In Loir-et-Cher, the winter cold changes from one place to another. One winter in ten, it falls to about −12 °C in Blois and in the Loire valley, −13 °C in the Vendômois and the Petite Beauce, and −14 °C in the Sologne.
We went through thirty winters of Météo-France records, from 1996 to 2026, and compared them with the hardiness of each of our plants. 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:
−12 °Cone winter in ten
Blois and the Loire valley
Blois, Vineuil, La Chaussée-Saint-Victor, Mer, Cheverny, Chailles
See the citrus trees for this area
The Loire valley around Blois is the least cold part of the département: −12 °C one winter in ten and −7 °C in an ordinary winter. Blois and Cheverny stay at around −12 °C. Citranges, yuzus and the hardiest satsumas spend the winter outdoors here; the other satsumas, kumquats and the hardiest clementines need a fleece, against a south-facing wall. Orange trees and the other clementines stay in pots. The soil often stays wet in winter: avoid places where water stands.
Cheverny
The soil of the area and the rootstock
According to the soil map, this area mostly has ordinary brown soils, silty soils and river alluvium. In practice, the soil is often winter-wet and silty.
Rootstocks to favour: Poncirus, then 4475.
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 −12 °C. In the first years, a fleece on nights below −5 °C is a sensible precaution.
-
Satsuma China S-2
down to −12 °C · €41.00
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Changsha Mandarin
down to −12 °C · €38.00
-
Sudachi Seneca
down to −12 °C · €42.00
-
Yuzu 3
down to −15 °C · €38.00
-
Morton Citrange
down to −15 °C · €35.00
-
Clemyuz
down to −12 °C · €38.00
-
Eremorange
down to −12 °C · €35.00
-
Satsuma Owari FS
down to −12 °C · €42.00
See all 17 available plants that withstand −12 °C
Sold out for now: 11 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 Saigon, Satsuma Waze, Thornless Yuzu, Yuzu.
In open ground, with a fleece on frosty nights
They withstand −9 °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.
-
Satsuma Miyagawa
down to −10 °C · €38.00
-
Ermelo Orange
down to −10 °C · €47.00
-
Shekwasha
down to −11 °C · €34.85
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Changshan Huyou
down to −11 °C · €38.00
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Kinkoji
down to −10 °C · €38.00
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Orisa 9 Tangor
down to −9 °C · €41.00
-
Yuko
down to −9 °C · €38.00
-
Fukushu Kumquat
down to −10 °C · €32.30
See all 21 available plants that withstand −9 °C
Sold out for now: 20 other plants
On their page, “Notify me” lets you know when they are back: Corsican Mountain Orange, Haruka, Harumi, Hyuganatsu, Jabara, Juanita Mandarin, Kino Kuni Mikakukishu Mandarin, Mapo Tangelo, Meiwa Kumquat, Minneola, Nameiwa Kumquat, Natsudaidai, Rio Red Grapefruit, Sanbokan, Satsuma China S-3, Satsuma Iwasaki, Satsuma Miho, Satsuma Pucheng, Setubalense Mandarin, Shunkokan.
The others: in a pot, brought in for the winter
Lemons, limes and less hardy citrus (more tender than −9 °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.
−13 °Cone winter in ten
Vendômois, Perche and Petite Beauce
Vendôme, Montoire-sur-le-Loir, Mondoubleau, Droué, Oucques, Marchenoir
See the citrus trees for this area
The north of the département, from the Vendôme Perche to the Petite Beauce: −13 °C one winter in ten and −8 °C in an ordinary winter. Choue stays at −12.5 °C; Saint-Léonard-en-Beauce, on the plateau, falls to −15.2 °C. Citranges, Yuzu and Yuzu 3 spend the winter outdoors here; the other yuzus, satsumas and kumquats need a fleece at each frost, sheltered by a wall or a hedge; the other citrus trees stay in pots. The soil, sometimes chalky, often stays wet in winter: plant on a mound.
Saint-Léonard-en-Beauce
The soil of the area and the rootstock
According to the soil map, this area mostly has silty soils, ordinary brown soils and river alluvium. In practice, the soil is often winter-wet, silty and chalky.
Rootstocks to favour: Poncirus, then FA5. 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 −13 °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 −10 °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.
-
Satsuma China S-2
down to −12 °C · €41.00
-
Ermelo Orange
down to −10 °C · €47.00
-
Changsha Mandarin
down to −12 °C · €38.00
-
Changshan Huyou
down to −11 °C · €38.00
-
Sudachi Seneca
down to −12 °C · €42.00
-
Ichang Lemon Shangyuan
down to −12 °C · €38.00
-
Fukushu Kumquat
down to −10 °C · €32.30
-
US 119
down to −12 °C · €35.00
See all 27 available plants that withstand −10 °C
Sold out for now: 25 other plants
On their page, “Notify me” lets you know when they are back: Ambersweet, Auline, Bendizao Mandarin, Corsican Mountain Orange, Harumi, Jabara, Juanita Mandarin, Kino Kuni Mikakukishu Mandarin, Meiwa Kumquat, Minneola, Nameiwa Kumquat, Rio Red Grapefruit, Sanbokan, Satsuma China S-3, Satsuma Dobashi Beni, Satsuma Iwasaki, Satsuma Kowano, Satsuma Louisiana, Satsuma Miho, Satsuma Pucheng, Satsuma Saigon, Satsuma Waze, Setubalense Mandarin, Shunkokan, Thornless Yuzu.
The others: in a pot, brought in for the winter
Lemons, limes and less hardy citrus (more tender than −10 °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.
−14 °Cone winter in ten
Sologne and the Cher valley
Romorantin-Lanthenay, Salbris, Lamotte-Beuvron, Neung-sur-Beuvron, Selles-sur-Cher, Theillay
See the citrus trees for this area
The Sologne and the Cher valley are the coldest part of the département: −14 °C one winter in ten and −9 °C in an ordinary winter. Lamotte-Beuvron stays at −12.5 °C, but Romorantin-Lanthenay falls to −14.2 °C. Citranges, Yuzu and Yuzu 3 live here in the ground without protection; the other yuzus and the hardiest satsumas need a fleece at each frost. The other citrus trees stay in pots. The soil is wet in winter almost everywhere: plant on a mound.
Romorantin-Lanthenay
The soil of the area and the rootstock
According to the soil map, this area mostly has ordinary brown soils, silty soils and foot-of-slope soils. In practice, the soil is often winter-wet and silty.
Rootstocks to favour: Poncirus, then FA5.
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 −14 °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 −11 °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.
-
Satsuma China S-2
down to −12 °C · €41.00
-
Changsha Mandarin
down to −12 °C · €38.00
-
Changshan Huyou
down to −11 °C · €38.00
-
Sudachi Seneca
down to −12 °C · €42.00
-
Ichang Lemon Shangyuan
down to −12 °C · €38.00
-
US 119
down to −12 °C · €35.00
-
Clemyuz
down to −12 °C · €38.00
-
Eremorange
down to −12 °C · €35.00
See all 14 available plants that withstand −11 °C
Sold out for now: 10 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 Miho, 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 −11 °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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Choue | 163 m | −6 °C | −12.5 °C | −13.1 °C (7 January 2009) | 3 out of 20 |
| Blois (town) | 69 m | −7 °C | −12.5 °C | −14.5 °C (7 February 2012) | 8 out of 29 |
| Blois-Le Breuil | 119 m | −7 °C | −11.9 °C | −16 °C (9 February 2012) | 10 out of 30 |
| Droué | 206 m | −7.5 °C | −13 °C | −14.5 °C (7 February 2012) | 8 out of 30 |
| Saint-Léonard-en-Beauce | 126 m | −7.5 °C | −15.2 °C | −16.6 °C (7 February 2012) | 8 out of 24 |
| Montrieux-en-Sologne | 96 m | −7.7 °C | −14.2 °C | −16.1 °C (9 February 2012) | 7 out of 20 |
| Cheverny | 99 m | −8 °C | −12 °C | −17.5 °C (7 February 2012) | 13 out of 30 |
| Lamotte-Beuvron | 117 m | −8.5 °C | −12.5 °C | −13.5 °C (6 February 2012) | 14 out of 30 |
| Romorantin-Lanthenay | 83 m | −9.5 °C | −14.2 °C | −19.9 °C (7 February 2012) | 21 out of 30 |
| Theillay | 140 m | −10 °C | −14 °C | −15 °C (2 January 1997) | 15 out of 24 |
“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 7 February 2012, Cheverny fell to −17.5 °C and Romorantin-Lanthenay to −19.9 °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 Loir-et-Cher
- Avoid low points. Cold air flows down and collects at the bottom of valleys and in basins. The cold varies a lot over short distances: one winter in ten, Blois-Le Breuil stays at −11.9 °C, but Saint-Léonard-en-Beauce falls to −15.2 °C and Romorantin-Lanthenay to −14.2 °C. Plant halfway up a slope or against a south-facing wall, never at the lowest point of the garden.
- Take care of drainage. In the Sologne, the soil stays wet in winter almost everywhere; in the Loire valley and the Vendômois, often too. Plant on a mound and avoid places where water stands.
- Choose the rootstock for your soil. Poncirus is the most cold-resistant: it is the safest choice in Loir-et-Cher. In chalky soil, as sometimes in the Vendômois, FA5 does better, planted on a mound. Our 5-step test helps you choose: Which rootstock should you choose?
- Plant in spring, once the frosts are over. The tree then has a whole season to take root before its first winter.
- 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 I plant a lemon tree in the ground in Blois?
No. Lemon trees withstand about −5 °C, and Blois falls to around −7 °C in an ordinary winter. Keep them in pots, brought in for the winter. For a sour fruit in the ground, choose a yuzu or a hardy lemon substitute instead. You will find them in Lemons and lemon substitutes.
Which citrus trees withstand the cold best in Loir-et-Cher?
Citranges, Yuzu and Yuzu 3, which withstand −15 °C, spend the winter without protection throughout the département. Around Blois, the other yuzus (Yuzu 30, thornless, Tada Nishiki) and the hardiest satsumas also manage without it; in the Vendômois and the Sologne, they need a fleece at each frost. They are brought together in Hardy citrus.
What about orange trees and clementines?
They withstand −7 to −9 °C depending on the variety. Around Blois and in the Loire valley, the hardiest clementines are grown in the ground with a fleece at each frost, against a south-facing wall. Elsewhere, and for orange trees everywhere, keep them in pots, brought in for the winter to a bright room protected from frost.
My town is not listed: which area should I choose?
Take the nearest area at the same altitude, then compare with the nearest station in the table of readings. Take off about one degree for every 150 m of extra altitude, and one or two degrees if you are in a hollow.
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).