The Territoire de Belfort, between the Vosges and the Jura, has harsh winters for citrus trees. One winter in ten, it falls to about −15 °C on the foothills of the Jura, −17 °C at the foot of the Vosges and −18 °C around Belfort and Delle. In the ground, only the hardiest stand a chance; the others are grown in pots.
We went through thirty winters of Météo-France records, from 1996 to 2026, and compared them with the hardiness of each of our plants. The département has only four stations: take these figures as orders of magnitude. Choose your area below. You will find:
- the citrus trees that spend the winter outdoors without protection;
- those that need a fleece on frosty nights;
- those that stay in a pot.
The lists are kept up to date: only the plants available today are shown with a photo.
- −5 °C or milder
- −6 to −7 °C
- −8 to −9 °C
- −10 to −11 °C
- −12 to −13 °C
- −14 to −15 °C
- −16 to −17 °C
- −18 to −19 °C
- −20 °C and colder
Colour: the cold of one winter in ten, on the plain. Click on a neighbouring département to see its page. Map of the whole of France.
Choose your area:
−15 °Cone winter in ten
Saint-Dizier-l'Évêque and the foothills of the Jura
Saint-Dizier-l'Évêque, Beaucourt, Croix, Lebetain, Courtelevant, Florimont
See the citrus trees for this area
In the south-east, on the first hills of the Jura, the cold is the least severe in the département: −15 °C one winter in ten and −10 °C in an ordinary winter at Saint-Dizier-l'Évêque, at 553 m. Citranges, Yuzu and Yuzu 3 spend the winter outdoors here without protection, but only just: keep a fleece for them for exceptional nights. The other yuzus and the hardiest satsumas live here with a fleece, against a south-facing wall; the other citrus trees stay in pots. The soil is chalky and often wet in winter: plant on a mound.
Saint-Dizier-l'Évêque
The soil of the area and the rootstock
According to the soil map, this area mostly has silty soils and chalky soils. In practice, the soil is often chalky, winter-wet and silty.
Rootstock to favour: Poncirus. Poncirus only if the active lime stays below about 5% (soil analysis).
Your plot may be different. Look at the Géoportail soil map (in French) around your home, then refine with our 5-step test.
In open ground, without protection
They withstand −15 °C. In the first years, a fleece on nights below −5 °C is a sensible precaution.
In open ground, with a fleece on frosty nights
They withstand −12 °C. A winter fleece put on at each frost and removed as soon as the frost stops, and a sheltered spot against a south-facing wall.
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Satsuma China S-2
down to −12 °C · €41.00
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Changsha Mandarin
down to −12 °C · €38.00
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Sudachi Seneca
down to −12 °C · €42.00
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Trivoss No. 1
down to −14 °C · €35.00
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Citrangeremo
down to −14 °C · €29.75
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Clemyuz
down to −12 °C · €38.00
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Eremorange
down to −12 °C · €35.00
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Satsuma Owari FS
down to −12 °C · €42.00
See all 14 available plants that withstand −12 °C
Sold out for now: 9 other plants
On their page, “Notify me” lets you know when they are back: Ambersweet, Auline, Bendizao Mandarin, Satsuma Dobashi Beni, Satsuma Kowano, Satsuma Louisiana, Satsuma Saigon, Satsuma Waze, Thornless Yuzu.
The others: in a pot, brought in for the winter
Lemons, limes and less hardy citrus (more tender than −12 °C): in a large pot, outdoors from spring to autumn and brought into a bright, frost-free room for the winter. All our citrus trees.
−17 °Cone winter in ten
Giromagny, the Vosges foothills and the Ballon d'Alsace
Giromagny, Lepuix, Rougemont-le-Château, Étueffont, Auxelles-Bas, Chaux
See the citrus trees for this area
The foothills of the Vosges, from Rougemont-le-Château to Giromagny, up to the Ballon d'Alsace: −17 °C one winter in ten, −12 °C in an ordinary winter. The summit is hardly colder than the foot: one winter in ten, Giromagny, at 473 m, falls to −16.4 °C, the Ballon station, at 1,153 m, to −17.3 °C. Only citranges, Yuzu and Yuzu 3 can be tried in the ground here, with a fleece at each frost, against a south-facing wall; keep the other citrus trees in pots. The soil is acid.
Ballon d'Alsace (1 153 m)
The soil of the area and the rootstock
According to the soil map, this area mostly has acid soils, very stony soils and ordinary brown soils. In practice, the soil is often winter-wet, acid and silty.
Rootstock to favour: Poncirus.
Your plot may be different. Look at the Géoportail soil map (in French) around your home, then refine with our 5-step test.
In open ground, without protection
They withstand −17 °C. In the first years, a fleece on nights below −5 °C is a sensible precaution.
None of our available plants withstands this cold without protection: choose pot culture.
In open ground, with a fleece on frosty nights
They withstand −14 °C. A winter fleece put on at each frost and removed as soon as the frost stops, and a sheltered spot against a south-facing wall.
The others: in a pot, brought in for the winter
Lemons, limes and less hardy citrus (more tender than −14 °C): in a large pot, outdoors from spring to autumn and brought into a bright, frost-free room for the winter. All our citrus trees.
−18 °Cone winter in ten
Belfort, Delle and the Belfort Gap
Belfort, Valdoie, Bavilliers, Danjoutin, Delle, Grandvillars, Joncherey
See the citrus trees for this area
Belfort, Delle and the gap between the Vosges and the Jura: −18 °C one winter in ten, −13 °C in an ordinary winter, according to the only station, at Joncherey, at 359 m near Delle; there is none in Belfort itself. On 20 December 2009, Joncherey recorded −21.5 °C. Only citranges, Yuzu and Yuzu 3 can be tried in the ground here, with a fleece at each frost, against a south-facing wall; the other citrus trees stay in pots. The soil stays wet in winter.
Joncherey
The soil of the area and the rootstock
According to the soil map, this area mostly has foot-of-slope soils, ordinary brown soils and soils waterlogged part of the year. In practice, the soil is often winter-wet and silty.
Rootstock to favour: Poncirus.
Your plot may be different. Look at the Géoportail soil map (in French) around your home, then refine with our 5-step test.
In open ground, without protection
They withstand −18 °C. In the first years, a fleece on nights below −5 °C is a sensible precaution.
None of our available plants withstands this cold without protection: choose pot culture.
In open ground, with a fleece on frosty nights
They withstand −15 °C. A winter fleece put on at each frost and removed as soon as the frost stops, and a sheltered spot against a south-facing wall.
The others: in a pot, brought in for the winter
Lemons, limes and less hardy citrus (more tender than −15 °C): in a large pot, outdoors from spring to autumn and brought into a bright, frost-free room for the winter. All our citrus trees.
Readings from the Météo-France stations (winters 1996-1997 to 2025-2026)
| Station | Altitude | Ordinary winter | One winter in ten | Record | Winters at −9 °C or below |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saint-Dizier-l'Évêque | 553 m | −10.1 °C | −15 °C | −17.4 °C (20 December 2009) | 22 out of 30 |
| Giromagny | 473 m | −11.4 °C | −16.4 °C | −18.9 °C (20 December 2009) | 24 out of 30 |
| Ballon d'Alsace (1,153 m) | 1153 m | −12.4 °C | −17.3 °C | −19.1 °C (20 December 2009) | 27 out of 30 |
| Joncherey | 359 m | −12.5 °C | −18 °C | −21.5 °C (20 December 2009) | 25 out of 30 |
“Ordinary winter”: half of the winters go colder, the other half less cold. “One winter in ten”: this cold is reached or exceeded in about one winter in ten. Calculations by the Greffeur d'agrumes nursery.
How to read these figures
The hardiness given on our product pages is the cold that an adult, healthy and hardened citrus tree withstands during a short frost. We compare it with the cold that comes back about one winter in ten: a plant listed “without protection” withstands at least that cold. In harsher winters, about three in thirty, keep a winter fleece ready for the coldest nights.
Very harsh winters are still possible. On 20 December 2009, the four stations of the département froze at the same time: −21.5 °C at Joncherey, −19.1 °C at the Ballon d'Alsace, −18.9 °C at Giromagny and −17.4 °C at Saint-Dizier-l'Évêque. Such cold can burn the leaves or a few shoots of a citrus tree that is only just hardy enough. Wait for spring to see what grows back before pruning.
To understand what helps a tree get through frost, read Understanding citrus hardiness.
Our advice for the Territoire de Belfort
- Count on citranges, Yuzu and Yuzu 3. They withstand −15 °C: on the foothills of the Jura, they spend the winter outdoors without protection, but only just. Around Belfort, Delle and Giromagny, they need a fleece at each frost. The other yuzus (Yuzu 30, thornless, Tada Nishiki) and the hardiest satsumas can be tried with a fleece on the foothills of the Jura; elsewhere, they stay in pots. Lemon trees, orange trees and clementines stay in pots everywhere.
- Low ground is colder than high ground. Cold air flows off the hills and spreads out in the low ground. One winter in ten, Joncherey, at 359 m, falls 3 °C lower than Saint-Dizier-l'Évêque, at 553 m. Plant on a well-exposed slope rather than at the bottom of a small valley.
- Keep the foot of the tree dry. Around Belfort as at the foot of the Jura, the soil stays wet in winter. Plant on a mound and do not let water lie at the collar.
- The rootstock is first a matter of cold. Poncirus is the most resistant: it is the logical choice here. On the chalky soil of the south-east, take our 5-step test: Which rootstock should you choose?
- Plant in spring, once the frosts are over, to give the tree a whole season to take root. From September onwards, no more fertiliser and no pruning.
- Protect young plants on nights below −5 °C during the first years. Put the winter fleece on at each frost and take it off as soon as the frost stops.
- Mulch in summer only, without the straw touching the trunk. Pull it away from the foot of the tree at the end of autumn: moisture at the collar encourages phytophthora.
Frequently asked questions
Is a lemon tree in the ground possible in Belfort?
No. A lemon tree only withstands about −5 °C, and the Belfort area falls to −13 °C in an ordinary winter. Grow it in a pot: in the garden from May to October, then in a bright room protected from frost. Citrus with a lemon taste are in Lemons and lemon substitutes.
Which citrus trees withstand the cold best here?
Citranges, Yuzu and Yuzu 3, which withstand −15 °C: they spend the winter outdoors without protection towards Saint-Dizier-l'Évêque and Beaucourt, and with a fleece around Belfort, Delle and Giromagny. Towards Saint-Dizier-l'Évêque, the other yuzus and the hardiest satsumas can also be tried, with a fleece. Find the hardiest in Hardy citrus.
Can orange trees and clementines stay outdoors?
Not in winter: they withstand −7 to −9 °C depending on the variety. Put them in a large pot, outdoors in the warm season and brought in before the first frosts.
My town is not listed: which area should I choose?
The département is small: take the area nearest to you, then the nearby station in the table of readings. At the bottom of a valley, count one or two degrees less; on a well-exposed slope, a little better.
These figures are guidelines. Your garden may be milder or colder than the nearest station. A question about your plot? Write to us.
Sources: Météo-France, daily basic climatological data (data.gouv.fr, Licence Ouverte 2.0); near the eastern border, also the Deutscher Wetterdienst (Datenlizenz Deutschland 2.0); towns, altitudes and boundaries: INSEE, IGN (Admin Express, RGE ALTI) and geo.api.gouv.fr (Licence Ouverte); soils: dominant soil map INRAE / Gis Sol (Licence Ouverte). Topsoil lime: LUCAS, European Commission, JRC (ESDAC, Ballabio et al. 2019).