orange
Rich in vitamin C, oranges are a type of citrus fruit with fragrant, leathery skin and juicy flesh. The most commercially important types include the sweet (or common) orange, the sour (or Seville) orange, and the mandarin orange. The sweet orange is the most widely grown citrus fruit in the world. The large, seedless navel orange is a type of sweet orange. The sour orange is grown mostly for use in marmalade. Mandarins are small oranges that are usually eaten fresh. Some varieties of mandarins are called tangerines.
It is believed that oranges originally grew in the tropical regions of southeastern Asia. Major producers of oranges today include Brazil, the United States, China, Mexico, India, and Spain. Most of the oranges grown in the United States come from the states of Florida and California.
Orange trees grow best in regions with warm summers and light frosts during the winter. Long periods of cold weather can damage orange trees and fruits. The trees can grow in a wide range of soils, including sandy soils, but they tend to do poorly in shallow soils that hold a lot of water.
The sweet orange tree usually grows to about 20 feet (6 meters), but it can get bigger. It has glossy, evergreen leaves that are pointed at the tip and rounded near the twig. The branches have some small thorns. The flowers are small, white, and fragrant and have five petals. They grow alone or in clusters up to about six.
The size, shape, and color of orange fruits vary somewhat depending on the type. In general, oranges range in size from about 2 to 4 inches (5 to 10 centimeters) across. The peel may be a shade of orange or greenish yellow. The flesh is orange in most popular North American varieties. Blood oranges have red flesh and may have a red blush on their peel. The fruits are usually round, but mandarins are flattened at the top and bottom. The peel may be thick or thin, rough or smooth. It is dotted with oily glands that give the fruit a strong fragrance.
Inside an orange are eight or more wedge-shaped sections. The sections are packed with tiny sacs filled with juice. The flavor of the juice ranges from sweet to tart to sour. Most oranges have white seeds within the sections. Navel oranges are usually seedless.
Farmers grow oranges through a process called budding. This process involves attaching a bud from the desired type of orange tree onto a different citrus tree. The two trees then grow together. When the budded tops are 1 to 2 years old, the trees are large enough to plant in an orchard. In about three to four years budded trees begin to bear fruit. Orange trees can bear large amounts of fruit for at least 50 years.
Oranges ripen sometime between fall and summer, depending on the variety. They are picked when they are fully ripe because they do not continue to ripen after coming off the tree. Workers pick them by hand or use a machine to shake them off the trees. Oranges to be eaten fresh are sometimes exposed to a gas called ethylene, which brings out their orange color. They are also sprayed with a fine mist of wax to help them stay fresh longer.
People have found uses for most parts of an orange. The flesh is eaten as is or used in salads, sauces, meat dishes, desserts, and other foods. Juice squeezed from oranges is sold fresh or frozen. Orange peels may be candied and used in marmalade. Orange essence, which is an oil that comes from the peel, is used as a food flavoring or fragrance for scented products. A material called pectin, taken from the spongy white part of an orange, is used to make jams and jellies.
