Many ancient travelers mentioned the pleasant appearance of citrus trees and fruit, although the fruit of citrus trees had not evolved to the point as an important staple food, the fragrance of all parts of citrus trees, including the flowers and fruit. , were desirable room perfumers and were thought to repel insects.
The presence of citrus fruits in Europe and the Middle East was thought to be natural native trees and shrubs, but historians believe that the ancestor of citrus trees, Citrus medica L., was introduced by Alexander the Great from India in Greece, Turkey. and North Africa at the end of the 4th century BC. C. The oldest citrus fruit was called “lemon”.
There are ancient clues from wall paintings in the Egyptian temple of Karnak that citrus trees had been growing there. There were other suggestions that citrus trees may have been familiar to the Jews during their exile and enslavement by the Babylonians in the 6th century BC. Although speculations suggest that the Hebrews knew and cultivated citrus, there is no direct mention in the Bible of citrus.
The first citrus record, Citrus medica L., in European history was made by Theophrastus, in 350 BC. C., after the introduction of the fruit by Alexander the Great.
In early European history, writers wrote about Persian citrus fruits, which had a wonderful fragrance and were thought to be a poisoning remedy, a breath sweetener, and a moth repellent.
Citrus fruits were well known to the ancient cultures of the Greeks and later the Romans. A beautiful ceramic tile was found in the ruins of Pompeii after the city was destroyed by a volcanic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79 Another mosaic in the ruins of a Roman villa in Carthage, North Africa, around the 2nd century AD clearly showed the fruit of a lemon and a lemon fruit growing on a tree branch.
Early Christian tile mosaics dating back to 300 AD. C. of oranges and lemon were shown in lemon yellow and orange colors surrounded by bright green leaves and freshly cut tree branches; The relics can still be seen in Istanbul, Turkey, in mosques that were once churches of Emperor Constantine.
It is not known how, where, or when today’s exceptional varieties of citrus trees, such as sweet orange, lemon, kumquat, lime, grapefruit, or grapefruit were developed, but there seems to be a general consensus of opinion that all These developments and improvements of citrus were obtained through natural and artificial selection and natural evolution. It is well known that the Romans were familiar with the sour orange, Citrus aurantium L. and the lemon tree, Citrus limon. After the fall of Rome to barbarian and Muslim invasions, Arab states rapidly expanded citrus and naturally improving tree cultivars throughout much of North Africa, Spain, and Syria. The spread of the sour orange, Citrus aurantium L., and the lemon, Citrus limon, extended the growth and planting of these trees on a global scale by sowing the seed, which produced citrus fruits very similar to the parent trees. The conquest of the Arab Crusades later spread citrus planting and cultivation throughout Europe.
The sweet orange, Citrus sinensis, appeared in the late 1400s, around the time of Christopher Columbus, who discovered America. After trade routes were closed when the Turks defeated the Eastern Roman Empire in 1453, based in Constantinople (Istanbul), many European kings began to seek alternative trade routes by sea to open ship trade with China and India. The introduction of the sweet orange tree in Europe changed the dynamics of the importance of citrus in the world. The voyage of the Portuguese explorer Vasco de Gamma recorded that in 1498 there were many orange trees in India and all the fruits had a sweet taste. The new variety of sweet orange, known as the “Portuguese orange” caused a dramatic increase in citrus planting, much like the much later appearance of the introduction of the “Washington Navel Orange” tree in California.
The lime, Citrus latifolia, was first mentioned in European history by Sir Thomas Herbert in his book, Travels, who recorded that he found “oranges, lemons, and limes” on the island of Mozambique in the mid-17th century. Today, linden trees are available in many cultivars.
In 1707, Spanish missions grew oranges, figs, quinces, pomegranates, peaches, apricots, apples, pear trees, blackberries, walnuts, and other trees according to horticultural documents.
The mandarin, Citrus reticulata, was described in Chinese history in the late 1100s, but was unknown in Europe, until it was brought from a mandarin province in China to England in 1805, where it quickly spread throughout Europe.
The grapefruit, Citrus grandis, also called shaddock and the ‘Adam’s apple’ was growing in Palestine in the early 1200s and was planted and cultivated by the Arabs. Grapefruit is believed to have an Asian origin and was planted as a seed in the New World.
The grapefruit, Citrus paradisi, is believed to have arisen as a mutation of the grapefruit tree. Grapefruits were so named because they grew in clusters like grapes, but were considered inedible by most gardeners until AL Duncan found a rare grapefruit seedling named Duncan grapefruit in 1892; the original tree is still alive and growing in Florida.
Christopher Columbus introduced citrus to the island of Haiti in 1493. It is believed that he brought citrus seeds to plant and grow sour orange, sweet orange, citron, lemon, lime, and grapefruit fruits. Records show that these citrus trees were well established in the American colonies around 1565 in Saint Augustine, Florida, and on the coast of South Carolina.
William Bartram reported in his celebrated botanical book, Travels, in 1773 that Henry Laurens of Charleston, South Carolina, who served as president of the Continental Congresses, introduced “olives, limes, ginger, strawberries, red raspberries, and blue grapes.” . in the colonies of the United States after the year 1755.
William Bartram in his book Travels, reported that near Savannah, Georgia, “it is interesting to note that until 1790, oranges were grown in some quantity along the coast, and in that year about 3000 gallons of orange juice were exported. “. “
Many of these wild orange trees were seen by the first American explorer, William Bartram, according to his book Travels, in 1773, while traveling down the Saint John River in Florida. Bartram mistakenly thought these orange trees were native to Florida; however, they were established centuries before by Spanish explorers.
The citrus industry began to develop rapidly in 1821 when the Spanish ceded their territories and their many orange groves to the United States. Wild orange orchards were worked with improved cultivars, and residents traveling to Florida realized how refreshing orange juice tasted; Thus began shipments of oranges, grapefruits, limes, and lemons that were shipped to Philadelphia and New York by rail and ship in the 1880s.
Spanish missionaries made extensive citrus groves in California; however, the commercial industry began to grow with the rise of the 1849 gold rush, and efforts to supply citrus to the San Francisco miners were successful. The completion of the Transcontinental Railroad further stimulated the citrus industry, as citrus could be shipped quickly to eastern markets. Subsequent improvements in refrigeration helped increase the cultivation and planting of citrus fruits, primarily oranges, lemons, and limes around the world in 1889.
Florida initially dominated citrus production in the United States, but due to some devastating frosts in 1894 and 1899, the Satsuma orange trees were virtually wiped out in the Gulf States. Thousands of acres of Satsuma orange trees were razed in Alabama, Texas, and Louisiana in the harsh frost of 1916; thus, citrus production in the United States began to shift from Florida to California.
Citrus is marketed around the world as a health benefit fruit containing vitamin C and many other vitamins and minerals in orange and citrus products, lime marmalade, fresh fruit, and frozen and packaged citrus juice concentrates. hot.
Copyright 2006 Patrick Malcolm
