The madarinquat, also misleadingly called orangequat, is any cross between a

mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...

and a

kumquat Kumquats (; zh, 金桔), or cumquats in Australian English, are a group of small fruit-bearing trees in the flowering plant family Rutaceae. Their taxonomy is disputed. They were previously classified as forming the now-historical genus ''Fortun ...

(Fortunella crassifolia). Mandarinquats are members of the

citrofortunella Citrofortunella are a large group of commercial hybrids that cross the kumquat with other citrus. In the system of citrus taxonomy established by Swingle, kumquats were placed in a different genus, '' Fortunella'', from ''Citrus'', which included ...

group. The variety Nippon orangequat was first introduced in 1932 by Dr. Eugene May of the

USDA The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, and food. It aims to meet the needs of com ...

as a hybrid between the Meiwa kumquat and the Satsuma mandarin. A second variety, the Indio mandarinquat, was discovered as an open-pollinated seedling from a Nagami kumquat with an unknown pollen parent.

Description

This is a small, round, orange fruit, which is larger than a kumquat. The fruit ranges from in circumference. Mandarinquat trees are small to medium in size; the leaves are usually long and narrow and dark green in color. The trunk and branches of the trees are slightly narrow, given the size of the trees. These trees can be seen with fruits on them through many of the colder months, since that is the season for Mandarinquat growing. Mandarinquat have not been genetically altered to be resistant to

citrus canker Citrus canker is a disease affecting ''Citrus'' species caused by the bacterium ''Xanthomonas'' (''X.axonopodis; X. campestris''). Infection causes lesions on the leaves, stems, and fruit of citrus trees, including lime, oranges, and grapefruit ...

, a citrus disease that causes small round sores on the fruit and its tree. The Mandarinquat also has not been bred to be seedless; it has a fair amount of rather large seeds inside. Mandarinquat fruits are typically eaten whole, like Kumquats; when ripe the sweet skin contrasts with the rather tart pulp and juice.

Background

The Meiwa kumquat, a hybrid of a round and an oval kumquat, and the Satsuma mandarin are the two fruits that were used to parent the Nippon mandarinquat. Both of these fruits are able to withstand cooler climates, the meiwa being partially dormant in the winter months and the satsuma maturing in October to December. Since both of these citruses are able to grow in the colder season, the mandarinquat inherited that trait and is also grown and harvested in the colder seasons. Both of the parents of the mandarinquat are grown in many countries of the world, like China, Japan, South Africa, and the United States of America. In the United States, mandarinquat are mainly grown in the Southern states like Florida and Alabama; however, they are also grown in California and other Western states.

References

Citrus hybrids Kumquats Fruit trees {{fruit-stub