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I live in North Florida and planted a Satsuma orange tree 4 years ago that has successfully produced plentiful sweet fruit the last 3 years. My question is about cloning the tree with cuttings. I have several good plants from cuttings but all end up with trifoliate leaves and thorny where the original tree is unifoliate and no thorns. These cuttings grow vigorously and appear very healthy but why do they end up trifoliate?

I'd graft onto those thorny roots with your good top-wood.

I've never tried to airlayer, or propagate orange.

Try grafting the cuttings to rootstock instead. Satsuma can be grown from cuttings but you need to take citrus cuttings at the right time of the year, just before they start to make new leaves. Satsuma is not resistant to trestiza so cuttings will not last as long as grafting onto trifoliate or heenaran rootstock.

Doesn't it sound like the cuttings are being taken from the rootstock of the Satsuma Orange which is probably trifoliate orange?

Are you collecting the cuttings yourself? First step whether rooting or grafting the cuttings should be making sure they are coming from the correct part of the tree.

It sounds like you should keep these for rootstock as suggested, so all is not lost.

The cuttings are taken from unifoliate branch ends and then potted until they root. But every one I start that are unifoliate end up trifoliate. One cutting that is starting it's 3rd season is growing vigorously, about 3 1/2' tall with a trunk girth around 3". Can I cut this way back to the trunk and graft a unifoliate branch to it? There is not one single trifoliate section on the original tree that I bought at a nursery. I am aware that that the rootstock of said tree is trifoliate in origin though. I do appreciate all of the quick responses, thank you.

Any other input?

So did you try grafting like you mentioned?

Please note that the state of Florida now outlaws the propagation of citrus using backyard budwood by grafting or by cuttings due to the situation with citrus greening or HLB. I believe that they also make it impossible for a homeowner to buy budwood, so the best way to get a citrus tree in Florida is to go buy one in a nursery. I wrote an article and made a video that may be helpful in understanding the situation. Please find them below.

Best regards,
Dan Willey

https://www.fruitmentor.com/bud-grafting-citrus-trees