In this section you will find citruses, of which I have only several samples or are separate members of the genus Citrus
La Vallette Citrus aurantifolia (Christm.) Swingle Kyselý lajm
La Valette, Lavalette, Valleta
'La Vallette' is most probably a natural mutation that was found in Malta. According to many growers this variety is specific for its cold tolerance up to 0°C.
The tree is not very vigorous, nor has it dense crown, but its branches are covered with nice, tiny thorns. It has smaller, oval leaves with slightly serrated edges. It has an ability to bloom and fruit throughout the year and is especially high yielding. Flowers of 'La Vallette' are tiny and white, its fruit is slightly bigger, either spherical or egg-shaped with thin and smooth rind and extremely juicy flesh.
It has a tendency to cast the leaves immediately as they are colored during the resting period in colder climates. 'La Vallette' is very interesting landscaping plant and is widely grown indoors in France.
Pomum Adami Citrus aurata Risso Kříženec citroníku a šedoku
Adam's apple, d'Adam, du Paradis, Pomme d'Adam, Pomme du Paradis, Pomo d'Adamo
'Pomum Adami' is a citrus with very enormous fruit. It was referred to as C. limonum var. pomum-adami for a long time and is called 'Pomme ď Adam' ("Adam's apple ") even nowadays in France. According to Gallesio (1811) it belongs to a group of hybrids he called "Lumia". Gallesio also wrote that it could be a cross of orange tree and limone cedrato that had been known since ancient times. Marco Polo found this variety in Persia (nowadays Iran) in 1270 and Arabs brought it to Palestine in the 12th century. It was also mentioned in the book "Histoire de Jerusalem" (History of Jerusalem) of French author Jacques de Vitry written at the beginning of the 13th century. The book claims, that de Vitry saw it in Palestine, while on his travels he conducted because of the crusade and The Holy War. This variety was also later described by Agostin Del Riccio in 1595, Ferrari in 1646, Volkamer in 1708 and other famous botanists. According to the molecular analysis made on one plant by Italian researchers, original maternal plants involved in the first cross were shaddock, citron and lemon.
The tree grows to medium heights and is quite wide. It has a spherical crown with typically thornless branches or in some cases rarely some thorns on the branches. Large, spear shaped oval leaves sometimes have slightly serrated edges and arrow petioles. Flowers of 'Pomum Adami' are large, with a very attractive fragrance and cream white color with a hint of purple. They usually grow individually, but on the tips of young shoots almost exclusively in clusters. Spherical fruit is quite large, either with a nipple or without it, sometimes with a small neck. Its rind is light lemon yellow, almost always smooth, very thick and bitter. The pulp is inedible and very sour.
Fantastico Citrus bergamia Risso & Poit. Bergamot
'Fantastico' originates in Italy and is only recently discovered cultivar, priced more than other bergamots for its high yields and amount of essential oils in the rind.
It is a very vigorous tree with thornless branches and medium large, spear-shaped leaves with small wings on leaf petioles. It is much more reliable that another cultivar with varying yields - 'Castagnaro'. The white flowers are rather big, mainly growing in clusters and its fruit is spherical, not too small with yellow, thin and aromatic rind. Its essential oils are mainly used in aromatherapy and improving the Earl Grey tea. Harvest time is from December to January.
Daoxian Wild Citrus daoxianensis S. W. He & G. F. Liu Citrus
Daoxian huapiju
It originates in China and typical for this variety are small leaves with narrow petioles. The crown is however very dense. Its fruit is very small and has thick rind full of ridges.
Mountain Citrus halimii B. C. Stone Citrus
Kedangsa, Kedut, Kera, Som Chit Tai
Stone Citrus originates in Malaysia or Thailand. It was discovered in 1972. The tree is erect and quite vigorous. This variety is sometimes also referred to as citron.
Ichang Citrus ichangensis Swingle Ičang papeda
Adsae, Clon K, de Ichang, Huanong, Ichang Anthocyanné, Ichang Blanc, Ketsa Seupfu, ketsa shupfer, Ketsa-shupfu, Manao Prieo, Ma- ngua, Masan, Yeganzhi, Yichan chen
Citrus 'ichangensis' Swingle originates in China - Hubei, Sichuan and Yunnan provinces, but there is also a Californian form.
It is a small, not too vigorous shrub very resistant to drought. Its leaves are egg-shaped and have pointed tips. Leaf petioles are very long, sometimes as long as the leaf itself and have wide wings. Flowers of this variety are small when compared to other citruses and its young shoots are covered with thorns.
This cultivar is also considerably cold and frost hardy. It is said to survive winters as cold as -14°C in China and belongs to the northernmost growing citruses of all. It is successfully cultivated in central Great Britain and I can confirm that it survived -10°C for the duration of 3 hours without any problems.
Fruit of citrus 'ichangensis' Swingle is small (3-5cm), elliptic, probably as big as that of poncirus trifoliate and has a small nipple with a round ridge. The rind is typically yellow-green, pebbled, quite thick, holds well to the pulp and has lots of essential oils. Yellow-white pulp is very soft, inedible and not very juicy, but contains essential oils. It is often divided into 8 segments full of monoembryonic seeds that have excellent germination ratio.
Citrus 'ichangensis' Swingle is an excellent rootstock for lemons. USSR experimented by crossing citrus ichangensis with various orange varieties, but unsuccessfully. The quality of juice was quite good, yet there was too much fruit falling off the tree. This variety's clone 'Hsiang Yüan' has large fruit with many seeds (up to 60).
Yuzu Citrus junos Sieb. ex Tan. Ičandarin
Beni Yuzu, Jutzu, Kansu, Kanzu, Kinnosu, Mukaku-yuzu, N°1-754, To Yuzu, Toko yuzu
Yuzu Citrus is a natural cross of tangerine and ichang papeda. It was discovered in China, where it has been wildly growing for over 3500 years. This citrus has also been cultivated in cold regions Kochi and Tokushima in Japan for 1000 years and it successfully grows in high elevations of 1400m.
It is a shrub or semi vigorous tree with lots of thorns. It's leaves are spear shaped, pointed on the tip and slightly serrated, growing from a petiole with small wings. The petiole can be as long as 1/3 of the leaf. Young shoots have typically a hint of red. Yuzu Citrus is said to survive cold spells with temperatures falling all the way to -12°C. Its fruit is smaller or medium (4,5-7cm) and quite light for its size (only about 100g) with a flattened profile. Rind is yellow-green, yellow and sometimes also yellow-orange, very thick, pebbled, yet easy to peel, sweet and edible. It is often used as a food. Yuzu Citrus has amber yellow soft pulp with acidic flavor and lots of rather bitter essential oils. The main harvest is from October to March. This fruit replaces in some regions of the world classical lemons and limes. Fruit is used to make vinegar and citric acid in Japan and also during harvesting celebrations as a food supplement.
Yuzu Citrus is widely used as rootstock thanks to its rapid growth. It is suitable for growing in flats, if you have an option to overwinter it in a cold room. This citrus is also cultivated in other forms as 'Kinnosu', 'N°1-754', 'Xiecheng', 'Zhenchen'. These forms contain less seeds; some clones have bitter pulp, some of them acidic.
Yuzu Citrus lost its stable position as rootstock because of Poncirus trifoliata, but is still used for variety 'Tankan'
Karna Citrus karna Raf. Velkoplodý citroník
Karna nimbu, Kharna , Khatta, Khatta de I'Inde, Khatta Karna, Soh-sarkar
It's a very old Indian variety of unknown origin, a very specific type of tree and fruit resembling Rough lemon a Citrus aurantium and partially also lemons. Therefore it was known in the past as C. limonia Osbeck var. khatta Tan. It's main importance lies in its good grafting ratio; it is cultivated as a rootstock, mainly in India. However it doesn't reach the qualities of Rough lemon.
The tree is erect and very vigorous with small thorns on branches. Its leaves are very similar to those of lemon trees, but are slightly darker. Young shoots are usually purple and the medium large flowers have a hint of purple as well. Karna citrus blooms only once a year and has medium-sized fruit (7,5-8cm) of different shapes. Fruit is usually spherical, but also other shapes are quite usual, for example egg shape, the only almost constant element is the out-going nipple, which is however not typical for each shape of the fruit. Dark yellow-orange rind is around 11mm thick and tightly holding with the pulp. The surface of fruit is also pebbled or full of ridges and contains lots of essential oils. Its pulp is distinctively orange, with a tight structure. There's not much juice in it, but its flavor is excellent and resembles the flavor of sweet grapefruit with citrus aurantium aroma. The pulp is furthermore divided into probbaly 11 segments and hollow central column. It contains lots of polyembronic seeds.
Keraji Citrus keraji hort. ex Tan. Mandarina
In the past it was known as the variety C. nobilis Lour. subsp. suntara var. kagoshimensis. Prof. T. Tanaka gave it a status of botanical species.
The tree is vigorous, very wide, growing only to medium heights. Its fruit is neither big nor small (4,5-7,5cm) and has a distinctive ridge. Fruit's rind is dark yellow, quite pebbled, yet easy to peel. Its pulp is amber yellow, very soft, sweet and has around 9 segments with a hollow central column. There's also a fair number of seeds inside each fruit. Keraji citrus is cultivated in Japan, mostly because of its cold hardiness
Tahiti Citrus latifolia (Y. Tan.) Tan. Velkoplodý kyselý lajm
à gros fruit, de Perse, Green Lime, Page, Persa lime, Persian, Perský lajm, Sicilian, Tahitian, USDA Nº1, USDA Nº2, USDA-2, Venetico, Wilder, Wilder seedless
Tahiti citrus is considered to be a cross of sour lime and lemon/citron. It was first described in 1943 by Dr. H. J. Webber, who got it on Hawai'i. He also assumed that it came to Mediterranean area from Persia (Persian ‘Persa lime'). This variety is not cultivated in any of the countries that came out of Persia (Iran...) nowadays. Portugal sailors brought it to Brazil, from where it went to Australia sometime around 1824. Its name - 'Tahiti' - was chosen because it was brought to California sometime around 1850-1880 from Tahiti islands in French Ploynesia.
Tahiti citrus is much more attractive than sour lime 'West Indian' and it reached its commercial value during the WW1. It is almost undistinguishable from cultivar 'Bearss'.
It is a very vigorous tree or shrub with a dense crown and not too large, partially serrated dark green leaves. It has also fair amounts of thorns on the branches. The flowers of these trees are quite large, often 2,5cm. Tahiti citrus is as cold sensitive as ordinary lemons, it can be damaged by weak frosts of -3 and -4°C and is susceptible to citrus leaf spot disease. Another interesting fact about this variety is that it's triploid, meaning, that its fruit is completely seedless and resembles small lemons rather than limes. Fruit of Tahitit citrus is small or medium (4-7cm) and elliptic. It has thin rind rich in essential oils, yellow-green, when it ripens during the winter. The pulp is usually yellow, soft and very juicy (55% of jucies) and sour (5-6% of acids) with typical lime flavor. The pulp is usually divided into 10 to 11 segments and the fruit doesn't stay long on the tree when ripe. Therefore it is harvested as green and ripens not on the tree. Fruits tend to crack on the tip when extremely ripe.
This variety is suitable for growing in pots. Although its clone 'Persian' lacks the superior aroma and flavor of Tahiti citrus, it is widely cultivated in USA, because of its slightly better cold resistance and tolerance. It is also more vigorous and it leaves and petioles are larger. Tahiti citrus is also widely grown in Mexico and the main harvest time is from May to September.
This variety also gains popularity on the eastern coast of Australia. The best rootstocks for this cultivar are 'Alemow' or Rough lemon, also Citrange in Mexico and citrus aurantium in our climate (citrus aurantium also carries the risk of trsitesa disease). Tahiti citrus came to our region probably in 1940 along with a shipment of tulips from the Netherlands. Mr. Rudolf Rada, who worked in the garden centre in Roudná u Plzně had grown it since then until he gave other people all over the republic enough cuttings.
Virus free clones 'USD N°1' and 'USDA N°2' come from Dr. James Childs, USDA in Orlando, Florida. The variety 'Bearss' is sometimes referred to as a clone of Tahiti citrus.
Tavares Limequat Lajmkvat
Tavares is a cross of sour lime 'West Indian' ('Mexican') and kumquat 'Nagami', it was bred in 1909 by Dr. W. T. Swinglem in Florida and named after the city Tavares.
It is a vigorous tree with pink blossoms. Average fruit is about 3,5-5cm long and oval, with a small neck and smooth, thin, aromatic and yellow rind. Its pulp is very juicy, sour and devided into 7-8 segments with 6-11 large seeds. Tavares fruit is harvested from November to March. From the three limequats 'Eustis', 'Lakeland' and 'Tavares' is Tavares the least successful.
Palestine Citrus limettioides Tan. Sladký lajm
Balady, Boussora, de Palestine, di Palestina, Dolce Indiana, Douce, Douce de Palestine, Dulce, Dulce Palestina, Helou, Chaksi, Indian Sweet, Kieffer, Limun helou, Limun succari, Limûn Helou Succari, Mitha nimbu, Mitha-kaghzi, Palestine sweet, Sidi amer, Sweet, Trabelsi, Tree 1-2-5, Wahi, Weirick
Palestine citrus tree is erect, quite vigorous tree growing mostly vertically. It has lots of branches with many thorns and is famous for its erratic growth. Its leaves are light green and not too large, oval and elliptic at the same time with round tip. Young shoots are entirely green. It has also tendency to shift the leaves to the pot. Its flowers are growing in clusters, are very aromatic and snow white. Palestine citrus fruit is medium (6-8cm), spherical and elongated or slightly elliptical. It is round in the base and sometimes has ridges separating a small nipple from the fruit. Its rind is thin, smooth and so well attached to the segments, that the segment line can be seen even on the surface of the fruit. It is typically difficult to peel and has yellow-orange color when ripe. Aroma of its essential oils is very intensive as well. The pulp is wheat yellow, soft, very juicy with a hint of bitterness. The flavor is not that intensive, because there's only very little acids in the fruit. Furthermore is the pulp divided into 10-14 segments and its central column is hollow. Each fruit carries small amount of seeds.
This variety si cultivated in many gardens, but also houses and flats. Its fruit is used for refreshing juices and the tree is used as a rootstock in India, Israel (for orange tree 'Shamouti') and Palestine. It is said, that its fruits are much better than those of rough lemon.
Another interesting fact is that even though it shares certain similarities with the lndian lemon 'Kumaon' or Tunisian lime 'Sweet', it shares no common characteristics with classical sour lime. Palestine citrus is also a priced medicine, mainly because of its high amount of vitamin C. There are many clones, that have wither different rind, or don't have nipples, or different yields... Even nowadays the differences among the fruits grown in different locations are enormous. Fruit that grows in Californian desert has different size, rind color etc. than fruit grown in large coastal areas. This variety is known in India as 'Mitha nimbu', in Egypt as 'Limun helou' and 'Limun succari' and it's popular mostly among children. The clone 'Weirick' is smaller (5,5-6cm) with smaller neck, thick, range rind and pulp divided into 8-9 segments.
Alemow Citrus macrophylla Wester Příbuzný lajmu podobný citroníku či šedoku
Alemon, Alemow 4n, Alimau, Colo, Macrophylla, Variegata
It's a variegated variety originating in Germany.
Chinotto Citrus myrtifolia Raf. Činoto
à feuilles de myrte, a foglia di Bosso, Boxwood leaf chinoto, foglia di Bosso, Hardas, Chinets, Chinettos, Chinois, Chinotto hybrid, Chinotto variant, Myrte leaf, Myrtifolia, Myrtleleaf, Myrtle-Leaf
This cultivar originates in southern China and has been grown in Italy for many centuries. It's also cultivated in Algeria and Israel, known only as 'Hardas'. According to painter Nimbus this variety was also grown in the gardens of Medicej family in the 16th century. Agostino Del Riccio wrote in 1595: "the orange tree from China is a small plant, just like Spanish myrtle..." Ferrari described it as "Aurantium Sinense", J. Ch. Volkamer describes growing this variety in pots and jars during the whole year and writes about many clones of this variety, calling them "Arancio nano quasi agro" (not very sour small orange), "Arancio nana dolce" (sweet small orange), "Arancio da China nanino garbo" (lovely small orange from China), "Arancio detto Pomin di Dama" (orange called lady apple) or "Aranzo Nanino da China" (small orange from China).'Chinoto variegata' is very decorative and well yielding small or dwarf tree with dense, extremely symmetric crown and branches growing as if it was only a shrub. It's most distinctive characteristic are small, pointed, leathery leaves that resemble the leaves of myrtle; that's why it's sometimes also called "mortella" (Myrtus communis L.). Its branches are thornless and have small nodes. The leaves are typically dark green, but young shoots are purple and extremely decorative. Chinoto variegate blossoms all year long, but most of the blossoms appear in early spring or autumn. Small, white flowers along with the dark green foliage are extraordinary contrast show throughout the year. The fragrance of those wonderful flowers is usually compared to that of Arbutus. The spherical fruit weighs apx. 40-50 g and is about 3-5 cm long in diameter, slightly flattened on its poles, very decorative and primarily growing in clusters. It can remain on the tree for a very long time, even after ripening. The rind is dark yellow or orange, dark orange, when fully ripe and the fruit's pulp is sour and bitter at the same time, light orange, not very juicy and is divided into 9-10 segments with only a few seeds. Th fruit can hang on the tree even up to 2 years in some cases and are consumed with lots of sugar and candied. Italians also use this variety's fruit to prepare a very refreshing drink (Chinotto) and liqueurs, in Apt near Avignon, France is the fruit usually sold crystallized (with sugar) along with apricots, cherries and other fruits. Green, unripe fruit is put into salty water (or sea) upon harvesting and the essential oils are extracted from the rind. 'Chinoto variegata' is very decorative all year long and can easily be grafted on almost any rootstock. It is also suitable for growing in pots and jars, fruits regularly and thanks to its growing also ideal for growing as bonsai. The clone 'Boxwood leaf chinoto', which is grown in California, is rumored not to have any fruit.
Chironja Orangelo Oranželo
Clone 2-3, Clone 2-4, Clone 3-6, Djerook Sinonja
'Chironja orangelo' originates in Puerto Rico, where it was discovered in 1956 by Carlos G. Moscoso, it's most probably a natural hybrid of orange and grapefruit. It shares most of its characteristics with the latter mentioned above and that's the reason why it so often is classified as grapefruit. Its name is a combination of words; china, a local term for orange, and toronja, Spanish term for grapefruit. 'Chironja orangelo' is a vigorous tree that has thorns on young branches and its leaves resemble those of grapefruit very much, they are broad and have large wings on their petioles. It blossoms mainly in May or June, but flowers appear throughout the year. It begins to blossom for the first time after 6 years, the fruit usually grows individually, but some of them also in clusters, they hold well on the tree for a long time. Typical fruit is spherical, 8-9,5cm long in diameter, weighs about 290-310g and has a thick (9-11mm), smooth, yellow, slightly pebbled and easy to peel rind. The pulp is yellow-orange, thick, very juicy, before ripening also sour and bitter at the same time, after ripening swwet without the grapefruit's bitter flavor. It is typically divided into 9-13 segments and the central column is hollow, with a few (4-5) highly polyembrionic seeds. It is a favorite variety in Puerto Rico and the fruit is eaten either peeled and halved with a spoon or just the juice. The rind is usually candied.na
Nippon Orangequat Oranžkvat
This is an early variety, a cross of Unshiu tangerine and kumquat 'Meiwa'. It was crossbred in Washington and registered in 1932. It is a slowly growing, very attractive, high yielding and compact tree that is dwarf-sized and has dark green leaves. Fruit is average, bigger than kumquats (5-6cm) quite oval and egg-shaped. Its rind is quite thick and pebbled, dark orange and has sour pulp. The fruit resembles a large Kumquat and can stay on the tree several month after ripening.
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