Welcome to a great pastime/ & yes the slow growth may be normal but should speed up... fertilizing & insuring have well drained soil & keep soil damp not wet helps. Most of the seedlings should be 1 foot after 18 months....
Expect the fruit will not be fit for consumpation BUT there always plesant surpises.

Not so sure about tangelo, but I'm growing some tangerines from seed (regular store-bought tangerines). Germinated them in a baggie (about 2 days) and planted them about a week ago. Seedlings already one inch tall. I know tangelos are a hybrid, but it doesn't seem that they would take that much longer than a regular tangerine. I would just love to see tangerine blossoms...even with no fruit!
Carol

According to what I've read on the web, most citrus will grow true from seed.

http://www.ultimatecitrus.com/pdf/tncitrus.htm
http://www.hortnet.co.nz/publications/science/kk0991.htm

However, it can take 5-8 years to prouce fruit. Also, from what I've read citrus don't fruit until they've reached a certain number of buds away from the seed. (There's some threads in the Citrus forum that talk about this.) IAE, if you're growing it in a pot, and hence pruning it to keep it small, you'll probably never get fruit on it. If you want fruit you're better off buying a grafted tree that's already bearing.

You might also post your questions on the Citrus forum, as there are lots of folks who hybridize citrus and grow it from seed.

Here is a link that might be useful: Citrus Forum

Thanks all.

"hamilmk", my Tangelo is in a pot now and I guess I should keep changing pots as it grows? I don't think I will put it in the ground yet as I don't know if I will stay in this location. I don't see pruning it unless I don't like the shape, but this is a long way off I would suppose.

As far as fruit, I will not expect anything, however I would be delighted if it would produce just one of something. I planted these little seeds after eating a Tangelo with an office lunch. I got little encouragement, for its success, from co-workers but all the "negative nellies" were put in place when it popped it's little head out of the cup full of potting soil. I got three. One died, another looks sick, and this one is beautiful. I have grown quite attached to it. Silly huh? I keep it on my desk, moist and under a flouresent light to keep it warm at night.

How will I know when it is time to re-pot it?

Jill