In the Hauts-de-Seine, the town softens the winter. Buildings, streets and walls give back at night part of the heat of the day: one winter in ten, the cold falls to about −11 °C, and to around −6 °C in an ordinary winter. Several citrus trees therefore hold out in the ground in the garden, and many others in pots on a balcony or terrace.
We went through the Météo-France records of the only station in the département, at Colombes: 22 winters, from 1996-1997 to 2017-2018. We compared them with the hardiness of each of our plants. 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:
−11 °Cone winter in ten
Hauts-de-Seine
Nanterre, Boulogne-Billancourt, Colombes, Courbevoie, Asnières-sur-Seine, Rueil-Malmaison, Issy-les-Moulineaux, Antony
See the citrus trees for this area
A single station measures the cold in the département, at Colombes, at 29 m in the loop of the Seine: −10.5 °C one winter in ten, −5.7 °C in an ordinary winter. That is a little colder than in the heart of Paris, but an enclosed courtyard or the foot of a south-facing wall, between buildings, is often milder than the station. Citranges, yuzus and the hardiest satsumas spend the winter outdoors; the other satsumas, kumquats, orange trees and the hardiest clementines with a fleece, against a south-facing wall. Lemon trees and the other clementines stay in pots. On the hillsides and on terraces exposed to the wind, count on it being a little colder.
Colombes
In open ground, without protection
They withstand −11 °C. In the first years, a fleece on nights below −5 °C is a sensible precaution.
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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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Changshan Huyou
down to −11 °C · €38.00
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Sudachi Seneca
down to −12 °C · €42.00
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Yuzu 3
down to −15 °C · €38.00
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Morton Citrange
down to −15 °C · €35.00
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Clemyuz
down to −12 °C · €38.00
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Eremorange
down to −12 °C · €35.00
See all 19 available plants that withstand −11 °C
Sold out for now: 12 other plants
On their page, “Notify me” lets you know when they are back: Ambersweet, Auline, Bendizao Mandarin, Hana Yuzu, Satsuma Dobashi Beni, Satsuma Kowano, Satsuma Louisiana, Satsuma Miho, Satsuma Saigon, Satsuma Waze, Thornless Yuzu, Yuzu.
In open ground, with a fleece on frosty nights
They withstand −8 °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 Miyagawa
down to −10 °C · €38.00
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Ermelo Orange
down to −10 °C · €47.00
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Kishu Kino Kuni Mandarin
down to −10 °C · €42.00
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Welker Grapefruit
down to −10 °C · €35.00
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Kinkoji
down to −10 °C · €38.00
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Orisa 9 Tangor
down to −9 °C · €41.00
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Yuko
down to −9 °C · €38.00
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Fukushu Kumquat
down to −10 °C · €32.30
See all 38 available plants that withstand −8 °C
Sold out for now: 31 other plants
On their page, “Notify me” lets you know when they are back: Corsican Mountain Orange, Dom Joao Orange, Fragola Orange, Haruka, Harumi, Hassaku, Hyuganatsu, Jabara, Juanita Mandarin, Kino Kuni Mikakukishu Mandarin, Mapo Tangelo, Meiwa Kumquat, Minneola, Moro Orange, Nameiwa Kumquat, Natsudaidai, Ota 38 Tangor, Rio Red Grapefruit, Salustiana Orange, Sanbokan, Satsuma China S-3, Satsuma Iwasaki, Satsuma Pucheng, Sciara x Clem Blood Tangor, Seminole, Setubalense Mandarin, Shunkokan, Ugli, Vaniglia Sanguigno Orange, Wekiwa Tangelolo, Z194 Ichangensis x Sinensis.
The others: in a pot, brought in for the winter
Lemons, limes and less hardy citrus (more tender than −8 °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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colombes | 29 m | −5.7 °C | −10.5 °C | −11.7 °C (1 January 1997) | 2 out of 22 |
“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 1 January 1997, Colombes fell to −11.7 °C, and in January 2009 to −10.5 °C. 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 Hauts-de-Seine
- Look for the most sheltered spot. A town garden surrounded by walls, a courtyard or the foot of a south-facing wall freezes less than an open lawn. On the other hand, the banks of the Seine and open parks, like high ground exposed to the wind, are colder.
- In a pot, protect the roots first. The root ball freezes before the branches. On frosty nights, wrap the pot in insulation, raise it on feet and do not leave water in the saucer. A large container holds out better than a small one.
- On an upper-floor balcony, block the wind. It dries out the leaves and chills the pot. Move your citrus trees closer to the front of the building, into a corner, and put the winter fleece on on frosty nights.
- Choose the rootstock for your soil. Poncirus is the most cold-resistant; in chalky, dry soil, FA5 does better. In heavy or disturbed soil, plant on a mound. Our 5-step test helps you: Which rootstock should you choose?
- Plant or repot in spring, once the frosts are over, to give the tree time to take root. From September onwards, no 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, against drought, 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
Can a lemon tree stay outdoors in Boulogne-Billancourt?
Not all year round. It withstands about −5 °C, and at Colombes that threshold was crossed two winters out of three. Grow it in a pot, on a sheltered terrace, and bring it into a bright room protected from frost as soon as the first frosts come. For a sour fruit in the ground, Yuzu and Yuzu 3 (−15 °C), like the other yuzus (−12 °C), spend the winter outdoors without protection. See Lemons and lemon substitutes.
Which citrus trees spend the winter outdoors without protection?
Citranges, which withstand −15 °C, yuzus and the hardiest satsumas. The other satsumas and kumquats also live in the ground, but with a fleece on frosty nights, against a south-facing wall. You will find them in Hardy citrus and Satsumas.
An orange tree or a clementine on my terrace?
Yes. Orange trees withstand about −8 °C, clementines −7 to −9 °C. In the garden, orange trees and the hardiest clementines can be tried in the ground with a fleece at each frost, against a south-facing wall; the other clementines stay in pots. On the terrace, keep them against a south-facing wall, insulate the pot and put a fleece on on frosty nights; bring them under cover when it freezes hard.
My town is not listed: do these figures apply to me?
They apply to the whole département, with some nuances. Near Paris and in the heart of towns, the winter is often a little milder; on high ground and in large parks, a little colder. Also compare with the Paris page or the page for your neighbouring département.
These figures are guidelines. Your garden, balcony or terrace 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).