Fun Facts

Citrus Fruits & The Environment 

Florida Citrus Groves are very friendly to the Environment ~ 

Florida Citrus Growers are good neighbors and good stewards of the land. They are keenly aware that they must carefully balance the needs of the environment and the needs of citrus growing. This delicate balance starts in the basic design of the groves, and then to the use of the latest technology and the most progressive management practices. All these factors enable Florida Citrus Growers to be sustainable. Growers carefully manage the water resources through state-of-the-art low volume computerized irrigation systems, spraying water directly to the root zone.

Citrus Groves also help our water supply in other ways. Consider what happens when it rains on a grove — the water seeps down into the ground, which recharges the aquifer. In addition, on-site water retention areas, in the flatwood groves, hold excess stormwater and reduce nutrient runoff, another way that water quality is enhanced. Modern grove design leaves large tracts of land undeveloped. These areas provide excellent wildlife habitat, as well as a natural buffer, between farm lands and urban development. A recent University of Florida study reported more than 159 native species of wildlife were observed within grove eco-systems. The Florida Panther Habitat Protection plan indicates that over half the endangered panthers are utilizing privately owned property.

Another positive impact that citrus groves have on the environment is the amount of carbon dioxide that citrus trees take in and oxygen that they return to the air. A University of Florida study found that for every acre of mature citrus trees, 16.7 tons of oxygen are produced per year, from 23.3 tons of carbon dioxide. Multiply that by 860,000 acres of citrus trees, you can see that the citrus industry makes a major contribution to our air quality.

Citrus Fruits & Your Health ~

The health benefits of lemon are attributed to its vitamin C content that helps improve the skin quality, encourages weight loss, improves digestion, and acts as a breath freshener. Lemons also help with the treatment of constipation, dental problems, throat infections, fever, burns, respiratory disorders, and high blood pressure, while also benefiting your hair. Known for its therapeutic property through the generations, lemon also helps to strengthen your immune system.

Lemon juice, especially, has several health benefits associated with it. Even more, as a refreshing drink, lemonade helps you stay calm and cool. Lemon is a fruit that contains flavonoids, which are composites that have antioxidant and cancer-fighting properties.

Citrus Family Tree ~ Daniel Stone National Geographic

Citrus in many ways, stands alone. So many cultivated species have come from so few primary ancestors. Just three, in fact: citrons, pomelos, and mandarins, all native to South and East Asia before they started their journeys west, to places like Florida, California, and Brazil that built entire economies around fruits from the other side of the world.

Such simple lineage is the result of impressive commonality. Almost all citrus has the rare genetic combination of being sexually compatible and highly prone to mutation. Such traits allow their genes to mix, for thousands of years on their own, and eventually, at the hands of humans. The product of so much natural crossing in the wild and selective breeding at research farms and in fields is every orange, lemon, lime, and grapefruit you’ve ever eaten.

No other fruit genus can boast such pedigree, and new research is bringing clarity to the origin of citrus. Grapefruits are a human discovery, less than 300 years old. But citrus itself is ancient. Fossilized leaves discovered in China’s Yunnan Province in 2009 and 2011 suggest citrus has existed since the late Miocene epoch, as many as seven million years ago. Humans, however, have brought a great winnowing: Out of thousands of wild types, only a few dozen have become commercial behemoths like the navel orange, Eureka lemon, and Mexican lime. They’re the citrus one percent.

The scientists who study citrus love it for its appeal, its mystery, and its drama. “There’s something fascinating, freaky, even sexy about citrus,” says pomologist David Karp, whose research informs the above illustration. A bacterial disease called huanglongbing (a.k.a. citrus greening) that causes plants to defoliate, decay, and eventually die, is threatening commercial production on every arable continent, including North America, where the disease arrived in 2005.

Yet a fruit group of such illustrious history won’t be exterminated so easily. The future is likely to bring more types of citrus, not fewer. “Citrus is competitive,” says citrus breeder and geneticist Fred Gmitter, explaining how global researchers race to develop, say, mandarin oranges that are sweeter, seedless, and easier to peel. “In the near future you’ll see a lot of outside-the-box new stuff.” And, an ever expanding family tree