Tangerine

A tangerine is a small orange fruit.

It tastes sweet and strong. It is not as sour as an orange. The skin is thin and bumpy. You can peel it with your hands.

People eat them in salads or desserts. You can also use the peel for baking. Some people drink the juice.

These fruits grow from autumn to spring. Most of them grow in China. The name comes from a port in Morocco.

They are a tasty treat to eat!

A tangerine is a small, orange fruit. It is a type of citrus fruit. Some say it is a mandarin orange. Others say it is a hybrid. A hybrid is a mix of two different types. A tangerine might mix mandarin orange and pomelo.

Tangerines taste sweet and strong. They are less sour than regular oranges. The skin is thin and bumpy. You can often peel them with your hands. People eat them in salads or desserts. You can also use the peel for baking. Many people drink the juice, too.

The name comes from Tangier. Tangier is a seaport in Morocco.

In 2021, China grew most tangerines. They grew 60% of the world total. A man named Major Atway grew them in Florida. He brought them from Morocco. He sold his groves in 1843. This led to the Moragne tangerine. One famous type is the Dancy tangerine. It is also called a zipper-skin tangerine. Dancys are delicate. They do not ship well. They are still grown for people to eat at home.

A tangerine is a small, bright orange fruit. It belongs to the citrus family. Some people call it a variety of mandarin orange. Others say it is a hybrid. A hybrid is a mix of different plants. This fruit might mix mandarin orange with pomelo.

Scientists use different systems to name them. One system calls it Citrus tangerina. Another system calls it a group of mandarin varieties. These fruits are very special to eat. They are sweeter and stronger than regular oranges. They are also less sour.

Peeling a tangerine is very easy. The skin is thin and pebbly. It does not have deep grooves. There is very little bitter white material under the skin. You can often peel them with your hands. People eat the fresh fruit in salads or desserts. You can even use the peel for baking. It can be used as a fresh or dried spice. Some people drink the juice or frozen juice concentrate. The best time to find them is from autumn to spring.

The name has a long history. It comes from a place called Tangier. Tangier is a seaport in Morocco. The word originally meant "of Tangier." This was because the fruit was shipped from there. In 1710, a writer used the name in a piece called The Tatler. In the 1800s, people called it Citrus nobilis var. tangeriana. This name showed it grew in the Tangier region.

Many people helped grow these fruits in America. A man named Major Atway first grew them in Palatka, Florida. He imported them from Morocco. In 1843, he sold his groves to N. H. Moragne. This created the Moragne tangerine. This fruit led to the Dancy tangerine. The Dancy is also called a zipper-skin tangerine. It is a very popular old variety. However, it is too delicate to ship easily. It can also get a fungus called Alternaria.

China is a very important place for these fruits. In 2021, China grew 60% of the world total. This total included mandarins and clementines. The world grew 42 million tonnes of these fruits in 2021. Tangerines are mostly made of water. They are about 85% water. They also have 13% carbohydrates. They have a good amount of vitamin C. This is about 30% of the Daily Value in one serving.

A tangerine is a small, bright orange citrus fruit. It is known for being sweeter and stronger than a standard orange. Most tangerines are also less sour than common oranges. Scientists have different ways to classify this fruit. Some see it as a specific variety of the mandarin orange, known as Citrus reticulata. Others view it as a separate species named Citrus tangerina. Many experts also consider it a hybrid. A hybrid is a plant created by mixing different species. In this case, it may involve mandarin oranges and pomelos.

The physical traits of a tangerine make it unique. A ripe fruit is firm or slightly soft to the touch. The skin is orange, thin, and pebbly. It does not have deep grooves on the surface. Under the skin, there is very little bitter white mesocarp. This mesocarp is the middle layer of the peel. Because the skin is thin, people often peel tangerines by hand. The peak season for these fruits lasts from autumn through spring. You can eat them fresh in salads or desserts. The peel can also be used as a spice or zest for baking.

The history of the name is tied to a specific place. The word tangerine originally meant "of Tangier." Tangier is a seaport in Morocco located on the Strait of Gibraltar. The name was used for fruit shipped from that port. A writer named Addison used the term in a work called The Tatler in 1710. During the 1800s, the fruit was known as Citrus nobilis var. tangeriana. This name reflected that the fruit grew in the Tangier region.

Cultivation in the Americas has a very specific history. A man named Major Atway first grew tangerines as a distinct crop in Palatka, Florida. He imported the plants from the port of Tangier in Morocco. In 1843, Atway sold his groves to N. H. Moragne. This led to the creation of the Moragne tangerine. This variety eventually produced a seedling called the Dancy tangerine. The Dancy is also known as the zipper-skin tangerine or kid-glove orange.

The Dancy tangerine was once very important in the United States. It was the most widely grown variety until the 1970s. Its popularity helped the word "tangerine" become a broad marketing name. Today, the Dancy is not grown much for big businesses. It is too delicate to handle or ship easily. It is also susceptible to a fungus called Alternaria. It also bears fruit heavily only in alternate years. However, people still grow it for personal use at home.

Florida grows many different tangerine hybrids today. Some of these are called tangors, which are mixes of tangerines and oranges. One important type is the murcott. This is a late-fruiting tangor often sold as a "honey tangerine." Another is the Sunburst, which is an early-fruiting hybrid. It mixes tangerine, orange, and grapefruit. There is also a three-way hybrid called the fallglo. Florida classifies many hybrid fruits as tangerines for sales and regulation.

Global production numbers show how important these fruits are. In 2021, the world produced 42 million tonnes of tangerines, mandarins, and clementines. China led the world by producing 60% of that total. The nutritional makeup of a tangerine is also quite specific. The fruit is 85% water and 13% carbohydrates. It contains almost no fat or protein. One serving provides about 30% of the Daily Value for vitamin C. This makes it a significant source of that micronutrient.