What is an orange tree and how does it bloom?

The bright and juicy orange as we know it is a descendant of the citron and a hybrid form of mandarin and pomelo. Culture has a number of features that distinguish it from its “ancestors”. Taste, juiciness, color of pulp and peel vary depending on the variety. The most popular are oranges with orange peel and sweet-sour pulp, with or without seeds.

What an orange is, what it looks like, where it grows, what structural features of flowers, leaves and fruits it has, we will tell you in our article.

History of the origin of the orange

Scientists from the USA, Spain and France studied the origin of the Citrus genus. Research results showed that the first citrus trees appeared in Southeast and South Asia, then “migrated” to subtropical and tropical countries. As a result of cross-pollination, lemons, oranges, limes, grapefruits and tangerines.

DNA studies helped establish the approximate period of appearance of citrus fruits - about 8 million years. This is confirmed by the found fossils dating back to 8-6 million years BC. e.

A Chinese manuscript dated 1178 describes 27 varieties oranges and tangerines.

Scientists suggest that the orange is the result of crossing a tangerine and a pomelo.. The birthplace of the orange, like other representatives of citrus fruits, is Southeast Asia. The fruits have a special structure and are called hesperidia, like tangerines.The fruits of the orange tree received this name from the Greeks. One of the ancient Greek myths describes the garden of the daughters of Atlas - the Hesperides. It was there that fruits called golden apples grew.

Sweet orange came to Europe in the 15th century, thanks to Vasco Da Gama. According to one version, it was he who brought the citrus tree after traveling to India in 1429.

There is another version, according to which Europeans became acquainted with oranges thanks to the crusaders, who brought them from Palestine along with lemons.

Until the 18th century, oranges were grown only in greenhouses London, Paris, St. Petersburg. In Spain and Portugal, attempts were already made to grow trees in open ground, especially since the climatic conditions allowed.

Spanish and Portuguese colonialists contributed to the spread of the plant to Central and South America and West Africa. So the orange gradually conquered new territories and became the main fruit crop in the tropics and subtropics. Wild forms of the plant have not been found in nature.

Reference. The most extensive orange plantations are located in Brazil, Iran, Spain, India, USA, Mexico and China.

origin of name

There are several versions of the origin of the name of the plant:

1. Some researchers suggest that the name of the fruit comes from the English apple of sin - “apple of sin” or Adam’s apple. Scientists are sure that in the Garden of Eden Adam ate not an apple, but an orange. Other researchers of the etymology of the name see in this only an accidental phonetic consonance.
2. Most linguists are inclined to believe that orange is a “Chinese apple”, translated from Dutch appelsien (appel - apple, sien - China).

Is it a fruit or berry

Is an orange a fruit or a berry? According to the botanical description, an orange cannot be called a berry or a fruit.. In the scientific literature, the fruits of the orange tree are hesperidiums, multi-seeded, multi-locular fruits, but in structure they are still close to berries. The pulp is covered with a bright orange peel. These are characteristic features of other representatives of the Citrus genus: lemon, tangerine, grapefruit and pomelo.

Interesting things on the site:

Using tangerine peels for maximum benefit

Health benefits and harms of tangerines

What is pomegranate, is it a citrus or not?

Botanical description

Orange (lat. Citrus sinensis) is a fruit tree from the Citrus genus of the Rutaceae family, one of the most common citrus crops. in the tropics and subtropics. Orange is distinguished by a special structure of the root system and remarkable external characteristics.

There are two main varieties of orange:

• bitter or Seville (orange, bigardia) with a bitter and tart taste and a pronounced aroma;
• sweet Portuguese or Valencian - the most popular, sweet orange with a pleasant sourness.

Additionally allocate: Jaffa orange with thick, ribbed skin and navel orange (navel) with a protruding rudimentary fruit from under the peel. These are the juiciest oranges, with a sweet and sour refreshing taste.

What does a tree look like?

The tree is evergreen, tall, belongs to the tribe Citrus, subfamily Orange. When young, the crown is dense but compact.

Orange is a long-lived tree. At a young age it grows and develops quickly, the annual growth is 40-50 cm. The process of growing up and aging occurs slowly. The average life expectancy is 75 years.Some trees reach an age of 100-150 years, and have a large and spreading crown, like an oak.

Young shoots and branches have thorns and large thorns. The height of the tree depends on the variety, some forms reach 12 m in height, there are also dwarf forms - 4-6 m. Compact varieties 60-80 cm high are grown at home.

Root system

Rhizome - superficial, without root hairs. They are replaced by small cases with colonies of soil fungi. Microorganisms interact with the tree, forming a symbiotic relationship. Mushrooms receive amino acids and carbohydrates, and give away water and minerals that are available for absorption.

First of all, the tree is saturated with a large amount of phosphorusnecessary for normal development. Growing colonies of mycelium increase the yield of oranges, but they do not tolerate water shortages, low soil temperatures and are especially affected when the rhizome is exposed. Therefore, when grown in an open area, trees need additional moisture.

Leaves

The leaf blade is leathery and dark green in color.. The shape is pointed-oval. Size - 10x15 cm. Edges - solid, wavy or jagged. Small winged appendages are connected to the petioles through an intermediate joint.

Orange leaves contain glands containing essential oils.. Their aroma is similar to that of flowers.

One leaf lives for 2 years. More than 25% flies in February-March, another 25% throughout the year. Healthy trees shed only old leaves.

Oranges have one biological feature — foliage of different ages has different functions.Young foliage takes part in photosynthesis, while old leaves are unique reservoirs for nutrients, without which plant development, flowering and fruiting are impossible.

Under unfavorable conditions, the tree loses most of its old leaves, which leads to slow development, absence of flowers and ovaries.

Flowers

How does an orange blossom? Orange flowers are bisexual and large in size - about 5 cm in diameter.. The petals are white, less often reddish, elongated ovoid in shape. In the center of the perianth there is a long pistil surrounded by yellow stamens. Flowers form in the axils of leaves on young shoots growing horizontally or vertically.

Orange flowers are collected in brushes of 6 pieces, rarely grow alone, exude a strong, pleasant aroma. Flower buds appear in March-April. They remain in the bud stage for up to 30 days.

The petals open quickly, after which the fruits set. The process occurs at a certain air temperature +16…+18 °C. At low or high temperatures, the buds fall off. After opening, the flowers last 2-3 days. There are varieties without pistils, they bear fruit without seeds and do not require pollination.

Fruit

Fruit differ in their round or broad oval shape and structure, characteristic only of the orange subfamily. Their scientific name is hesperidia or oranges. They are multilocular, multi-seeded or seedless.

Let's look at what the orange fruit is made of. Outer shell or peel – soft, thick (5-6 mm), rough or smooth, covered with zest. The lower albedo layer is white and thin.

Depending on the varietal characteristics and degree of ripeness, the peel makes up 17-42% of the weight of the fruit. Color - green, light yellow, orange and red-orange. The taste is bitter, the structure is dense or loose. Large glands contain 1.2-2.2% essential oil.

Intercarp - the inner part consists of 9-13 segments covered with films. The pulp consists of large juicy cells (nipple sacs). The taste is sweet, sweet and sour or bitter and sour depending on the variety.

The fruiting period depends on the growing region. In the Northern Hemisphere, the season lasts from November to March, but depending on the area and variety, the harvest is harvested in September-October or April-May. In the Southern Hemisphere, oranges ripen in June-August.

Seeds

Remontability is another distinctive feature of orange. The tree blooms and bears fruit several times during one season. A blooming orange is simultaneously decorated not only with buds, but also with fruits of varying ripeness. Fruiting lasts 8-9 months.

Surprisingly when there is a lack of sunlight, ripe fruits remain on the branches for a long time, turn green again in the spring and turn yellow in the fall. The pulp of these oranges contains seeds. They are of high quality, but the taste and nutritional properties of such fruits deteriorate significantly due to the loss of biologically active substances.

Trees grown from seeds begin to bear fruit in an average of 8-12 years, sometimes after 15-20 years. Plants obtained from cuttings and grafted produce their first harvest in 4-5 years.

Reference. The FMA I.Ae aircraft was specially developed in Argentina to transport oranges. 38 Naranjero. The name translates as "Orange Merchant" and "Orange Man".

Conclusion

Oranges arose from the cross-pollination of mandarin and pomelo. The homeland of orange is Southeast Asia.The fruits have a special structure and the scientific name is hesperidium. The leaves and peel contain essential oils. The trees are characterized by remontability, that is, they bloom and bear fruit several times a season.

The fruits are set strictly at an air temperature of +16…+18 °C. Fruiting lasts 8-9 months depending on the area. For example, in Spain oranges are harvested in November-March, and in Brazil in June-August.