The Tropical Fruit Forum

THE CLAIM: An extract from a bitter, fragrant citrus fruit called bergamot, commonly known as a flavoring in Earl Grey tea, can lower cholesterol with minimal side effects, Italian scientists say. It also boosts good cholesterol, reduces fatty deposits in the liver and lowers blood sugar, they add.

THE VERDICT: Bergamot has been shown to lower cholesterol in at least four seperate human studies published or presented at scientific meetings. But much of the work is authored by a group of Italian researchers who work closely with a company that sells the extract. Larger, independent studies in other countries are needed to confirm the results, other scientist say. Bergamot fruit grows on sunny slopes in Southern Italy and are rich in substances called flavonoids, which likely are the reason for its beneficial effects.Flavonoids are antioxidants, substances believed to reduce chemical reactions in the body that damage cells. Earl Grey tea likely contains too little bergamot to have a therapeutic effect, scientists say, though the tea is high in another class of antioxidant called catechins.

The insect attackes the new growth. Wish there was, but there is no organic method of  controlling Citrus leaf miner, short of screening the entire tree.  - Millet

Heritage Reserve navel oranges are grown exclusively within a small sub-section of California’s renowned Central Valley citrus-growing region—a narrow, 25-mile long area adjacent to the western foothills of Sequoia National Park. The orchards were planted between 1896 and 1960 to the original Washington variety and continue to be prolific to this day. Very limited supply; taste-tested and scored for flavor; naturally colored (no accelerated de-greening processes used).  LoBue's Heritage Reserve oranges, are expected to return to retail in February for a limited time.  The navels come from California groves that date back to 1896 and the Washington-variety bud wood, and have never been replanted.

The Valentine Pummelo is ripe around February 14.  If you ask at that time, I or another member will be able to help you. - Millet

http://abc30.com/news/large-fire-at-a-citrus-packinghouse-in-tulare-county/474291/

Millet

I agree with swimmingfree.  Galka, your tree is very healthy looking, well balanced, with a nice crop of fruit.  You  have taken very good care of the tree. Nice job. - Millet

The Greening disease that is plaguing Florida citrus growers is only getting worse.  In fact, this year's crop is likely to be the worst production year on record.  In the past 10 years, $230 million of state, federal and grower money has gone toward research but the crisis continues. - Millet

http://www.wfla.com/story/27841588/florida-citrus-growers-predicting-worst-crop-on-record-hoping-for-more-funding

I have had a Ponkan Mandarin for four +- years.  Up until a year ago the tree has been in a container, and unfortunately in an area that did not receive much direct sunlight.  A year or so ago I transplanted it from a container into the ground, and this year it has produced a  decent crop.   Unlike many citrus varieties that improves the longer they hang on the tree, Ponkan does not do this.  If left hanging, the fruit's quality gradually become  more and more inferior, plus Ponkan is highly alternate bearing.   Fruit remaining on the tree, encourages alternate bearing thus a crop reduction  the following year.   Ponkan is among the largest sized mandarins,  very easy pealing, and of good flavor.  The only draw back, if it is even a drawback, is that the fruit has seeds.    Anyway, I picked all the fruit and will see what the tree does this spring about flowering and fruit set. - Millet

. Tangerine is a common name with no botanical standing. Tangerines are one of four major types of mandarins; the other three are the satsuma, the Mediterranean and the king. The name tangerine is rarely used outside of the United States. Portuguese mariners returning from Southeast Asia introduced mandarins through Tangiers, Morocco, which led to the name. - Millet

http://www.theawl.com/2015/01/eat-the-grapefruit - Millet

The fruit is mature in late winter, it holds well on the tree into late spring, well past the season for conventional blood oranges. - Millet

Understanding the citrus species’ past to unlock a more disease-tolerant future

Citrus was first domesticated in Southeast Asia, then spread to Europe and the Americas via trade routes, and has ancestral roots that can be traced back to over five million years ago. Interestingly, the orange you may be eating today is thought to have originated from two wild citrus species, citrus maxima and citrus reticulata. For the last ten years, Dr. Fred G. Gmitter at the UF/IFAS Citrus Research and Education Center in Lake Alfred has been working collaboratively with citrus scientists from Brazil, France, Spain, Italy, and the United States to map the entire citrus genome.

Through traditional breeding methods like grafting, in which the scion (fruit-bearing part of the tree) is propagated onto the rootstock, the new tree will produce fruit quickly. However, the fruit will all be genetically identical, and unfortunately, that includes identical disease susceptibility.

“Citrus has incestuous genes— nothing is pure,” explains Dr. Gmitter. Since the modern cultivated citrus trees have such a “narrow genetic diversity,” Dr. Gmitter and his team of scientists hope to be able to use their new understanding of the citrus genome to identify sequences that will deploy genes for resistance to citrus greening, the devastating disease caused by bacterial infection via the Asian citrus psyllid. Dr. Gmitter’s genetic analysis of sweet and sour oranges was published recently online in the journal Nature Biotechnology. He is the chairman of the International Citrus Genome Consortium and has employed the efforts of US GENOSCOPE France and IGA Italy to sequence a full catalog of all genes in those varieties, as well as the DNA structure of the genome.

The wild species citrus maxima gave rise to the modern pummelo, the largest citrus fruit, which can weigh up to four pounds or even more. Today’s modern mandarins are genetic mixtures of Citrus reticulata and pummelo; sweet oranges are a complex hybrid, constituted by parts of the pummelo and mandarin genomes. Because sweet orange is the world’s most commonly grown citrus species, the benefits of researching its ancestral roots are endless. Dr. Gmitter explains, “Now that we understand the genetic structure of sweet orange, for example, we can imagine reproducing early citrus domestication using modern breeding techniques that could draw from a broader pool of natural variation and resistance.”

Dr. Gmitter’s tireless work to map the entire citrus genome has enabled him and his team to now use that information to work on finding the genetic sequence in sweet orange that can be manipulated to improve the tree’s disease resistance, response to environmental stress, fruit flavor, and even health-promoting benefits. Genetic modifications that could potentially eradicate citrus greening are now on the horizon!

Dr. Gmitter’s full publication can be viewed here: http://www.nature.com/nbt/journal/v32/n7/full/nbt.2906.html

Millet

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/os-pictures-citrus-freezes-in-central-florida-20141223-photogallery.html

Note: Be sure to click on "Show Caption". - Millet