CITRUS 



CITRUS 



783 



tip, with a hollow core when fully ripe; pulp acid, mem- 

 branes with a bitter taste, segms. 10-12; seeds cuneate- 

 oval, flattened, with raised lines, white inside. The 

 sour or Seville orange is grown all over the world. It 

 is able to withstand more cold than most of the other 

 citrous frs. and is rarely forced into new growth by warm 

 weather occurring in winter. The sour orange is found 

 in a thoroughly naturalized condition in many parts 

 of Fla. where it doubtless was brought by the Spaniards. 

 Most of these wild sour orange trees were dug up and 

 transplanted for use as stocks when orange-culture was 

 being rapidly extended some 25-30 years ago. The 

 Seville orange, as its name would indicate, is grown on 

 a commercial scale in the vicinity of Seville, Spain, 

 whence the frs. are shipped in large quantities to Eng- 

 land and Scotland for use in making orange marma- 

 lade, for which this species is best adapted. The petals 

 yield a valuable perfume, oil of Neroli, which is pro- 

 duced in the south of France and the Italian Riviera. 

 The peel of the fr. is sometimes candied and, when 

 fresh, yields an essential oil. The sour orange is grown 

 in a small way in Fla. for home use, the frs. being used 

 for making "orangeade." In the U. S. the sour orange 

 is used almost exclusively as a stock on which to bud 

 other citrous fr. trees. The seeds are in demand by 

 nurserymen at a good price for this purpose. The 

 sour orange is well adapted to grow on a great variety 

 of soils but is especially well fitted for low wet soils, 

 where it is valuable because it is immune to the 

 mat di gomma or foot-rot so destructive to the 

 common orange and lemon on such soils. There are no 

 named varieties of the sour orange in cult, in the U. S. 

 Mutations: The so-called Citrus myrtifolia, a narrow- 

 Ivd. form with spineless twigs and short internodes, 

 bearing small flattened sour oranges is a mutation 

 arising from the root of the sour orange. Chinotto (the 

 Chinoise of the French confectioners). This is a 

 broader-lvd. form of the above described mutation. 

 It is cult, along the northern shore of the Medit. from 

 Genoa to Toulon, yields the small green frs. used for 

 candying. This variety, which should be called the 

 Chinotto, is being tested in the U. S. and may prove 

 adapted for commercial culture on a small scale in 

 this country. Hybrids: Bittersweet. A good-sized tree 

 occurring wild in Fla., is undoubtedly a hybrid between 

 this species and the following. Frs. oblong, flattened 

 at the ends; pulp sweet, but the membranes sepa-- 

 rating the segms. have a bitter taste. The fr. ripens very 

 late on some trees and keeps well on the tree. 



6. sinensis, Osbeck (C. Aurdntium var. sinensis, 

 Linn. C. Aurdntium, Lour, et Auct., not Linn.). 

 COMMON or SWEET ORANGE. Fig. 977. A medium- 

 sized tree, with a rounded top and regular branches: 

 spines, when present, slender, flexible, rather blunt: 

 Ivs. medium-sized, rounded at the base; pointed at the 

 apex; petiole narrowly winged, articulated both with 

 the blade and the twig: fls. medium-sized, smaller than 

 those of the sour orange, white in the bud; petals white 

 on both surfaces; stamens 20-25; ovary subglobose, 

 clearly delimited from the deciduous style: fr. sub- 

 globose or oval, pith solid, pulp sweet, membranes not 

 bitter in taste, segms. 10-12 or 13 in number; seeds 

 cuneate-ovoid with rugose margined plane surfaces, 

 white inside. The common or sweet orange is widely 

 cult, in all the tropical and subtropical regions of the 

 world. It is rather tender, not so hardy as the sour or 

 Seville orange, but much more cold-resistant than the 

 lemon or lime. A very few orange trees occur in a semi- 

 wild state in S. Fla. Sweet oranges were doubtless 

 intro. into Fla. by the Spaniards nearly four centuries 

 ago and, as they were prop, by seeds until within the 

 last half-century, many local varieties have arisen 

 there. Orange-culture has reached its highest develop- 

 ment in S. Calif., Where it constitutes one of the most 

 important agricultural industries. Fla. is second only 

 to Calif, in the extent and value of the orange groves, 



977. Citrus sinensis. 



while some oranges are grown in favored spots in La., 

 Texas, and Ariz. Oranges are the best known and 

 probably the most highly esteemed dessert fr. A few 

 are used in cooking and the peel is sometimes candied. 

 An essential oil is also pressed from the peel. The 

 sweet orange is commonly used as a stock on which to 

 graft other species of citrous frs. It grows well on light 

 well-drained loam or sandy loam soil. On heavy soil it 



is subject to the mal 

 di gomma or foot- 

 rot. Very many 

 varieties are in 

 cult. Some of the 

 principal sorts 

 grown in the U. S. 

 are listed here. (1) 

 Florida seedlings 

 varieties originated 

 in Fla. as a result 

 of prop, oranges 

 from seed, mostly 

 strong-growing 

 trees: Parson 

 Brown. Frs. me- 

 dium-sized, very 

 early. Pineapple. 

 Frs. medium or 

 large, very juicy; 

 seeds rather numer- 

 ous : midseason : tree 

 a strong grower. 

 Homosassa. Frs. medium-sized, very juicy : a good bearer 

 and keeper: tree nearly thornless. Madam Vinous. Frs. 

 medium or large; pulp coarse-grained, juicy; midseason. 

 Nonpareil. Frs. rather large, flattened; pulp fine-grained, 

 juicy: tree vigorous. Also Arcadia, Summit, Foster, 

 Hick, Magnum Bonum, May, Old Vini, Osceola, Stark, 

 Whittaker, and very many others of the same general 

 type. (2) Florida mutations or hybrids new sorts 

 originated in Fla., usually differing in some striking way 

 from the old Fla. seedling oranges, perhaps through 

 hybridization with foreign varieties. Boone (Boone's 

 Early). Frs. medium size, strongly oval or oblong, 

 very juicy, very late, keeping well on the tree: Ivs. 

 with petioles varying in width. Lue Gim Gong. Frs. 

 oval, juicy, ripening very late and holding very well 

 on the tree, even until late summer. A variety newly 

 intro. into cult. Drake Star. A rare variety with varie- 

 gated foliage; usually a poor bearer but sometimes bear- 

 ing a good crop of excellent fr. (3) Mediterranean varie- 

 ties, largely intro. into Fla. by Sanford and Lyman 

 Phelps, about 30-40 years ago: Ruby. Frs. small or 

 medium-sized; peel red-orange; pulp streaked with red 

 when fully ripe, juicy; seeds rather few: rather late: 

 tree vigorous, nearly thornless, prolific. St. Michael. 

 Frs. medium-sized, oblong, red-blotched when ripe; 

 flesh wine-red; seeds few; rather early. Jaffa. Frs. 

 large, oblong, juicy; seeds few. Possibly not the same 

 as the celebrated orange of Jaffa, Palestine. Mediter- 

 ranean Sweet. Frs. large, oval, juicy, late: tree nearly 

 thornless. Majorca. Frs. round or slightly flattened, 

 juicy: rather late. Hart (Hart's Tardiff). Frs. round or 

 slightly oval, medium to large size, juicy; seeds few; 

 ripens very late : similar to the next and thought by 

 some to be identical. Valencia (Valencia Late). Frs. 

 medium to large, oval or rounded, juicy, nearly seed- 

 less, very late. A prolific variety, largely grown in Calif, 

 and held in cold storage until early autumn. There are 

 many other Medit. varieties of nearly or quite as much 

 value as some of the above, such as, Centennial, Du 

 Hoi, Joppa, Paper Rind, Prata, Saul Blood, St. Michael 

 (Blood), etc. The navel oranges all show a second 

 smaller more "or less included fr. formed at the tip of 

 the main fr. Many varieties are of foreign origin. 

 Washington (Bahia, Washington Navel). Fr. large, 

 rounded slightly, pointed at apex; flesh firm, juicy; skin 



