The Rio Red grapefruit is the official state fruit of Texas. Introduced to the general public in 1984, the Rio Red grapefruit hails from the breeding program of the citrus legend Dr. R.A. Hensz from the Texas A&M Citrus Center.
At the time, the grapefruit was discovered growing on the branch of a Ruby Red budwood. One of the most aromatic smells you will experience will be the incredible scents of your Rio Red's flower buds!
If you haven’t tried a grapefruit from a Rio Red grapefruit tree, they might just be the best grapefruits you will ever eat! And, you can easily grow your own Rio Red grapefruit tree in a container or pot by following the 8 steps below.
Rio Red Grapefruit:
- Rio Red grapefruits are some of the tastiest and juiciest grapefruits in the world
- Large fruit with yellow rind with a red blush
- The classic Rio Red grapefruit variety is widely known for its delicious pink-red fleshed fruit
- Juicy with fine sweet and tart flavor, fairly easy to peel
- Fruit holds very well on the tree
Rio Red Grapefruit Tree:
- The grapefruits from the Rio Red grapefruit tree ripen between November to May
- The tree will start bearing sweet, tasty red-fleshed grapefruit in its second year
- Grapefruit has the highest heat requirement of any citrus
- Vigorous growing, large tree, with a spreading canopy, large dark green leaves
Where Will Citrus Grow?
With proper care, having a citrus tree such as lemon, lime, grapefruit, Rio red grapefruit, Rio red grapefruit or orange tree will produce decades of delicious fruit. However, the growing regions in the United States where citrus can be planted into the ground are California, Arizona, South Texas, Louisiana and Florida.
If you do not live in those regions, we do not recommend planting citrus in the ground. However, we consider this a good thing, because it's going to make your citrus growing a lot easier.
Growing Citrus Outside of Growing Zones
So how do you grow citrus outside of these growing zones? You do so by planting your tree in a container. You can use a plastic barrel, a wooden planter, a nice decorative pot, or really any sort of container that has adequate holes on the bottom for drainage.
Another option, which we enjoy, are fabric smart pots which do not have holes, however, the entire container is made of a fabric mesh which allows proper drainage and aeration of the soil.
The Planting Process for Growing Citrus Trees in Pots
The actual planting process of our fast-growing citrus trees in pots is very straightforward, with standardized use of potting soil and watering and fertilizing schedules.
You can keep any citrus tree pruned back, but the Rio red grapefruit is naturally a smaller dwarf type variety which gets to be about 4 to 6 feet, but it will still produce an abundant harvest.
Step 1: Container for Rio Red Grapefruit Trees
The keys to an appropriate container are having sufficient drainage through the material either being some sort of mesh cloth (SmartPots) or having a few holes on the bottom of your planter.
Secondly, the size of the pot should be at least 5 gallons, with our favorite size recommend being 15 gallons. We find that anything above 25 gallons is quite difficult to physically move with only one person. so we recommend 15 gallons as the sweet spot.
Step 2: Soil for Rio Red Grapefruit Trees
Choosing soil for your Rio red grapefruit trees is simple. All you need is any sort of potting soil. We do not recommend gardening soil or topsoil to use for citrus fruit container gardening. This is advantageous because even if you lived in a citrus growing region, you would have to take into consideration the type of soil.
For example, US Citrus is based in the Rio Grande Valley, and we have a wonderful sandy loam type soil which drains very well. Other types of soil such as different types of clay soils especially with limestone mixed in will have a very difficult time draining and this will adversely affect the root health of your tree.
With a standard potting soil for your container gardening, you do not need to worry about any of these factors. You also don't have to worry about the pH balance of the soil. We have just removed a large part of the headache of growing citrus by having all customers grow their citrus in containers and using any standard potting soil which is available at your local nursery garden center supply store.
Step 3: Watering for Rio Red Grapefruit Trees
Watering is crucial, typically when citrus is planted into the ground there is a worry of proper drainage and overwatering your tree. Citrus trees planted in the ground prefer to have their roots a bit on the dry side. We have found that if there is proper drainage in container gardening it is difficult to overwater citrus trees.
See our watering schedule for our citrus trees based on their size and the outside conditions.
The best way to figure out how much water your citrus tree needs is to actually look at the tree. If the leaves are wilted and dry, your tree needs more water. After watering, the tree’s leaves should perk up.
Overwatering Your Potted Citrus Tree
Overwatering is a possibility and we find that this especially happens when the trees are indoor and there's a garden saucer used underneath the pot. When there's a garden saucer there is impeded drainage, which is helpful while you're on vacation and cannot water your tree for a week, or when you have your trees indoors to prevent water seeping onto the floors and causing damage.
However, if trees are over-watered, the plant leaves will wilt and may turn a bit yellow and look sad. Watering more will not improve the condition of the tree obviously, and you will likely notice that the soil is waterlogged at this point.
Giving your tree a break by taking it outside if possible or letting the soil drain without a garden saucer in the bathtub for a day is a good solution. Afterward, you can adjust your watering schedule appropriately. Our watering schedule also has a section for indoor planting.
Step 4: Fertilizer for Rio Red Grapefruit Trees
Your Rio red grapefruit tree will need both macro and micronutrients, just like a human. The macronutrients that all plants need are Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium. You have likely seen fertilizers and soil which state three numbers together, this is the N – P – K system which shows the concentration and relative amounts of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium respectively.
These machinations are very important for the development of the root system, the color of the leaves, appropriate photosynthesis, the growth of the trunk of the tree, proper flowering, fruiting, and taste of the fruit. See our blog article on nutrition for more information.
Micronutrients are also very important - think of these as vitamins for humans. They are needed much in smaller quantities and plants can have characteristic symptoms if they have a micronutrient deficiency. We will detail out micronutrients and symptoms of deficiencies in later articles.
However, our promise to you is that we make this simple. Between regular potting soil and the fertilizer we recommend, you will have all the macronutrients and micronutrients that your tree needs and a simple fertilizing schedule for easy and effective fertilizing when you get your tree and for every February, May, and August. See our fertilizer schedule below for amounts that we recommend.
Ounces to use every Feb, May, and Aug
Miracle-Gro for Citrus, Avocado and Mango (13-7-13)
Espoma Citrus (5-2-6)
Step 5: Sunlight for Rio Red Grapefruit Trees
Sunlight is crucial to citrus trees, especially citrus being a tropical plant. In most areas of the United States, you want to maximize sunlight with full sun exposure. If you are planting indoors, make sure that it has full sun next to the window, but we would also recommend having a grow light.
Citrus does best when it has six hours of sunlight a day. If the temperature is consistently above 90° especially for younger trees, there may be some wilting of the leaves. This wilting will reverse however and at this point, it would be advantageous to keep your tree by elementary and partial shade.
Step 6: Winter Protection for Rio Red Grapefruit Trees
We recommend that under freezing temperatures, you move your citrus tree into a warmer area such as a garage or indoors for the entire winter. This point you can utilize grow lights for continued growth.
There is nothing more frustrating than losing years of work and future decades of fruit than losing your citrus tree to a freak cold-snap which occurred while you were vacationing out of town! Citrus can die with exposure to temperatures in the teens for even up to 12 hours.
Step 7: Where do I buy my Rio Red Grapefruit Tree?
First of all, if you live in the states of California, Arizona, Louisiana, or Florida, you will need to purchase your citrus tree locally as citrus cannot be imported into your state because of USDA regulations.
Otherwise, go to uscitrus.com to buy your tree today!
Step 8: Harvesting your Rio Red Grapefruits
The ripening season is November to August with the main harvest being winter to springtime for Rio Red grapefruits.