Orange trees are propagated through a variety of methods, including:
1. Grafting: The most common method of propagation, it involves taking a cutting (scion) from a mature orange tree and grafting it onto a rootstock. This ensures that the new tree will have desirable characteristics such as pest resistance, disease resistance, and good yield.
2. Budding: This method involves removing a bud from a mature orange tree and inserting it into an incision made on a rootstock. The bud is then covered and sealed to encourage growth.
3. Layering: This method involves bending a lower branch of a mature orange tree to the ground and then covering the branch with soil. As the branch starts to develop roots, it can be separated from the parent tree to form a new tree.
4. Cuttings: This method involves taking a cutting from a mature orange tree and rooting it in soil or water. Once the cutting starts to develop roots, it can be planted in soil to form a new tree.
5. Tissue culture: This is a more advanced method of propagation that involves growing new orange trees from cells extracted from a parent tree. This method is used to produce large numbers of identical, disease-free plants.