Orange Botanical information and terminology

All citrus trees belong to the single genus Citrus and remain almost entirely
interfertile. This includes grapefruits, lemons, limes, oranges, and various other
types and hybrids. As the interfertility of oranges and other citrus has produced
numerous hybrids and cultivars, and bud mutations have also been selected, citrus
taxonomy is fairly controversial, confusing or inconsistent.[10][12] The fruit of
any citrus tree is considered a hesperidium, a kind of modified berry; it is
covered by a rind originated by a rugged thickening of the ovary wall.[13][14]

Different names have been given to the many varieties of the genus. Orange applies
primarily to the sweet orange – Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck. The orange tree is an
evergreen, flowering tree, with an average height of 9 to 10 m (30 to 33 ft),
although some very old specimens can reach 15 m (49 ft).[15] Its oval leaves,
alternately arranged, are 4 to 10 cm (1.6 to 3.9 in) long and have crenulate
margins.[16] Sweet oranges grow in a range of different sizes, and shapes varying
from spherical to oblong. Inside and attached to the rind is a porous white tissue,
the white, bitter mesocarp or albedo (pith).[17] The orange contains a number of
distinct carpels (segments) inside, typically about ten, each delimited by a
membrane, and containing many juice-filled vesicles and usually a few seeds (pips).
[18] When unripe, the fruit is green. The grainy irregular rind of the ripe fruit
can range from bright orange to yellow-orange, but frequently retains green patches
or, under warm climate conditions, remains entirely green. Like all other citrus
fruits, the sweet orange is non-climacteric. The Citrus sinensis group is
subdivided into four classes with distinct characteristics: common oranges, blood
or pigmented oranges, navel oranges, and acidless oranges.[19][20][21]

Other citrus groups also known as oranges are:

Mandarin orange (Citrus reticulata) is an original species of citrus, and is a

progenitor of the common orange.
Bitter orange (Citrus aurantium), also known as Seville orange, sour orange
(especially when used as rootstock for a sweet orange tree), bigarade orange and
marmalade orange. Like the sweet orange, it is a pomelo x mandarin hybrid, but
arose from a distinct hybridization event.[22]
Bergamot orange (Citrus bergamia Risso), grown mainly in Italy for its peel,
producing a primary essence for perfumes, also used to flavor Earl Grey tea. It is
a hybrid of bitter orange x lemon.[23]
Trifoliate orange (Poncirus trifoliata), sometimes included in the genus
(classified as Citrus trifoliata). It often serves as a rootstock for sweet orange
trees and other Citrus cultivars.[24]

Mandarin Oranges

An enormous number of cultivars have, like the sweet orange, a mix of pomelo and
mandarin ancestry. Some cultivars are mandarin-pomelo hybrids, bred from the same
parents as the sweet orange (e.g. the tangor and ponkan tangerine). Other cultivars
are sweet orange x mandarin hybrids (e.g. clementines). Mandarin traits generally
include being smaller and oblate, easier to peel, and less acidic.[25] Pomelo
traits include a thick white albedo (rind pith, mesocarp) that is more closely
attached to the segments.

Orange trees generally are grafted. The bottom of the tree, including the roots and
trunk, is called rootstock, while the fruit-bearing top has two different names:
budwood (when referring to the process of grafting) and scion (when mentioning the
variety of orange).[26]