How to Grow a Moro Semi-Dwarf Orange

Choose the right location for your Moro semi-dwarf, which can grow in containers or in the ground. This tree needs full sun and protection from the wind and fares well planted on the south side of your home. Citrus trees can tolerate many soil consistencies but require well-draining soil. If you opt for container growing, a 2-year-old tree needs a 12-inch diameter or 5-gallon container, while 1-year-old trees enjoy containers with a 6- to 9-inch diameter.

Turn the soil over with a shovel if planting in your yard. Remove rocks, weeds and debris. Dig a hole twice the size of your tree's root ball. Amend a poor soil with compost, manure or another soil amendment by substituting it for one-half of the soil from the hole you just dug. For container trees, fill the bottom half of your prepared container with a balanced potting mix. Four Winds Growers recommend rose garden potting soil.

Remove your Moro semi-dwarf from its container and gently massage the root ball. Trim back broken roots and unwind tangled ones before placing the orange tree in the prepared hole or container. Fill the hole in with soil, or pour more potting soil over the roots and trunk to complete planting. Gently firm the soil around the base of the tree.

Water the soil to saturate it. Thereafter, water your Moro orange when the soil feels lightly moist, adding liquid to saturate. Allow the soil to dry out to moist again before watering. You may use a watering meter that measures soil moisture to a depth of 9 inches; if using the meter, water when it reads 50 percent dry.

Mulch with 2 to 3 inches of organic mulch to preserve soil moisture and insulate the tree.

Fertilize your semi-dwarf orange tree using a slow-release citrus fertilizer, which should have twice as much nitrogen as phosphorous and potassium. Apply the fertilizer in the spring following the dosage rates on your particular package for your size tree. Sprinkle dry fertilizer on the soil near your tree and water to work it in.

Prune your Moro orange any time of year except winter. Remove dead, diseased, damaged branches and suckers growing from below the graft site on the tree's trunk. If desired, prune back long branches to keep your tree at a desired size.

Protect the Moro tree from temperatures below 28 degrees Fahrenheit. Wheel container trees into a basement for the winter. Protect in-ground trees with a space heater or a frost blanket.