bit frustrating to see it happen (we see it also), but eventually the tree will be mature enough to manage more of this on it's own. It's a lot tougher on a younger tree.

[@azalison317]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm Thank you so much!

[@momcatx2]

Hi, I see this is an old post, so hopefully your little tree has given you some good fruit this year. I just wanted to add...We have a 6 or 7 year old Cara Cara that is pretty high yielding, but every year it drops a TON of green fruit. I panic every time. By harvest time it's obvious our little tree would never have been able to support the amout of fruit it tried to set. Also for anyone else, first year; one orange. Second; 4 oranges. Third year; we were giving bags away to our neighbor. 😊

[@thedeadalgorithmmusicchann1994]

Can I grow the cara cara seedling in an enclosed terrarium until it gets larger?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hmm, I'm not sure, but I would think so. As long as it's big enough!

[@rouxchat6033]

I'm in southern Oregon and saw them at my grocers (Winco) and purchased two of them just to see if they would be good. Never noticed them in stores here before so not sure if they are new here or not. Anyway, one was just so so but the other was amazing -- so yummy. If you like sweet with a touch of tart give the Cara Cara a try. Should have purchased three as a tie-breaker, LOL.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey Roux! That's the challenge with store bought fruit. So much better fresh...like your blackberries in the summer up there in So. Oregon!

[@rouxchat6033]

So true, so true re: store bought produce and meats, as well. Still, better to eat the fruit over pasteurized, commercial orange juice with synthetic vitamins. Oh, yeah, on the wild berries -- yummy health food!

[@michaelbuzzard370]

My favorite Orange

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

We're right there with you on that one, it really is a great tasting orange!

[@zainayaz2440]

Do I water the leafs or just give water to the roots just wondering I just got one today

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey Zain! You definitely want to water the root zone only on your trees. If it's very late in the evening and you want to add some water on the leaves you can do that from time to time, but they don't really need it there. We do it every once in a while to remove dirt that builds up, but otherwise we try to avoid it.

[@bobbie4165]

I live in phoenix ,AZ . My Cara Cara tree is 5yrs old 2nd year they are sour. What can I do?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey Bobbie. That's strange that you're getting sour oranges on a 5 year old tree. Many citrus trees are grafted onto sour orange root stock, so you may be getting fruit from the root stock. Are you able to find the graft point on the tree and verify the branching is not coming from below the graft?

[@Kat-do5he]

Does the Cara Cara usually have thorns?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey Kat. As with most citrus, these do have small thorns on the branches. They're not massive, but they can still reach out and grab you if you're not careful.

[@danielcavato3863]

you described the difference between navel and cara cara very well. Not tart, not bitter, but just different!

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey Daniel! They really are a fantastic twist on the naval orange. We prefer them over a naval orange any day!

[@ashleydoan7594]

Hello, what kind of your Cara Cara orange tree? Is it dwraft size?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey Ashley. It's not on a dwarf root stock, but it is growing very slowly. We're assuming it's because of the soil, but it could have been mis-labeled by the nursery we bought it from.

[@sksaddam1173]

Cara cara Orange is the fruit throughout the year

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

This variety is definitely one of our favorites!

[@sksaddam1173]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm thank you sir"

[@reyrodriguez6713]

How many seeds did ubplant to make this small tree

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Great question Rey. We actually don't plant seeds for the citrus trees on the farm. We buy them as grafted trees on root stock that works well in our desert soil.

[@oldionus]

They're not a cross. They're a bud sport, originating in the 1970s in Venezuela. Named for where the tree originated, Hacienda Cara Cara.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Thanks for the correction on that one David.

[@gardenofthegeeks8277]

Love Cara Cara Oranges. Well any blood orange for that matter!> Question who did your Logo ?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey guys! It was done by a graphic artist that is a friend of a friend. I'm not sure if she's still in the biz, but I can find out if you're interested.

[@gardenofthegeeks8277]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm I am! I want to get some T-Shirts made and would really like our logo to look MUCH better

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

@@gardenofthegeeks8277 DM us on FB or Insta and I'll get her contact information over to you.

[@oldionus]

Cara caras are not blood oranges. The pigment is mostly lycopene, as opposed to anthocyanin in blood oranges. They are a bud sport from a Washington Navel Orange and their flavor is definitely that of an orange.

[@patrickraco9327]

I actually think that they DO taste like a grapefruit (mixed with naval Orange) without the bitterness.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

That's a great description for this fruit Patrick. For Lori, she would agree with the hint of grapefruit (which she likes). While I taste the orange and virtually no grapefruit, which I'm not a fan of. A great mix in the two for sure!

[@patrickraco9327]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm I found your video looking for advice on how to water the tree. But you didn't talk about that. 🙁 😥 😭 Maybe you can give some advice? My leaves are not looking that green. Kinda dull and turning slightly yellow. I'm thinking I'm watering it too much...

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

@@patrickraco9327 ah ok. What you're describing does sound like it could be overwatering. I'm going to link a video for you here where we show how we water all of our trees on the new property. kzbin.info/www/bejne/epeneIp7oaqobc0 Now to amounts. For the last few months we have watered no more than about once every 2 weeks (sometimes longer if we have received any rain at all) and about 60 gallons each round. During the peak of summer we're putting near 100 gallons per tree/week. That's all applied once/week to allow the soil to dry a bit before hitting it with another round. Deep and infrequent is the key with citrus as it can waterlog quite easily.

[@patrickraco9327]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm awesome - Thanks!

[@tammier7508]

I live in FL and our citrus is horrible due to greening disease😬! I’m Jelly

[@gardenofthegeeks8277]

THat is a shame . I am so afraid we might get that here.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey Tammie, that's a real bummer. I know California is trying to get ahead of it and we're worried about it here also. Just a shame you guys can't grow what you've always been famous for!

[@tammier7508]

Edge of Nowhere Farm We grow citrus. But the quality of the fruit is blahhh! Not really sweet! It’s very hard to find great tasting citrus. About 40 miles from where I live. The HUGE citrus farm cleared all vegetation several years ago and recently just planted new plots! So hopefully in 3 -4 years we’ll have great citrus! Greening disease is HORRIFIC! It killed my citrus tree as well!

[@tammier7508]

Garden of The Geeks I hope y’all don’t get it! It’s brutal to the death!

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

@@tammier7508 Ugh! I just can't imagine having to go through that.

[@thetruth392]

Can I grow oranges in New York City weather

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey Ali! I've seen videos of people growing them in pots and keeping them inside when the weather gets too cold. If you're going to try one it might be worth trying a kumquat. They are more cold hardy than typical citrus and they are a dwarfing tree. Either that or a Meyer lemon. Stay healthy out there!

[@rexwoodville-price5645]

this ant knows a lot about orange trees and fruit

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Been around the block a time or two I suppose.

[@turtletom8383]

Cara Cara shouldn't be compared to regular naval oranges their the sweetest juice like flavor

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

They do taster a whole lot better than a regular old Washington naval.

[@sksaddam1173]

No, I mean, this orange is harvested all year round.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Oh, I wasn't sure what you meant. That's interesting. Here they are only ripe in the late Winter and Early Spring months and then you need to remove them from the tree before the heat of summer sets in. I assume it also blooms several times a year for you?

[@sksaddam1173]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm ok thank you

[@helpisonthewaytutoring4259]

My young one here I Florida is now blooming here in June. Some of our citrus seems to bloom again when our rainy season starts. Also here they need different conditions. Understory in light shade keeps them healthy and protects from citrus greening.