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On the subject of oranges
The question about Jaffa and navel oranges got me thinking and googling to see where orange "species" were native to and I was quite surprised to discover that there is no such thing as a natural orange tree!
The orange is not a species! There are no wild oranges anywhere in the world. All species of oranges have been artificially cultivated. The latin name Citrus sinensis Osbeck, is a name of convenience created by horticulturalists and shunned by most taxonomists. The name Citrus X aurantium--belongs to sour and sweet oranges, as well as grapefruit, indicating their hybrid status. The orange is believed to be an artificially created cross between a pomelo (Citrus maxima) and a tangerine (Citrus reticulata). Well fancy that then! |
Re: On the subject of oranges
bah next you will be telling me money trees arnt real either :(
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Re: On the subject of oranges
Ok I'm intrigued now.
When were they first cultivated?? |
Re: On the subject of oranges
Maximus Reticulata juice for breakfast anyone?
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Re: On the subject of oranges
Possibly during the 9th or 10th century by Arabs in Sicily - the Arab name for them is naranj.
Can't you just see the scene? English tourists on holiday in 9th century Sicily - wife sees a new strange fruit on the market and says to hubby. "Ask him what that is." English tourist: What's that? Sicilian Arab: It's a naranj. English tourist to wife: He says it's an orange. |
Re: On the subject of oranges
Lol at the English couple.:)
Well I never. Not that I have pondered it a lot, but I always imagined they would have had an orange after running the Marathon in ancient Greece. We live and learn. |
Re: On the subject of oranges
All right, so forgive my ignorance but I think I need to know more.
Where do tangerines come from and are there wild ones? What's a pomelo? Does naranj mean the colour orange or do they have a different name for the colour? |
Re: On the subject of oranges
I presume there must be wild tangerines because they are a recognised genus (?). I think they originate in China. A pomelo is a sort of grapefruity like thing and they sometimes sell them at ASDA but I haven't seen any for ages. They are often a funny shape like a dumpy fat pear but with a citrus fruit skin and yet inside they are courser than most other citrus fruits and you sometimes have to peel the skin off each segment if it's too tough. I love them. I have no idea if naranj is also the name of the colour. I shall have to look into that.
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Re: On the subject of oranges
Thanks Willow my daughter will be happy if a bit bemused but then that is the fun of learning.
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Re: On the subject of oranges
I learn ever such a lot from going off on tangents from other people's posts on AccyWeb. I love learning new things and find myself being surprised at thngs I thought I knew which turn out to be totally different in the end (like Lewis Carroll).
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