Kumquats, or cumquats in Australian English, are a group of small, angiosperm, fruit-bearing trees in the family Rutaceae. Their taxonomy is disputed. They were previously classified as forming the now-historical genus Fortunella or placed within Citrus, sensu lato. Different classifications have alternatively assigned them to anywhere from a single species, Citrus japonica, to numerous species representing each cultivar. Recent genomic analysis defines three pure species, Citrus hindsii, C. margarita and C. crassifolia, with C. × japonica being a hybrid of the last two.
Citrus is a genus of flowering trees and shrubs in the rue family, Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as oranges, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and limes. The genus Citrus is native to South Asia, East Asia, Southeast Asia, Melanesia, and Australia. Various citrus species have been used and domesticated by indigenous cultures in these areas since ancient times. From there its cultivation spread into Micronesia and Polynesia by the Austronesian expansion ; and to the Middle East and the Mediterranean via the incense trade route, and onwards to Europe and the Americas.
A clementine is a tangor, a citrus fruit hybrid between a willowleaf mandarin orange and a sweet orange, named in honor of Clément Rodier, a French missionary who first discovered and propagated the cultivar in Algeria. The exterior is a deep orange colour with a smooth, glossy appearance. Clementines can be separated into 7 to 14 segments. Similar to tangerines, they tend to be easy to peel. They are typically juicy and sweet, with less acid than oranges. Their oils, like other citrus fruits, contain mostly limonene as well as myrcene, linalool, α-pinene and many complex aromatics.
The mandarin orange, also known as mandarin or mandarine, is a small, rounded citrus tree fruit. Treated as a distinct species of orange, it is usually eaten plain or in fruit salads. Tangerines are a group of orange-coloured citrus fruit consisting of hybrids of mandarin orange with some pomelo contribution.
The tangelo, Citrus × tangelo, is a citrus fruit hybrid of a Citrus reticulata variety, such as mandarin orange or tangerine, and a Citrus maxima variety, such as a pomelo or grapefruit. The name is a portmanteau of 'tangerine' and 'pomelo'.
Citrus unshiu is a semi-seedless and easy-peeling citrus species, also known as the satsuma mandarin or Japanese mandarin. During the Edo period of Japan, kishu mikans were more popular because there was a popular superstition that eating Citrus unshiu without seeds made people prone to infertility. Citrus unshiu became popular in Japan after modernization started in the Meiji period. It was introduced to the West from the Satsuma region of Japan in 1878.
The Key lime or acid lime is a citrus hybrid native to tropical Southeast Asia. It has a spherical fruit, 2.5–5 centimetres in diameter. The Key lime is usually picked while it is still green, but it becomes yellow when ripe.
The tangor is a citrus fruit hybrid of the mandarin orange and the sweet orange. The name "tangor" is a formation from the "tang" of tangerine and the "or" of "orange." Also called the temple orange, its thick rind is easy to peel and its bright orange pulp is sour-sweet and full-flavoured.
Dekopon (デコポン) is a seedless and sweet variety of satsuma orange.
Ponkan ; Citrus poonensis; "Chinese Honey Orange") is a high-yield sweet Citrus cultivar with large fruits in the size of an orange. It is a citrus hybrid, though it was once thought to be a pure mandarin.
The mandarinquat, also misleadingly called orangequat, is any cross between a mandarin and a kumquat. Mandarinquats are members of the citrofortunella group.
An orange is a fruit of various citrus species in the family Rutaceae ; it primarily refers to Citrus × sinensis, which is also called sweet orange, to distinguish it from the related Citrus × aurantium, referred to as bitter orange.
The Kinnow is a high yield mandarin hybrid cultivated extensively in the wider Punjab region of India and Pakistan.
The Kojiki and Nihon Shoki, compiled in the 700s, were the first books in Japan to describe citrus fruits. The Nihon Shoki states that a man named Tajimamori brought back citrus fruits from the Tokoyo no kuni on the orders of Emperor Suinin, which is thought to refer to the tachibana orange that grows wild in Japan. The Man'yōshū, a collection of poems from the same period, contains many poems about tachibana orange, and because of its strong acidity at the time, it was dried and used for medicinal and ornamental purposes rather than for food. The Kokin Wakashū, compiled in the 900s, mentions that tachibana orange was burned and used as incense to give a nice fragrance to kimonos. In Japan, tachibana orange is a symbol of eternity and is the motif for the Order of Culture.
The kishu mikan is a hybrid variety of mikan, or mandarin orange, found in Southern China and also grown in Japan. It is more closely related to the mandarin orange than the common sweet orange.
Setoka is a seedless and highly sweet Japanese citrus fruit that is a tangor, a hybrid of the Murcott tangor with "Kuchinotsu No.37", which in turn is a hybrid of the Kiyomi tangor and a King tangor/Willowleaf mandarin cross, "Encore No. 2". It was registered as "Tangor Nōrin No.8" in 1998 and as "Variety registration No.9398" under the Plant Variety Protection and Seed Act in 2001. It weighs 200–280 g (7.1–9.9 oz) and has an oblate shape. The rind is thin and easily peelable. Its flavor is pleasant, aromatic, and similar to the Murcott. The fruit ripens in February. Its sugar level is very high at 12–13 °Bx whereas its citric acid is low (0.8–1.0%).
A mandelo is a citrus fruit that is smaller than a grapefruit, has yellow or yellow-green coloured skin and bright yellow or yellow-orange flesh, but is sweeter than a grapefruit.
Reikou is a cultivar of tangor. It is a citrus hybrid of a hybrid of Kiyomi and Encore and Murcott tangor.
Citrus taxonomy refers to the botanical classification of the species, varieties, cultivars, and graft hybrids within the genus Citrus and related genera, found in cultivation and in the wild.
Tsunonozomi is a tangor cultivar grown in Japan.
